First chicks coming this week! Looking for advice from senior chicken owners.

[OreoPlymothRock]

Raccoons, foxes, Coyotes, fishers, mink, weasels and numerous hawk species are all a possibility here.

oh, and snakes and rodents too.

 

[tsmith91]

You are very welcome. I used the ACV with my chickens when they were chicks, it helped them a lot! Good luck with your first flock of chickens!

do you have to use the unfiltered acv or will ghe regular kind be ok?

 

[OreoPlymothRock]

do you have to use the unfiltered acv or will ghe regular kind be ok?

I get the Organic BRAGGS kind. It looks unfiltered, it has all the pulp on the bottom.

 

[JessMorris]

I like your brick idea. Thanks again

 

[JessMorris]

Wow Keesmom! Any advice to ward them off?

 

[JessMorris]

Thanks, I have that stuff in my kitchen so that will be easy peazy.

 

[keesmom]

Wow Keesmom! Any advice to ward them off?

Not really, other than to pen the birds by day and a secure coop at night. My breeders cannot free range at all. I have a small group of 5 hens that free range, now we are down to 4 after a fox visit. A goshawk came later that day and killed 3 one month olds.

I have lost more chickens to hawks than any other predator over the years. Cooper's and goshawks. Redtails like to hunt in the open, we have too many trees. Coyotes take the record for the most birds at one time. They completely wiped out a free range flock in short order one morning. Fishers were the meanest.

These flocks did have roosters. They can help by warning the hens but they are no guarantee you won't have losses.

oh, and snakes and rodents too

We don't have snake issues here. Rodents aren't big enough to harm the birds either.

 

[rides2far]

If you give your babies anything other than chick feed, you'll need to give them chick grit. It's very small so the chicks can eat it. Have fun with your babies. Mine are almost 14 weeks & I just love them. You're going to love them!

 

[OreoPlymothRock]

Not really, other than to pen the birds by day and a secure coop at night. My breeders cannot free range at all. I have a small group of 5 hens that free range, now we are down to 4 after a fox visit. A goshawk came later that day and killed 3 one month olds.

I have lost more chickens to hawks than any other predator over the years. Cooper's and goshawks. Redtails like to hunt in the open, we have too many trees. Coyotes take the record for the most birds at one time. They completely wiped out a free range flock in short order one morning. Fishers were the meanest.

These flocks did have roosters. They can help by warning the hens but they are no guarantee you won't have losses.

We don't have snake issues here. Rodents aren't big enough to harm the birds either.

Snakes will eat the eggs, rodents will nibble at the feet.

 

[keesmom]

Snakes will eat the eggs, rodents will nibble at the feet.

I'm in MA. Snakes are tiny, rodents are only a problem when they raid the coop for feed. The OP is also in New England.

I had to live in Orlando for work for a while. I know how big the snakes are there. Nothing here even comes close.