FLORIDA!!!!!ALWAYS SUNNY SIDE UP!!!

[cmom]

The best protection is to be able to close your birds in their coop at night as many of the predators roam at night. Of course there are a few exceptions such as hawks. I was loosing birds about every other night out of a couple of my pens and I have electric around them all. I couldn't figure what was killing them so I put my gamer camera out and found out it was an owl. I have since put netting over the pens and haven't lost another bird so far. Each coop we have we built, and all are different. We have 8 coops. 2 of the coops are duplexes so we can separate birds or open the gate and use them as single coops.



We have added 2 more coops since this picture was taken.

 

[marmca]

So far everyone looked good (except my poor rooster's injury

) There was about an inch/ inch and a half in their water bowl first thing so had to dump that ( I thought it was worse at first til I dumped it ) They were all very happy to be scratching around in the sunshine despite the cold this morning. I'm glad tonight is supposed to be a bit milder though.

Were you able to find a vet, or figure out 'band aide' solution for his lower beak? I'm glad the rest all made it through o.k.
not supposed to freeze tonight mid 40's from what tv is saying.

I got a chick from New Years hatch this morning. 8 days and a couple of temp drops late unreal

 

[theadvocate19]

Brrr!! Just sending a WARM hello from Hernando County. Hope everyone enjoys a warmer weekend than this brutal week!!!

 

[MamiH82]

Hi, I'm Lena. My husband and I are looking into getting some chickens soon. We don't really have any experience, except my grandparents having chickens when I was a kid and lived on their property. We are in the Seminole/Largo/Pinellas Park area. We want to get chickens for eggs. Any advice on where to get them and what kind might be best. We are also trying to do things pretty naturally, as far as feed and whatnot, so any advice on any start up info, etc would be welcome. Thank you!

 

[babowman3]

There's tons of info on this site. Go to the Learning page. There's tons of good stuff! Welcome to BYC!

 

[JesNflock]

Were you able to find a vet, or figure out 'band aide' solution for his lower beak? I'm glad the rest all made it through o.k.
not supposed to freeze tonight mid 40's from what tv is saying.

I got a chick from New Years hatch this morning. 8 days and a couple of temp drops late unreal

marmca, I did find a vet, Dr. Hart, at Hidden Hills Animal Hospital. He was very optimistic about the potential to save his beak, but also realistic in letting me know that it may not be possible. (He did say that beaks do grow back if there is enough to grow back etc.) He was having surgery at 2 to debride and fix what could be fixed, but it was worse then he hoped it would be (his jaw was split and virtually no beak left to really salvage). We opted to put him down since he would have no quality of life. Sad, but I expected as much when I brought him there...on a positive note, his assistant said that she has chickens and has a Roo that looks just like our "Clay" if we were interested. So I asked my son, whose buddy "Clay" was, and he really liked the idea. So, we may have a new Protector for our girls...

Thanks for asking about him and congrats on your hatch! I know this weather is just crazy! It is supposed to warm up again this weekend, I believe. I am not a fan of the cold...worse when it's so up and down like it has been. lol What part of FL are you in? Are you up north here near Jax?

 

[babowman3]

I'm so sorry for your loss. =( Glad you may have another feathered friend though! It's so tough loosing a family member.

 

[JesNflock]

I'm so sorry for your loss. =( Glad you may have another feathered friend though! It's so tough loosing a family member.

Thanks babowman Yeah, It is never an easy thing. When I talked with my son about it, we talked about how the rooster's ultimate job is to protect his girls...that he would give up his own life to protect them. So, he was the ULTIMATE protector! (I think that helped both him and myself) I think we will use this loss as a learning tool about how we need to "beef up" security...Could have potentially been all of my chickens (There was a total of 10, including the Roo) Always a silver lining right?

 

[cmom]

Hi, I'm Lena. My husband and I are looking into getting some chickens soon. We don't really have any experience, except my grandparents having chickens when I was a kid and lived on their property. We are in the Seminole/Largo/Pinellas Park area. We want to get chickens for eggs. Any advice on where to get them and what kind might be best. We are also trying to do things pretty naturally, as far as feed and whatnot, so any advice on any start up info, etc would be welcome. Thank you!

The Pinellas County ordinance says that you can have up to 4 female chickens, no males.

http://pinellascountycitizensforbackyardpoultry.weebly.com/ordinances.html

 

[dawg53]

Quote: Jes. You did what was best for Clay, sorry for your loss. Math Ace is selling cockerals: Speckled Sussex, Brown Leghorn and Delawares. I can verify her birds are healthy and coops/pens are cleaned on a daily basis. She lives in Bryceville. Feel free to PM her if your interested.