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Skylights said:
Hello ! Figured I would post this here!

(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?
I am fairly new to chickens, I got them last spring and unfortunately many didn't survive after being put outside to free range due to predators.

(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
i have 3 chickens (and a duck)!

(3) What breeds do you have?
2 sumatra and 1 polish! (Bonus: khaki Campbell drake duck)

(4) What are your favorite aspects of raising backyard chickens?
just the raising part in general is my favorite. I love to watch them grow up to be such incredibly gorgeous birds and seeing them peck around the field.

(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
i absolutely FREAKING LOVE to raise turkeys. I had 3 heritage chocolate turkeys that were in love with me and everybody. My heart is still broken that they are gone.

(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
i live in wv with my fiance, we have a pair of sheep, 3 rats, 2 cats and 2 dogs here as well. Hoping to make a better set up for my birds so I can raise turkeys again. This time, better.

(7) Bonus: How did you find BYC, how long have you known about BYC, and what made you finally join our awesome community? :D
I have known about this community since last spring when I got my chickens! My polish girl laid her first clutch so I came here for advice!
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So glad you're here! Welcome! :welcome
 
Mrs J said:
View attachment 3016905View attachment 3016907
View attachment 3016912It is a shed converted and put onto stilts, with the dust bath underneath. I’ve sectioned a little bit off and put a little coop in. I use this as my hospital for sick birds.
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OH MY GOODNESS I am totally using this!!! I absolutely love this and it's so perfect. I think I have just the right spot for it, too. Your farm looks absolutely gorgeous by the way!! I love your chickens!!! I'm going to make 2 so I have another for TURKEYS!!! What a newfound excitement you've given me. Thank you for sharing these images and inspiring me.
 
Skylights said:
Wow!!!
I do have up steel woven fencing and another lower chicken wire fencing with much thinner holes, but I have found my enemies are hawks. I love hawks so much, but they have long been a nuisance. My birds went from 25 to 4 in the year I've had them, and I kept a steady 5 for a bit until my giant BLR Wyandotte roo got smacked down. We found his feathers, but not his body. He was pretty heavy though, so I don't know if it was a hawk or some other predator. I've been thinking of getting a camera for the next time I get chickens, but would like some more advice before I begin again. I will post some more pictures in another reply here soon of my set up!
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The pen my birds are in has a HUGE thorny old style quince bush in it that the flock loves to lounge under between bouts of foraging. There are also other planting arrangements with large perennial grasses and shrubs that offer shelter from aerial assault. My senior rooster does an outstanding job of predator alerting and he now has two backups to help him keep an eye to the sky.
I've only lost a single bird to a hawk and she was a 10 week old inexperienced pullet. I see hawks fly over daily and have been present for two hawk strikes. IMO, the boys and the cover are absolutely necessary for permitting foraging out of the predator proof coop/run set up. But the setup needs to be large enough that the flock can be comfortably locked down for a period of time after an attack to discourage the hawk so they will seek food elsewhere.
My flock is currently 26 and has been as high as 30 at one time.
 
Mrs J said:
View attachment 3016905View attachment 3016907
View attachment 3016912It is a shed converted and put onto stilts, with the dust bath underneath. I’ve sectioned a little bit off and put a little coop in. I use this as my hospital for sick birds.
Click to expand...
He looks like my main man.
Barb sun bathing.jpg
Barb's first day roosting the chicks.jpg
Fabio-autumn.jpg
 
DobieLover said:
The pen my birds are in has a HUGE thorny old style quince bush in it that the flock loves to lounge under between bouts of foraging. There are also other planting arrangements with large perennial grasses and shrubs that offer shelter from aerial assault. My senior rooster does an outstanding job of predator alerting and he now has two backups to help him keep an eye to the sky.
I've only lost a single bird to a hawk and she was a 10 week old inexperienced pullet. I see hawks fly over daily and have been present for two hawk strikes. IMO, the boys and the cover are absolutely necessary for permitting foraging out of the predator proof coop/run set up. But the setup needs to be large enough that the flock can be comfortably locked down for a period of time after an attack to discourage the hawk so they will seek food elsewhere.
My flock is currently 26 and has been as high as 30 at one time.
Click to expand...
Here is a picture I just took, the barn on the left is where they go at night. They have a small door big enough for them. Haven't had any trouble aside from a mouse or two. I think I am going to be putting up a true enclosure, a fairly large one, closer to where I stand, on the outside of the fence possibly. I'm thinking 2 of them, if I am able to. I'd like to take that idea of the shrubbery and bushes, I've been wanting to plant some anyways. Thank you for your reply!
 

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