Help all kinds of uniquly creative ideas wanted!!!

[mamashomestead]

Hi I am a mom from ny. My guy and I are working toward self-sufficiency. We have had chickens and horses before also I've checked.out all sorts.of.ideas on here absolutely love this.site.to the point my guy knows I'm on the "chicken site" or.he says "chickens again" everytome he see.the fine in my hand I am starting this thread for info on a wide range here are some answers needed and ideas we are looking for

Gradening with our chickens (10 gardens and growing.veg flower.herb)
Keeping quail and pheasant maybe event together with chickens
Very frugal so great DIY projects
Turkeys
Housing species together (rabbits too)
Fodder
Fermented feed
Homemade remedies and preventative measures
Best bedding/ run groundhog
DYI incabator from an old fridge freezer top
Sell products
breeding
Coop with run (coop is just a shell at the moment)
things u could never live without
Anything that you've had great success or failure with
What works best for you
Add more when comes to mind

Please we are using organic practices / husbandry. We will only ever consider otherwise in extreme cases science backed or not. Organic please don't push if u dont agree this thread is about.anwsers and ideas.Will love to hear from non organic but plan no debates over which is better. Also everyone has great ideas please no.bashing on others .if u dont.agree with there ideas. Feel.free to chat about.anything.u feel will help make our flock that much happier thanks a bunch) in advance

 

[Mrs. K]

I am not quite sure what you want for a response. Rabbits are easy to keep, and if you like dark meat, they are a good source of that. The problem I have had with cooking rabbits is the hare! (haha just kidding,) the hair is hard to keep off the meat, and it is hair is hard to remove from the meat if you get it on there. My grandparents lived in town, and always had rabbits as supplementary meat.

However, rabbits do need good shelter depending on predators.

Chickens and gardening. If you get to build it the way you want..... It is ideal to have a couple of runs, attached to the coop, the chickens can be on one side, the garden on the other, after the frost, the chickens can be turned into the garden for clean up. Or you can have a run around the outside of the garden, that supposedly helps with bugs. But you must have your garden fenced off from the chickens, they can destroy a garden in about 20 minutes.

I use old hay as bedding in the run and in the coop for my chickens, they break it down, remove a lot of weed seed, and you can compost it. Then in the fall top your garden with it. Chicken manure is hot, which will burn plants if not aged.

Successes: When I went to a well fenced, heavy duty fencing, totally enclosed with chicken wire as in over the top, I stopped having night time predator losses. Racoons can climb up a fence post and over. Lots of things can dig under and in. Once predators find you, they treat your hen house like the tasty freeze. One left a note, please bring BBQ sauce, I am tired of them plain. A good rooster will help against day time predators, but not until he is about a year old. There are a lot more rotten roos than good roos. So sometimes you are without roos like I am now

best wishes, Mrs K

 

[mamashomestead]

what a wounderful reply funny and informative

Ill start by giving more information about.what we've got going on here. Our coop is axp 9' x 13' exterior walls roof windows and door complete. Interior. A blank slate. Looking for great ideas to use in there. Examples. We saw fodder being grown out of a laundry basket mounted to a fence section going to put that in side the coop for winter feeding.

As for. Rabbits we got them for my guys co-worker one of those hey kids u want to see the rabbits... kids say so cute... guys says u can take them home.... with a 2 and 3 yr old we brought.them home. Woundering if it would work out well if we intergrted part of their housing into out chicken coop. If anyone has ever done this.....

We have all sorts of creatures that could potentially dine in for dinner. Our last flock got wiped out by a skunk. All except of our rooster my guy though he put out of missery and dump infringe of the Fox hole. Needless to say 3 days later there he was in our yard at dawn standing with.the horses. He was the pet cemetery too after that evil. We have 3 roosters now all friendly our tots hold them all the time we have gotten tough wire for.the run along. With pastiche green wire for the inside. Our plan is to.do two layers and dig the meatball down deep. As for run ideas we are looking for ideas for that as well. We have old windows id really like to make a sun room for them before the open coop starts

Eventually the chickens will be free ranging.in our yard. At the momemt they are in there brooder which has an attached run. Planned this so they could get outside as soon a possible while still being.safe and warm. They are axp 12 weeks now all feathered so no heat unless it decided to go from scorching summer to artic winter for a few.days.

Mostly our place is the place of do whatever u want to work got the room and own the land

 

[salt and pepper]

Hi I am a mom from ny. My guy and I are working toward self-sufficiency. We have had chickens and horses before

also I've checked.out all sorts.of.ideas on here absolutely love this.site.to the point my guy knows I'm on the "chicken site" or.he says "chickens again" everytome he see.the fine in my hand

I am starting this thread for info on a wide range here are some answers needed and ideas we are looking for

Gradening with our chickens (10 gardens and growing.veg flower.herb)
Keeping quail and pheasant maybe event together with chickens
Very frugal so great DIY projects
Turkeys
Housing species together (rabbits too)
Fodder
Fermented feed
Homemade remedies and preventative measures
Best bedding/ run groundhog
DYI incabator from an old fridge freezer top
Sell products
breeding
Coop with run (coop is just a shell at the moment)
things u could never live without
Anything that you've had great success or failure with
What works best for you
Add more when comes to mind

Please we are using organic practices / husbandry. We will only ever consider otherwise in extreme cases science backed or not. Organic please don't push if u dont agree this thread is about.anwsers and ideas.Will love to hear from non organic but plan no debates over which is better. Also everyone has great ideas please no.bashing on others .if u dont.agree with there ideas. Feel.free to chat about.anything.u feel will help make our flock that much happier

thanks a bunch) in advance

Gardening with your chickens is pretty simple, with food, you either plant enough for every one, have a patch for the chickens only, or put a fence around the garden, if you want them to weed the garden, a chicken tractor is a great idea.
Pallets are great if you're on a budget. you can build practically anything out of them, with little to no costs, put in pallet coops in the search bar, and you'll get a ton of ideas.
Fermented feed is something I've only just started, but I LOVE it. It's pretty simple, all you need is a bucket, feed, water, and a starter, I use ACV. Let ferment for a little over 24 hours, and you have fermented feed!
I've read garlic in the feed is supposed to prevent all types of parasites. I know that cyan pepper will kill worms, make the feed RED, and no worms will live, lol.
I use straw for bedding, but this isn't so popular, I HATED shavings, and am looking into sand.
Selling eating eggs is a quick way to make even on costs, but you won't make any money.
I'm just starting on breeding, so can't give too much advice, but if you plan on selling the chicks, try to get the best quality you can, and try to educate the mass about the difference between your birds, and the birds they'll get from a hatchery.
Coop needs to have good ventilation, and LOTS of roosts, if possible, try to get most of them at the same height, if you make a ladder roost, they'll all try to squeeze themselves to the highest roost.
I could never live without my cleaning equipment ( rake, pooper scooper, shovel, and broom ) and My larger than normal run, it makes the chickens sooooo much happier.

 

[mamashomestead]

I have also started my fermented feed siting on my counter on one of those drink dispensers.you'd get from walmart.

I use and hate shavings also id like to.find out more on using.sand

 

[Mrs. K]

on the fermented feed - does it freeze solid in the winter?

 

[mamashomestead]

I would asunder that it would freeze in the winter. It soaks in liquid. I made a batch before I changed the container I was using my chickens went crazy for as did the turkey and my English mastiff


Also to simplify what I looking for is alot of different idea so I can mix and match the ideas to create something unique and personally functional for use to use. Every thing right now is a blank slate to be created however we like.

 

[Mrs. K]

If you are just getting started, start small with the idea of growing bigger, next year. I know you are all excited and ready, but there is a learning curve, and as you do things, you really figure out how it could be better.

I used to be the type to bail in..... and make some big mistakes. my hubby, God Bless and Keep him, is more, lets try this and get it going, and see how it works, what goes wrong, what goes right.

Take notes and keep a journal

 

[mamashomestead]

I kept a journal for our.last flock sadly ending the day they all got wiped out with the conclusion we are building a new coop and run. Which we are doing now.

 

[mamashomestead]

Gardening with chickens:I've been. Nagging my guy to let me put a run right behind his.grapes. for a ta-day moment. Google. Grape chicken run and presto now going to build.a run behind his grapevines and watermelon cucumbers zucs squashes little pumpkins peas and beans have a wounderful trellis to grow on added bonus they'll get shade.and.yummy veggies.to eat