Help Please?? EXPERTS NEEDED!!!

[racizme]

Wow, you guys have all been so great!! And I've really been able to find out some of the things that I need. I've been doing some more research and I saw something on candling. I know that it wouldn't be needed by myself for awhile, but can you use it to see if the egg is fertilized before you have your hen start sitting on it? And when I do start to raise chickens, when is the right time to start selling them? Will the mother get mad if I sell them right away??

 

[4H kids and mom]

I don't consider myself an "expert", but after raising several clutches and dealing with all that goes into that, I know enough to help out.

Here are answers to the questions you've asked, as best as I can answer them.

1) Your chicken coop size is wondeful. You could fit MANY chickens in there!

You will need nestboxes eventually. The 'norm' is one nestbox to each 4 hens in your flock. So if you have 8 hens, you should have 2 nestboxes, etc. Nestboxes can be as simple or complex as you want them. Some people have used those plastic milk crates turned on their sides and attached to the walls of the coop as suitable nestboxes. We constructed ours of 2x4's and plywood we had laying around. Just a simple 'box' shape will do. I'd advise making the top sloped downward or the tops will become a favorite place to perch and poop! Make sure they have a board across the fronts to help keep the bedding in, or hens will kick it out.

2) Before you decide on a breed of chicken, you need to decide what you want. Wether you are getting started pullets (almost laying age hens) or chicks, and wether you intend to pick them up somewhere or have them shipped to you will make a difference in your choices. If you get yourself stuck on having a certain breed only to find that you can't get them in your area, you are setting yourself up for heartache. Trust me on that!

As for a breed that can handle the heat, personally I would go for a daintier breed (not a heavy breed), and probably not a real fuzzball (like Cochins, Polish, or Frizzles) because they can get hot easily. Have you given any thought to the color eggs you want for your family? The breed of chicken you choose might make a difference, for example, if the idea of eating a green egg turns you off. Next, I would go to the local people in your area that have chickens, and ask what breeds THEY have.

3) Wether or not to start with started pullets or chicks is up to each person and depends mainly upon what you want. Do you want the possibility of super friendly hens that are eager to greet you, hop on your lap and enjoy a good cuddle? Just like choosing a dog or a puppy, the younger they are, the better the chance they will bond well with you, unless you are lucky enough to find older birds who have been raised with love and kindness, and in that case you may want to skip all the "baby chick" stuff and get the older birds. You'll also have eggs much sooner, and your dad will see a return in his 'investments' much sooner.

Also, keep in mind that babies are adorable little balls of fuzz...but they need special food, special housing, a good heat source, and need to be checked frequently for things like pastey butt, which if left untreated is fatal to the chick. Also, chicks sometimes die without warning, and if you are a person who will easily bond with these little boogers it really hurts to watch them take their last breaths.

Also, chicks are a prey magnet. They are easy catching for all sorts of critters and even if they are contained, you may still loose them to raccoons who are crafty enough to reach right through the smallest wire and grab them and tear them to shreds trying to pull them through the wire. Dont mean to gross you out, but it is VERY common, and something someone newer to chicks and chickens should take into account when choosing an age to start with. Do you know what kinds of predators are in your area (other than the dogs you mentioned)?

4) & 5) Roosters are great to keep with the hens because they will defend them at great lengths, even giving their lives to save their girls. They are watchful and protective, and I believe that everyone that CAN have a rooster, SHOULD. They are a great defence and early alarm system. They will "service" your hens and the eggs will be fertile. As long as you collect the eggs once (or twice at least in very warm climates) daily, the chickens have no chance to incubate them and they never develope, thus you will have perfectly edible eggs. A fertile egg will not begin to develope a chick until the hen begins to brood (incubate) them. A hen wants all of her chicks to hatch around the same day (for survival purposes) so she lays several eggs (usually one a day) and builds up a clutch (group of eggs). Once she's built up a clutch of eggs, she MAY go broody and set them (incubate them) and the eggs would begin to develope. Not all hens will go broody. In fact, it is purposely bred OUT of some breeds (like Leghorns) who are solely intended for egg production, not chick rearing. If you have a hen that DOES got broody you can let her set a clutch if you want chicks. Not all hens make good mothers. Be prepared to collect and raise the chicks that hatch if any problems arrise between mother and babies. Also, taking eggs from a broody hen can result in scrapes, but you can do this at night when hens are sleepy and avoid alot of that, too. Or, if you have a seriously broody hen there are ways to "break a broody" that other here know more about than me. If I had a hen insistant on hatching, I would just leave her with one or two eggs (even if I didnt want chicks at that time) and let her hatch them and get it out of her system, and either keep the chicks or find them homes after they hatch, but thats me. I'm really chicken crazy!

Keep in mind that when a hen is brooding, she isn't laying anymore, and won't lay again until her clutch is hatched, and then sometimes its awhile longer after that. So, if you have just 3 hens and 2 of them are brooding, you'll be lucky if you get 1 egg a day from the other hen. So that is something else to consider as well. You can always get a non-broody type breed and incubate the eggs yourself whenever you want, for an easier sollution, too. There are a bunch of people here who do this and can tell you the ins and outs of all that.

I hope this helps you!

 

[Yonaton]

And don't exterminate for bugs in the coop. If there's cockroaches, the birds'll have 'em cleaned up in no time.

 

[racizme]

Yes, things are starting to make sense, FINALLY!!!! You guys have been VERY helpful. And I have been able to find great links from this site that I didn't think to check out before. I'll have to remember in the future that this is a great site for helping me with my chickens.

I do have to say though that your advice of not picking out a breed is a little too late.

I already found a breed that I want. And your right, I may not be able to get it.

And chickens will each cockroaches?? Uk! What about mice? I don't think we have any, but just to be on the safe side.

 

[4H kids and mom]

I have seen my chickens eat mice, small snakes, toads, moths, grasshoppers, worms...you name it. They are by no means vedgetarians! lol

They are awesome at cleaning up bug problems and keeping the bug population in your yard at a level you can tolerate. Of course, the more chickens you have, the better job they will do on the bugs!

(Subliminal messaging reads "Get More Chickens!") LOL

 

[racizme]

wow. we have some nastily huge snails in our yard, so hopefully they'll eat those suckers. I'm gonna have to tell all this to my daddy. But I have another question. Our property is fenced in all the way around, but we have a pretty low gate, i'm sure chickens would be able to go over it. If I want to let them out of their pen to run free for awile, would I have to do something about the gate? We live on the corner of a pretty busy road, and I wouldn't want one of my chickens getting hit. If I let them roam, should I keep an eye of them?

 

[Grace Boyer]

Try layering the roosts. Start with one about 2-3 feet off the ground, and add another at an angle (as in further towrd the back of the chicken house, like stairs) a couple feet up. Keep doing that until they are far enough to keep other animals off, but so the chickens can still fly up.

 

[hisbride]

Personally I would let them roam but I would clip their wings. I wish I had the website I use for reference. I think you count up 8-10 wings from the end and then clip. It doesn't hurt them. I think it is just cartlidge.
You may start at like 5 and you are supposed to do only one side. I guess to make it harder to fly but one of my hens we had to slip both sides.
I would then eatch to see if they could fly and if they do you might have to nix the free roaming thing.

 

[4H kids and mom]

I know I've already posted here, but I have to correct some of the above post, as it is incorrect and could seriously hurt your chicken. (No rudeness intended, but I used to breed parrots, and I know a few things about wing clipping.)

I think you count up 8-10 wings from the end and then clip.

I think the posted meant, 'count 8-10 feathers' but its still very wrong. The first feathers of the wing are called the Primaries. They run from the farthest outside point of the wing up about 10-14 feathers in, and stop and change dirrection at the wings bend. These are the ONLY feathers you should EVER clip. These are the longer FLIGHT feathers of the wing, thus clipping them makes it impossible to fly. The second set of feathers (starting at the wings bend where the feathers change dirrection slightly) are called the Secondaries. Secondary feathers are what help the bird glide. If you remove their gliding ability, they will be able to fly up but not land, and could fall and crash from a serious height, break their neck or back, or die. The reason we clip the FLIGHT feathers is to keep them from getting LIFT and flying upwards. Birds that are correctly clipped should be able to flutter safely to the ground when you release them, but should not be able to gain any lift if you lightly toss them up in the air.

It doesn't hurt them. I think it is just cartlidge.

If you are cutting anything but the feather you are hurting them! They will bleed and could actually bleed to death if you cut beyond the feathers, into cartilidge or muscle. To properly clip the bird, have a helper restrain them and cover their eyes to calm them. Turn the bird over and work so that you are seeing the BOTTOM of the wing. Open one wing and hold the 'elbow' firmly so that the feathers are spread wide open on the wing. Look at the very first LONG feathers and visually follow them up to where they are topped by a layer of small more downy feathers in another row (these are called coverlets). Feel to find the long flight feathers quill (the part of the feather that comes out of the birds skin, and before the 'fuzz' of the feather starts. Kind of like a straw.) Check the quill to be sure it is clear (you should see NO dark areas or blood in the quill) and using a sharp scissors, cut the feather about 3/4 of an inch from where it emerges from the birds wing skin. Watch to be sure there is no bleeding. (If there is, apply corn starch or Quik Stop and apply firm pressure until bleeding stops. If bleeding does not stop, or starts up again once you release the bird or it flaps, you will have to pull the feather out using a firm grip and a pair of pliers. Pull quickly and apply pressure to the spot where you removed it for a minute or two until any remaining bleeding stops.) If there is no bleeding, continue on cutting roughly 6-7 of the longer flight feathers on a heavy breed, and 8 or more on a lighter breed (smaller birds can still get some lift with a few remaining flight feathers, so you may end up cutting them all.) Do NOT cut beyond the bend of the wing into the secondary feathers.

You may start at like 5...

A long time ago, people thought they should leave the first few flight feathers and then begin cutting them. I have found that this results in broken feathers because the fea remaining have no strength (think back to school when they hand you a pencil said 'break this pencil" and then handed you twenty pencils and told you to break them in one bundle. Strength in numbers.) or support and easily get caught on things, bend, snap, tear, or break. A broken feather will act like a straw pumping blood from the body with every beat of the heart until it is pulled.

...and you are supposed to do only one side.

Some people swear by this however I would never recommend it. Clipping one side of the bird throws off their balance and coordination. If they do get some lift, they could crash, fall, or be unable to stop or land correctly and could seriously hurt themselves or even die. Clipping one wing unsteadies them and could be dangerous if they are trying to escape a predator.


I didnt want to come on here like some know-it-all or anything and if I offended anyone, I am truely sorry. But I did breed parrots for nearly 11 years, so I do know alot about it, and wing clipping for someone who knows what they're doing is a simple thing to do and helps us ensure our birds stay where we put them, but for someone who doesn't know what they're doing, or they do it wrong, it can be painful, or even fatal to the bird. I just wanted to help educate, not nag, so if I came off a little "alright MOM"ish, I do appologize. Also, there are excellent diagrams for the novice on the net. Just search "bird wing clipping" in your Google search.

I hope I've helped here, and not offended.

 

[racizme]

Thank you very much for the correction. I'm sure that no one will be offended. And thank you everyone again for the help. This is very useful!