Hi

[alamn]

Hi Everyone

I started my chicken hobby about 6 months ago, starting with a cockerel a few days later added 2 hens, then bought a coop and run(the little shed started to smell a little) and later on added a 2 young hens (Meran and cream Legbar). all 4 hens laying eggs, the lovely blue eggs from the Legbar add a nice dash to the egg basket.


about 3 months ago I bought some reza aseel eggs online and put in my incubator along with one egg from my meran.. none of the online eggs hatched but were all fertile, don't think the chick made it out the shell however the meran egg hatched and the baby chick is doing well.


Iv now bought 6 ayam cemani eggs, I personally collected them so I don't get issues which are in the incubator since last night.....

whilst I wait for the hatch im thinking off building an Avery/shed in the back garden 20ft by 20ft and put my coop inside it, will this be adequate for about 10 hens, the reason being with work I don't have time to constantly let them free in the garden with a group of 5 foxes that we regularly see.


care for my flock:

I have all the anti flee/spider sprays and the disinfectants for cleaning the coop regularly, and I have dewormed them, I need help with vaccination and where I can get vaccination from to vaccinate my chickens, can I purchase it if so where or are the vaccines not necessary if the parents were vaccinated and the coop is kept spotless??


Food:

I have layer Mash
Pellets
corn mix

They never eat the pellets no matter how Hungary, so its Layer mash and corn in the evenings , iv stopped giving them free feed because the 2 brown hens all they do is eat until their stomachs touch the floor so I give them access to food 3 times a day and freshwater all the time and about 6 hours of foraging in the garden(what's left of it, they dig, dig and Dig).

any tips , info would be helpful

 

[drumstick diva]

Welcome to BYC. A lot of chickens do not like pellets and get mash instead. Would your aviary be home to all your chickens or just the game breeds? I ask because I don't know if all could be kept together without fighting. I've seen photos of the all black chickens but, never in person. They are amazing. I have never incubated eggs so cannot advise you there.

Other responders should be coming on when it is closer to morning here. I'm sure someone will be able to give you better answers than I. You might check the forums for information on incubation and hatching - should be in the "Raising Backyard Chickens," forum. Once you click on to it - menu will open to the right side and you can choose topics there.

 

[alamn]

Well the size of the Avery will almost be twice the size of my living room so should be able to separate into 4 sections, this is so that introducing new hens is easy and if I have more then 1 gamey cockerel I can keep them apart. I will put pictures up once the project is complete

 

[Michael OShay]

Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided to join our flock. You have some very exotic breeds (or eggs). If you get a successful hatch from your Ayam Cemani eggs you should keep them separate from the others for breeding purposes as those are very rare and valuable chickens. Is your 20 X 20 shed just going to be the coop, or are you turning it into a run with a smaller coop inside? The minimum recommended floor area for a coop is 4 sq. ft. per bird (more is better), so if the shed is just going to be your coop, it has enough floor space by a considerable margin for 10 hens. The recommended ground area for a run is 10 sq. ft. per bird (again more is better), so if you are turning the shed into a run, jsut be sure that floor space of the coop inside of it exceeds 40 sq. ft. I would personally double the minimum requirement and build the coop with about 100 sq. ft. of floor space. That will leave you with enough coop and run space to more than double your flock should you decide to do so at some point in the future. Some of your eggs that hatch will be males, so you need to be careful about your rooster to hen ratio. The recommended ratio is 1 rooster for every 10 hens. Too many roosters can be very hard on your hens physically; over-breeding them, biting and plucking the feathers from their necks and backs, battering them, and potentially, seriously injuring them. As far as vaccinating your birds goes, you should be able to purchase it at your local feed store and do it yourself, but if not for some reason, you can order the vaccines online from hatcheries like Murray McMurray (https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/vaccines.html) or from poultry supply stores (https://www.twincitypoultrysupplies.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=574). As for feeding you birds, there is a good article on feeding chickens at different ages at http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/11/feeding-chickens-at-different-ages.html. Please feel free to ask any other questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. Good luck with your flock.

 

[Michael OShay]

Well the size of the Avery will almost be twice the size of my living room so should be able to separate into 4 sections, this is so that introducing new hens is easy and if I have more then 1 gamey cockerel I can keep them apart. I will put pictures up once the project is complete

When I started posting you had not yet sent this reply so you can take what is of use from my coop and run space information. )

 

[alamn]

Wow, thanks for this information very interesting, im looking at 400sqft based on the beams I have ordered.. depends on budget I may be able to extend the run, iv plenty of space in the garden

 

[alamn]

The ayams depending on the hatch success will have special treatment, currently half the eggs are from one trio the other half from another trio unrelated, so hoping I get something from both sets so I can create an unrelated trio for breeding

 

[N F C]

Good morning and welcome to BYC!

Michael OShay has given you some very good information. If you have more questions, feel free to ask, there are a lot of helpful people in this community. Oh and about the pellets...our chickens don't like them either, lol, they prefer crumbles.

Sounds like you're enjoying your birds, look forward to some photos!

 

[Michael OShay]

Wow, thanks for this information very interesting, im looking at 400sqft based on the beams I have ordered.. depends on budget I may be able to extend the run, iv plenty of space in the garden

You're welcome. When it comes to housing your chickens, you can always build too small, but you will never build too big, and if you're like most BYC members, very few of us are immune to "chicken math." )

 

[Wyandottes7]

Welcome to BYC!

We're glad to have you.

You've received some good advice already! Good luck with your birds!