DelawareBeesnHens
Chirping
- Oct 15, 2024
- 9
- 61
- 51
(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?
I've kept chickens for several years now.
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
I currently have 20 chickens but have had a peak of 38 at one time.
(3) What breeds do you have?
Astralorp, Green Queens, Easter Eggers, ISA Browns (1 left from the flock), Lavender Orpingtons (all passed), Rhode Island Whites (1 left from the flock).
(4) What are your favorite aspects of raising backyard chickens?
Eggs!
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
We keep bees as well in our apiary. We started bee keeping the same time we kept chickens. I'm guessing it's a thing
.
(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
Below
(7) Bonus: How did you find BYC, how long have you known about BYC, and what made you finally join our awesome community?
Google search mainly. Forum Posts keep coming up for all those Chicken questions I have.
Aside from all that, my final Coop setup is an Amish built shed 10x12 connected to a TALL run (Over eight feet tall) that my wife and I built -- including laying a 6x8 foundation for the framing to sit up, all the mesh wiring -- you name it. Where I live in Delaware, there are a TON of eagles and hawks so I cannot free-range them. We were tired of the super expensive coop-in-a-box setups that give you runs that you have to either bend over or crawl to fix up. This is our 4th and final Coop setup and hopefully our last. I was tired of trying to manage a coop and a run where you have to bend over all the time or can't get a wheel barrel in to scoop-the-poop. Given I'm 6' 8" -- I needed a taller solution.
Substrate in the run is extra large pine bark nuggets -- they're super hard to source in Delaware so we have to travel 2hrs to eastern Maryland to pick them up (usually two pallets worth). We find its extremely durable, keeps the smell completely down, and chickens can easily rake it around to do their normal foraging. We have tried multiple other substrate types for the run including several sizes of gravel and stone -- nothing compares to the large pine bark nuggets.
Substrate in the 10x12 coop is Koop Clean -- https://lucernefarms.com/koop-clean/ ... We like the smell of the Koop Clean and also find it keeps the floor dry at all times (we put a thick layer down). We do seasonal changes which the old Koop Clean goes out to a compost pile for our garden the following year. We tried a slew of other stuff including Hemp but always find it hard to source without having to travel hundreds of miles with a trailer to pick up. Luckily there is a local supplier that can order Koop Clean for us. We usually order it by the pallet which lasts us for the year. One thing to note which may be helpful to others who have large indoor coops: We used horse stall rubber mats to line the plywood floor to protect it from moisture/rot from TCS: https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/4-ft-x-6-ft-x-3-4-in-thick-rubber-stall-mat .. We do check under the mats for any damage and have yet to find anything at all.
I hope to contribute and help out fellow flock herders and also ask questions I may have as I run across issues I haven't experienced yet nor can find a solution on the net!
I've kept chickens for several years now.
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
I currently have 20 chickens but have had a peak of 38 at one time.
(3) What breeds do you have?
Astralorp, Green Queens, Easter Eggers, ISA Browns (1 left from the flock), Lavender Orpingtons (all passed), Rhode Island Whites (1 left from the flock).
(4) What are your favorite aspects of raising backyard chickens?
Eggs!
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
We keep bees as well in our apiary. We started bee keeping the same time we kept chickens. I'm guessing it's a thing
. (6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
Below
(7) Bonus: How did you find BYC, how long have you known about BYC, and what made you finally join our awesome community?
Google search mainly. Forum Posts keep coming up for all those Chicken questions I have.
Aside from all that, my final Coop setup is an Amish built shed 10x12 connected to a TALL run (Over eight feet tall) that my wife and I built -- including laying a 6x8 foundation for the framing to sit up, all the mesh wiring -- you name it. Where I live in Delaware, there are a TON of eagles and hawks so I cannot free-range them. We were tired of the super expensive coop-in-a-box setups that give you runs that you have to either bend over or crawl to fix up. This is our 4th and final Coop setup and hopefully our last. I was tired of trying to manage a coop and a run where you have to bend over all the time or can't get a wheel barrel in to scoop-the-poop. Given I'm 6' 8" -- I needed a taller solution
. Substrate in the run is extra large pine bark nuggets -- they're super hard to source in Delaware so we have to travel 2hrs to eastern Maryland to pick them up (usually two pallets worth). We find its extremely durable, keeps the smell completely down, and chickens can easily rake it around to do their normal foraging. We have tried multiple other substrate types for the run including several sizes of gravel and stone -- nothing compares to the large pine bark nuggets.
Substrate in the 10x12 coop is Koop Clean -- https://lucernefarms.com/koop-clean/ ... We like the smell of the Koop Clean and also find it keeps the floor dry at all times (we put a thick layer down). We do seasonal changes which the old Koop Clean goes out to a compost pile for our garden the following year. We tried a slew of other stuff including Hemp but always find it hard to source without having to travel hundreds of miles with a trailer to pick up. Luckily there is a local supplier that can order Koop Clean for us. We usually order it by the pallet which lasts us for the year. One thing to note which may be helpful to others who have large indoor coops: We used horse stall rubber mats to line the plywood floor to protect it from moisture/rot from TCS: https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/4-ft-x-6-ft-x-3-4-in-thick-rubber-stall-mat .. We do check under the mats for any damage and have yet to find anything at all.
I hope to contribute and help out fellow flock herders and also ask questions I may have as I run across issues I haven't experienced yet nor can find a solution on the net!
A very big welcome to BackYard Chickens, and your coop is beautiful! The French doors are gorgeous (and look very wheel-barrow-friendly!)
