Illinois...

[cavemanrich]

Easy solution
Get Tillie her own Android fone, and make sure location tracker is ON. At the end of the day, If you don't easily find egg, go to Google website and see her route.

 

[BReeder!]

wow, I've been terrible about getting on here lately. Work, family and everything else... Last I was on here was Sept 11th, and I was struggling to integrate our 2 younger Orps with the other 5 hens. Good news is they went into the coop one day on their own. They slept together in a nesting box for awhile to avoid any minor harassment from the bigger girls, but have started to go on the roost now.
Winter is coming fast unfortunately. Being our first winter with chickens, I am wondering what I really need to do for them.
I have a floor vent and roof eve vents that I will leave open. There's a side wall that is completely made of hardware cloth that I will cover with some twinwall poly that I have - keep wind out and warmth in while allowing light to come through. It is a north facing wall, so indirect sunlight coming through it. Will that be enough light though?
I will put a thick layer of straw on the coop floor to provide some insulation for the floor, keep their feet dry, and nesting material for them to snuggle into for warmth if needed. Is that enough? The coop is not insulated in any way. Walls are all 1/4" plywood. I have some foamboard insulation I wanted to put in the coop but haven't had the time, and I am wondering whether or not it is a good idea. It's the styrofoam type. Thoughts?

Any opinions/information is appreciated. I figured that local opinions are best as you understand what winter is like here. I am in Plainfield (Will county - west southwest of Chicago.

 

[BReeder!]

Thank you everyone for your comforting thoughts. At the moment our problems feel like they're never-ending. I know life will return to a new normal at some point. For multiple reasons, we had to wait until Thurs for the dog's appointment. I managed to buy a few pain pills to get him through until then.

Sorry to hear about Precious and your dog. Not long ago we lost my favorite dog ever, Beau. It is hard. Stay strong.

 

[Faraday40]

It's been a very long, horrible day.

Our 11 yr old "Richter" is the handsome, younger dog who acts like a puppy but has had mast cell tumors - type of cancer- for the past 3 years. He always loved to chase squirrels, rabbits, skunks, etc., but left the chickens alone. He got sprayed by a skunk about 2 weeks ago & also tore his ligament in the midst of the chase. After de-skunking we treated the leg with anti-inflammatory meds from our vet & rest. We expected him to recover in about a month. He stopped eating/drinking yesterday, but didn't have much appetite for several days. (Unusual for him, but I thought it was caused by his pain.) We brought him into the vet again & had to put him down this morning. His body was shutting down due to liver failure. Probably the slow growing cancer damaged his liver & other organs but there were no symptoms. The recent trauma + drugs pushed him over the edge. Even with his injured leg, he jumped around on 3 legs & wanted to chase squirrels. I just can't believe our perpetual puppy is gone & that he died before Shockley.

Our almost 12 yr old dog Shockley has always been a mature, calm, comforter. He was an old soul - even as a puppy. He's been declining slowly & I never thought he'd live this long. He can no longer stand up unassisted & has multiple accidents daily. Because of our daughter's health, he's been her comfort. We scheduled his final appointment for tomorrow.




As anyone with dogs knows, they become not just a pet, but part of the family. I can't imagine how empty our house will be by tomorrow afternoon. The two dogs grew up with our kids. To lose both in 24 hrs is unreal.

 

[Molpet]

It's been a very long, horrible day.

Our 11 yr old "Richter" is the handsome, younger dog who acts like a puppy but has had mast cell tumors - type of cancer- for the past 3 years. He always loved to chase squirrels, rabbits, skunks, etc., but left the chickens alone. He got sprayed by a skunk about 2 weeks ago & also tore his ligament in the midst of the chase. After de-skunking we treated the leg with anti-inflammatory meds from our vet & rest. We expected him to recover in about a month. He stopped eating/drinking yesterday, but didn't have much appetite for several days. (Unusual for him, but I thought it was caused by his pain.) We brought him into the vet again & had to put him down this morning. His body was shutting down due to liver failure. Probably the slow growing cancer damaged his liver & other organs but there were no symptoms. The recent trauma + drugs pushed him over the edge. Even with his injured leg, he jumped around on 3 legs & wanted to chase squirrels. I just can't believe our perpetual puppy is gone & that he died before Shockley.
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Our almost 12 yr old dog Shockley has always been a mature, calm, comforter. He was an old soul - even as a puppy. He's been declining slowly & I never thought he'd live this long. He can no longer stand up unassisted & has multiple accidents daily. Because of our daughter's health, he's been her comfort. We scheduled his final appointment for tomorrow.
View attachment 1550623 View attachment 1550616
View attachment 1550651 View attachment 1550655
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As anyone with dogs knows, they become not just a pet, but part of the family. I can't imagine how empty our house will be by tomorrow afternoon. The two dogs grew up with our kids. To lose both in 24 hrs is unreal.

I am so sorry faraday Precious was terrible and this is just horrible. It has been such a rough week for you.prayers of comfort.

 

[Faraday40]

Because of the illness, I knew to "prepare" myself for Precious. It was still very sad, but I knew in my head the time was near. Likewise, saying "Good Bye" to my cuddle dog is mentally crushing, but I know he's suffering now and tomorrow his pain will end. It's been a slow progression, and I guess I'm still not fully ready.... but he is. However, to also lose our playful Richter so quickly is beyond shocking! 24 hr ago I did not expect he'd be gone. Who will distract & comfort us tomorrow when our house is painfully quiet?

Another dog will come in time, but not until we grieve the losses of our 2 loving dogs. Our son cried a little, but like me, it hasn't fully hit him. DD's a complete mess and crying. Pleading with us to not bring her best friend to the vet. Please keep her in your prayers. She's going through a lot right now.

 

[Justso]

It's not fair that dogs have such very short lives.

 

[Justso]

wow, I've been terrible about getting on here lately. Work, family and everything else... Last I was on here was Sept 11th, and I was struggling to integrate our 2 younger Orps with the other 5 hens. Good news is they went into the coop one day on their own. They slept together in a nesting box for awhile to avoid any minor harassment from the bigger girls, but have started to go on the roost now.
Winter is coming fast unfortunately. Being our first winter with chickens, I am wondering what I really need to do for them.
I have a floor vent and roof eve vents that I will leave open. There's a side wall that is completely made of hardware cloth that I will cover with some twinwall poly that I have - keep wind out and warmth in while allowing light to come through. It is a north facing wall, so indirect sunlight coming through it. Will that be enough light though?
I will put a thick layer of straw on the coop floor to provide some insulation for the floor, keep their feet dry, and nesting material for them to snuggle into for warmth if needed. Is that enough? The coop is not insulated in any way. Walls are all 1/4" plywood. I have some foamboard insulation I wanted to put in the coop but haven't had the time, and I am wondering whether or not it is a good idea. It's the styrofoam type. Thoughts?

Any opinions/information is appreciated. I figured that local opinions are best as you understand what winter is like here. I am in Plainfield (Will county - west southwest of Chicago.

My hen house is not insulated, in a past house l did put up foam board and the hens spent all winter picking it off. I was worried about them ingesting it. It sounds like you've done a thorough job, I will note that I switched to wood shavings because I feel it absorbs moisture better, but each to their own I say!
Based on what I'm reading I would say don't worry about your coop being too leaky, as long a it blocks the wind you should be good to go.
Maybe your orps can come teach my Javas to climb up on the roost, they are so stubborn and I'm getting sick of lifting them every night:
(I'm just up the road in unincorporated Naperville)

 

[cavemanrich]

Faraday,,,,,,, My prayers are with you and your family. I have been thru this before, so I do know how sad it is.

 

[cavemanrich]

@BReeder!

I have a floor vent and roof eve vents that I will leave open. There's a side wall that is completely made of hardware cloth that I will cover with some twinwall poly that I have - keep wind out and warmth in while allowing light to come through. It is a north facing wall, so indirect sunlight coming through it. Will that be enough light though?

Ventilation is the most important thing. Air movement will provide ventilation. Drafts or wind is what you want to keep out and avoid. Definition of that is,,,,,, when the air movement ruffles up chickens feathers. Gentle air movement is what you want. so sealing up the coop over precise is detrimental. Trying to keep warmth in is kind of insignificant .
Chickens can survive the cold temps as long as there is no excess moisture inside to cause frostbite. As for light, well whatever comes thru is good. Your chickens will have open access into run area outside of coop during winter. When it starts to get DIM, they will go into coop. The translucent covering will allow your chickens visible mobility when inside coop at DUSK.

I will put a thick layer of straw on the coop floor to provide some insulation for the floor, keep their feet dry, and nesting material for them to snuggle into for warmth if needed. Is that enough? The coop is not insulated in any way. Walls are all 1/4" plywood. I have some foamboard insulation I wanted to put in the coop but haven't had the time, and I am wondering whether or not it is a good idea. It's the styrofoam type. Thoughts?

Skip the styrofoam. The chickens WILL peck on it and eat it. I had that happen to a foam board inside my garage. The chickens did munch up a lot of it, but it did not seem to do them any harm. I would still skip it now. Guess it just went thru them
Place a good layer of straw or hay on the outside of your coop inside run area. If you get a lot of snow,,,,,,, shovel it out and place more straw. Makes better walking surface for your girls. Straw is cheap. BTW, I have seen many peeps purchase straw bales for Halloween Decor. Afterwards, they set out to trash. I have collected bales of straw in the past. Free IS Free