I'm Losing My Mind...aka The Joys of Chicken Ownership. Also, HELP!

[getaclue]

ROFLOL, MrsAuberry, you have a great sense of humor, and express it well.

 

[El-kevo]

Stop worrying so much. Your chickens will tell you if something is wrong. Chickens survived for hundreds of thousands of years.

 

[MrsAuberry00]

Just wanted to jump in and say that I'm enjoying your threads...I'm just darned happy to know I'm not the only one who's thinking all these things

And they don't even have lice, mites, aren't eggbound, etc...I just constantly worry they MIGHT get those things!

 

[MrsAuberry00]

Stop worrying so much. Your chickens will tell you if something is wrong. Chickens survived for hundreds of thousands of years.

You're 100% right. Just try convincing my brain of that fact and I'm cured!

 

[MrsAuberry00]

ROFLOL, MrsAuberry, you have a great sense of humor, and express it well.

Thanks! If I don't use humor, my little feathered darlings will probably have me in a clock tower waving empty KFC buckets at them while screaming fried chicken recipes. But that means I'll need to build a clock tower close to their coop and I'd have to be completely nuts to do that... I think.

 

[getaclue]

But...you could charge admission!

 

[MrsAuberry00]

But...you could charge admission!

Haha! A silver lining!!

 

[raerae65]

Oldhen pretty much covered it. May I

Your "rooster" is a cockerel. He's just coming into breeding age and full of hormones. His little chicken brain is telling him that his job is to breed, breed, breed, so he's following what his brain is telling him to do. Your older girls are doing their job, standing their ground and teaching him some manners. The younger pullets aren't sexually mature yet, so they are running away from him. I would not keep him locked in the coop by himself. If the idea of his breeding your females bothers you that much, you really should either find him a new home or put him in the freezer. As far as egg production, do your chickens free range? If so, they could be laying just about anywhere.

My girls do free range but we have had scoured the yard for eggs and none to be found. They all have regularly laid in the barn when they were young we kept them in their run and the barn so they would learn to go in the barn and lay in their nests. But when they quit producing we do scour the yard. Update: We have decided to keep the Rooster for a bit. He is running with the others and free ranging. We thought it would be cruel to leave him penned up. So, I just come in the house so I do not see it. LOL! But, if we do decide to get rid of him I did find someone who would take him and he would live a good life roaming their farm.Thanks for the advice. I have learned somethings. I love this site!

 

[raerae65]

I'd get rid of him, you didn't want a rooster , they are way more stress then they're worth unless you want to hatch eggs ....

No egg hatching here!!!

 

[IamDavesWife]

And they don't even have lice, mites, aren't eggbound, etc...I just constantly worry they MIGHT get those things!

I'm terrified of when that happens! We make a lot of overnight trips....and I literally cannot relax because I'm so worried that something will happen to them (or any of the rest of our collection.....)