INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Leahs Mom]

Thanks Leah's mom. Will definately take that into consideration. How often do you have to totally replace the pine chips ? You just remove what's dirty as needed ? Sorry but totally new with this and want to do right for the girls.

In the outdoor run you never have to remove them. You make a "deep litter" by just continuing to put new chips in from time to time.

I also use a deep litter in the coop itself. It looks like your coop is pretty small, so you would have to empty it more often. Inside a coop that doesn't have a dirt floor, I put a little dirt down from the garden or yard. Then put the pine shavings on top of that. I rake the poo under and/or put more pine shavings on top to cover what's there. I keep doing that until it's built up high enough that I need to remove some. I always leave a little in to "seed" the next batch.

When I take the litter out of the house (time depends on how big your house is and how quickly it builds up), I put it right outside onto the run.

The next spring, you can dig some of it out of the run to put into your garden. The soil it makes underneith is wonderful, composted, rich soil.

When you use the deep litter, it allows good microbes to proliferate and hopefully "overpower" any bad microbes that are present - provided you aren't giving your birds antibiotics and other medications. Those microbes actually can produce various "b" vitamins that are good for the birds and it helps keep diseases at bay. It's kind-of like the bacteria you'd find in yogurt.

Here is a link about deep litter. One disclaimer: DO NOT USE LIME as this talks about using. It is not necessary and it can be caustic, and can take your litter out of balance!!!! Just wood shavings. Some folks add leaves to their outdoor deep litter as well. I use the shavings/dirt inside and the wood chips from the tree service outside; and of course the shavings end up outside too. Sometimes dry leaves in the fall but I prefer the chips.

http://www.plamondon.com/faq_deep_litter.html


This article is in 3 parts and the part links are at the top of the article rather than the bottom:
http://www.themodernhomestead.us/article/Deep-Litter-1.html

 

[Leahs Mom]

One more thing on the litter...

It looks like your coop is pretty small. In that kind of situation, you could just use the shavings and empty them out onto the run whenever you feel necessary. In the small coop, the litter would just be to keep the coop itself from getting crusted with droppings. The focus of the deep litter would be in the outdoor run in that situation.

 

[leslea]

Re: deep litter...

We are coming up on 9 months of deep litter, and it is pretty awesome.

Thanks to the suggestions above, I have located some local wood chips from a tree service and we hope to go fill out our truck with some soon, for the run.

Our run is small, but the chickens + the melted snow + spring rain have really turned it into a yucko zone! I honestly can't wait to get some wood chips in there, but it's a matter of working it into our schedule, since we have to go load them, ourselves. (I'll be on the lookout for a tree service delivery soon.)

Hope all are doing well. I've skimmed a few posts, but as usual, I am about 1000 posts behind.

We are 19 days out from our second ever batch of chicks. Originally I figured I would have to sell off extras if I had overcrowding, but then the coolest thing happened: we adopted a new dog. I don't know why I felt compelled to adopt a dog (actually, I do...it was all the dog rescue posts I see every day on Facebook), but we ended up with a beautiful five year old Great Pyrenees. After a few weeks together, I tested him several times on a leash around my chickens. I am happy to say that not only does he love guarding the chickens, but he seems to be capable to teaching my Jack Russell Terrier to leave them alone, as well.

This is huge news for us because the animals have always time-shared the yard. It's part of the routine and I don't mind it, but it will be a lovely safety-check / time-saver if the dogs and birds can all be out at once. PLUS...I don't have to stress about extra chickens if they are free ranging in the yard all day!

All but one, at any rate...we have a pooch in the hospital for the second day in a row. He hurt himself and we've been to two vets: one said nerve damage, the other said a blood clot. We're hoping for a full recovery. If he does recover, a friend who knows GPs well tells me the GP will likely be able to train both dogs. I am amazed by all this. I just wanted to adopt a sweet dog who needed a good home. I never thought he might like a "job," but he sure loves it.

Hope you are all keeping warm. I finally permanently unplugged my dog bowl water heater in the chicken run. Hopefully that doesn't curse us with more freezing weather.

My silly silkie who showered in that awful freeze seems to be fine. I don't think she got frostbite. If she did, I just haven't been able to tell.

I am still patiently waiting for my guinea hen to lay. Just because I am walking the yard looking in all the corners under last fall's leaves doesn't mean I'm impatient...

Some new pics...



Louie, the first day the birds got to come out and forage again. What a long freeze that was! He only stands on the rail when he is checking on me to see if I'm bringing kitchen scraps out soon. (aka spying on me)



They had the weirdest chickens at Rural King last weekend!



We adopted Samson just before the 2nd to last snow melted off. We discovered he loved snow A LOT when the 9" fell the day after the melt.



After testing him multiple times on the leash and finding he had no impulse to go after the chickens and they had no fear of him (unlike our terrier and hound), I started taking him out without a leash, while holding onto him by the collar. In very short order he won my trust and now he seems to prefer to hang out with the chickens instead of me. If I get out his leash he gets excited to go for a walk down our country road. I love this dog!!!



Farrah says hello! Took this with her yesterday.

Well, I am officially over limit for rating content today, so if I did not "like" your post, forgive me. Welcome new members and howdy to old. I can't believe it has almost been a year since I got my girls! It has been a wonderful journey and I am looking to many more years of keeping birds!

 

[Indyshent]

Ive been very concerned about AI but my son really wants a duck. Opinions? I like the look of a grown rouen but also khaki, any words of wisdom from experienced duck owners?

Oh and no males so I will not have one, and we have no pond Or body of water...well a pool..but I would look to install a pond insert of sorts.

Why no males? Male ducks are much quieter than female ducks, and they sound like dirty old men telling jokes. In my experience, they're protective of their girls but utterly incapable of inflicting any harm on other pets or children (excepting the really rare case of a drake that wants to rape a hen. Give him a girl of his own, and he won't bother). Just like with chickens, it's all about individual temperaments, but a drake is a very quiet animal (unlike a rooster), and he can't peck you (unlike a rooster). The only time a duck has ever remotely hurt anyone on my property was when an injured drake(he'd been mauled by a large dog) bit the inside of my upper arm while we (DH and I) were rebandaging him and giving him shots. For all the venom he could possibly muster, I got a teeny tiny bruise--from a 10-12lb drake putting his whole might into biting the most sensitive skin on my body.

My ducks love a kiddie pool, but if you're not willing to give them puddles or tiny pools, get Runners. Runners don't need large bodies of water (none of them do, really when it comes down to it; it's just something they really like to have); just give them a bucket to drink out of and wash their faces in. Runners are also gentle and hilarious (like all ducks, in my experience). Even when they didn't particularly like being pet, they won't hurt anyone. They also flock in a really tight group and look like a roving herd of bowling pins. Like I said, absolutely hilarious.

Also, if you get a small group of them, you get ducklings and eggs. Eggs are huge and great for baking; and ducklings are about the cutest thing on God's green earth.

If you're interested, I have a broody Black Swedish sitting on a bunch of Pekin mixes right now, and I can let you know when they hatch. I have two Pekin drakes, two Rouen hens, one Pekin hen, one Black Swedish, and one chocolate Muscovy. Babies could be any combination of those, and they should be easy to tell apart. All are great layers, and my Pekin hen lays a ton of double yolkers. Outside of emu, I think this bird lays the biggest eggs I've ever seen.

And on another bright side, ducks don't get lost. Even if someone chases them from your property, they always find their way back. They're true blue homebodies.

 

[twoboystwogirls]

I would love a couple ducks, but can they be housed with chickens? Right now I only have the coop with all of my chickens together. A neighbor gets ducks in the spring but he gets them for meat and says that they would not make good "pets". I would like some for eggs. I know my kids would fall in love with them so dinner would not be an option.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Quote: My trays are in a lockdowned incubator right now.
This is the closest picture I could find. But the picture is not totally correct as there are rubber bumpers. on 2 of the 4 sides, the straight sides.
https://www.gqfmfg.com/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=12#

Ive been very concerned about AI but my son really wants a duck. Opinions? I like the look of a grown rouen but also khaki, any words of wisdom from experienced duck owners?

Oh and no males so I will not have one, and we have no pond Or body of water...well a pool..but I would look to install a pond insert of sorts.

RK sells straight run ducks so if you don't want a male, it is best to order from a hatchery after their Easter prices come down. If you get the ones from RK once the ducs are about 8 weeks old, you need to keep them away from chicks until you can pull out the males as male ducks do not do well with the roos and hens typically die from drake mating. All stuff you know already most likely.

Khakis are great egg layers and don't require a pool, pond, or lake. But they do need water that is as deep as their bill is long. Roens eat more food to produce a bit fewer eggs.

I would love a couple ducks, but can they be housed with chickens? Right now I only have the coop with all of my chickens together. A neighbor gets ducks in the spring but he gets them for meat and says that they would not make good "pets". I would like some for eggs. I know my kids would fall in love with them so dinner would not be an option.

Duck hens can be in with chickens and they make good mothering teacher types. BUT they make keeping the chicken coop and chicken run clean so much harder. A small duck area that has to be cleaned every week is easier than the entire chicken area. Drakes are bad for chicken hens.
Khakis are good duck egg layers, much like the red stars of the chicken world.

 

[chickiebaby1]

I know a few of you were rooting for her, so I thought I'd let y'all know, Cubby didn't make it to her 10th birthday.

She had been wasting away for a couple weeks now, even though she was eating. I think the only reason she had been eating was because she considered what I was giving her (wetted crumbles) a treat. She stopped eating a couple days ago, which I think was the beginning of the end for her. I was able to bribe her into eating with one of her favorite foods, scrambled eggs, but I don't think there was anything to be done by that point. She was in the process of dying when I woke up this morning, very tired and disconnected. She passed away quietly an hour or two later. She was about 2 weeks away from her birthday, so close. I was looking forward to putting together her birthday 'cake'...



Rest well, old girl.
Late March / early April 2005 - March 19, 2015

Pipped I am so sorry for your loss. This made me cry. I know how much you love your birds. Prayers for you.

 

[Acornewell]

I would love a couple ducks, but can they be housed with chickens? Right now I only have the coop with all of my chickens together. A neighbor gets ducks in the spring but he gets them for meat and says that they would not make good "pets". I would like some for eggs. I know my kids would fall in love with them so dinner would not be an option.

My Pekin Ducks tried to drown my Bantam Cochin, "Big Mama" in a bucket ;(

 

[ellymayRans]

Having a hard time getting on here to post. My mom is falling more, won't use her walker ugh! I am afraid to leave her alone, let alone go out of the house.
I feel like I am raising children again caring for my parents... the hard part is separating the feeling that they were the ones leading the way. Its up to me now, and some times my parents don't agree with my choices. NO Mom, you do not need Arby's sandwiches loaded with salt, and Dad, forget eating all that 3 pound roll of summer sausage you just bought full of nitrates! Dad is driving.. BAD. He will get Mom whatever she wants even if it is bad for her. And you betcha he will get whats really bad for him! We all cheat a bit on our diet. Sometimes its just a health risk.
Almost all my breeds/species are laying. Scovies not yet, but nesting..I think I got my first scovy egg today, found a duck egg in the loft of the main coop.. Guinea hens, the oldest girls are also nesting. Guinea boys want to kill everything so its close, they are in attack mode over anything near the hens. Quail are finally laying again! I got 3 dozen eggs today between ducks, geese and chickens, 2 quail eggs Setting Embden goose, EE, LO eggs later today.

I'm sorry for your struggles with your parents. Mine were very young when they had me. My mom was 14 ... needless to say they are still young so I'm not sure which of us will end up having to care for the other! My grandparents on my moms side are young too but mom has already told me I'll be helping her care for them! She lost her patience,as if she ever had it, long ago! Lol! My little brother and I have been out of the house for about 20 yrs now. I use to work in a nursing home and love caring for the old and young alike so no matter..

Enjoy them through the good and the bad though because as we know life is short.

Hip hip hooray on the eggs though! I sold 6 dozen today!

 

[bradselig]

Finally have a full dozen eggs that I've collected from my birds this past week to put in the incubator! Can't wait until they are all back laying and start paying for their own feed and bedding! Tired of supporting these lazy birds