INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[animallover2202]

i have a mean chicken :/ i crouching down to pet my chickens and dominque(bared rock) comes up and bits my lip how do i make her stop cuz shes brat and bits everyone ... i have a few that do that :/ how do i make them stop i dont wanna cut there heads off cuz there good egg layers and there my babys

 

[pbirdhaven]

I've also had the leg bands fall off, seem to fall of certain breeds worse then others. Don't want to toe punch as I've seen those all ripped out, and since we show we can't have that. I've never tryed the wing bands and never seen a bird with them on, so not sure about them, Anyone tryed them.

I use wing bands but don't put them on until the chick grows a bit. With my peachicks, I can wing band them right away. Also use colored zip ties to keep track of youngsters.

 

[me me me]

I'd like to know a method to correct a mean hen as well, both methods I know are not good for pet chickens one involves frying the mean ones and breeding the nice ones. The other is to pin a mean chicken down and flick its head three times (this works but the whole flock will then be fearfull of you)

 

[oldrooster]

I'd like to know a method to correct a mean hen as well, both methods I know are not good for pet chickens one involves frying the mean ones and breeding the nice ones. The other is to pin a mean chicken down and flick its head three times (this works but the whole flock will then be fearfull of you)

I was going to suggest a stew pot but a frying pot will do just as well.

 

[ellymayRans]

i have a mean chicken :/ i crouching down to pet my chickens and dominque(bared rock) comes up and bits my lip how do i make her stop cuz shes brat and bits everyone ... i have a few that do that :/ how do i make them stop i dont wanna cut there heads off cuz there good egg layers and there my babys

Any of mine that I know not to trust in my face, if I'm down there I make sure I keep my quick reflexes ready...and a hand free to swat. Other than that, not sure you can teach a chicken manners. Mine have never nipped at my face, only fingers or sweatshirt strings hanging down...but that alone just startles the crap out of me! Then I laugh...! Now my neighbor has some RIR...I think...they are red..lol..and when they come over to visit I don't take my eyes off of them. Sorry AL..I know not the best of advice, but that's all I've got!

 

[benisjamino]

Hi everybody! I thought I'd introduce myself as a fellow IN resident. I live up in Lebanon and I am just getting started raising chickens. I was wondering if you had any suggestions on where to get some egg layers. I have a bunch of questions and I'd love it if anyone could start pointing me in the right directions.

First off, I have a small to medium sized, privacy fenced backyard. I saw this 'Precision Pet Urban Modular Chicken Coop' (http://www.precisionpet.com/detail.aspx?ID=198) on sale on Groupon. Is this a reasonable size for two hens? The Groupon deal is $150 for the coop and $80 for the add-on. Are there better options?
As far as building something myself, I majored in Furniture Design, so that's not an issue. However, I am extremely limited on time and tools right now.

Secondly, I live in Indiana where we have fairly mild winters and hot, humid, awful summers. Any suggestions for breeds that thrive in that type of weather? I have a heated garage, so it is possible to move them inside as well.
There is a farm store down the street from my house that sells chicks. Is it safe to assume the birds they have there would be good? I live in a neighborhood, so I would prefer not to have a rooster. Is it easy to tell males and females apart as chicks?

Any other suggestions on where to start researching some more would be great! Also, if there is anything that a novice wouldn't think of looking into ahead of time would be fantastic!

Thanks everyone!

-Ben

 

[EmSteele]

Oh no! My favorite (and smallest) of the baby chicks won't walk! One toe is crooked and has brown spots on foot (feet are yellow) any ideas why or what I can do to help?

 

[Too Fast]

Hi everybody! I thought I'd introduce myself as a fellow IN resident. I live up in Lebanon and I am just getting started raising chickens. I was wondering if you had any suggestions on where to get some egg layers. I have a bunch of questions and I'd love it if anyone could start pointing me in the right directions.

First off, I have a small to medium sized, privacy fenced backyard. I saw this 'Precision Pet Urban Modular Chicken Coop' (http://www.precisionpet.com/detail.aspx?ID=198) on sale on Groupon. Is this a reasonable size for two hens? The Groupon deal is $150 for the coop and $80 for the add-on. Are there better options?
As far as building something myself, I majored in Furniture Design, so that's not an issue. However, I am extremely limited on time and tools right now.

Secondly, I live in Indiana where we have fairly mild winters and hot, humid, awful summers. Any suggestions for breeds that thrive in that type of weather? I have a heated garage, so it is possible to move them inside as well.
There is a farm store down the street from my house that sells chicks. Is it safe to assume the birds they have there would be good? I live in a neighborhood, so I would prefer not to have a rooster. Is it easy to tell males and females apart as chicks?

Any other suggestions on where to start researching some more would be great! Also, if there is anything that a novice wouldn't think of looking into ahead of time would be fantastic!

Thanks everyone!

-Ben

Well the coop looks only big enough for 2 large birds. I'd say if you have more than that, than no. You need 4 sq. ft. per bird for coop space, and 10 sq ft for the run. It does look modular, so you could add on.

From what I've learned, the winters here in Indiana won't be a problem, some keepers have them outside in the coop with no heat, in negative double digits. For the summer, they need some shade and air circulation, so I may add a fan for our coop.

IDK if the farm would have good birds, but if you look at the stock they have you could probably make an educated guess, seeing how they are kept and how healthy and happy the other chickens are. I also don't know any fool-proof way to tell the boys from the girls, but some types can be sexed by their color when they hatch if the parents are the right type. I prefer not to have a rooster either, but it looks like we have 2. They better be well behaved, as I have a neighbor who would help us make chicken and dumplings ha ha.

Novice advice: They grow very fast! Be ready for that. We were ready to move them into the coop when they were 4 weeks old.

 

[benisjamino]

Well the coop looks only big enough for 2 large birds. I'd say if you have more than that, than no. You need 4 sq. ft. per bird for coop space, and 10 sq ft for the run. It does look modular, so you could add on.

From what I've learned, the winters here in Indiana won't be a problem, some keepers have them outside in the coop with no heat, in negative double digits. For the summer, they need some shade and air circulation, so I may add a fan for our coop.

IDK if the farm would have good birds, but if you look at the stock they have you could probably make an educated guess, seeing how they are kept and how healthy and happy the other chickens are. I also don't know any fool-proof way to tell the boys from the girls, but some types can be sexed by their color when they hatch if the parents are the right type. I prefer not to have a rooster either, but it looks like we have 2. They better be well behaved, as I have a neighbor who would help us make chicken and dumplings ha ha.

Novice advice: They grow very fast! Be ready for that. We were ready to move them into the coop when they were 4 weeks old.

Thank you very much for the advice!

 

[CluckAcres]

Hi everybody! I thought I'd introduce myself as a fellow IN resident. I live up in Lebanon and I am just getting started raising chickens. I was wondering if you had any suggestions on where to get some egg layers. I have a bunch of questions and I'd love it if anyone could start pointing me in the right directions.

First off, I have a small to medium sized, privacy fenced backyard. I saw this 'Precision Pet Urban Modular Chicken Coop' (http://www.precisionpet.com/detail.aspx?ID=198) on sale on Groupon. Is this a reasonable size for two hens? The Groupon deal is $150 for the coop and $80 for the add-on. Are there better options?
As far as building something myself, I majored in Furniture Design, so that's not an issue. However, I am extremely limited on time and tools right now.

Secondly, I live in Indiana where we have fairly mild winters and hot, humid, awful summers. Any suggestions for breeds that thrive in that type of weather? I have a heated garage, so it is possible to move them inside as well.
There is a farm store down the street from my house that sells chicks. Is it safe to assume the birds they have there would be good? I live in a neighborhood, so I would prefer not to have a rooster. Is it easy to tell males and females apart as chicks?

Any other suggestions on where to start researching some more would be great! Also, if there is anything that a novice wouldn't think of looking into ahead of time would be fantastic!

Thanks everyone!

-Ben

Welcome!!! There is alot of chickens that do well in our confused weather state. What I would do is just google Cold Hardy Chickens. That will give you a good idea what to get. Sexing chicks is pretty difficult to do if you dont know how. They all look pretty much the same till they get older. Most farm stores that sell chicks come from hatcheries and would be good. Some times you will find tubs marked pullets which means they are females. Straight run means they are either male or female. What I suggest suggest is to find someone on here that is local to you and maybe you can get some older chicks that might be sexed already. Some people on here might be willing to sell you a few hens that are already laying or will be real soon. Hope this helps you out some. If you have any more questions feel free to ask. Oh and I have a link to our members list below. I would take a look at that and find some one that is close to you. They are categorized by county as well.