INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[CluckAcres]

Thanks! My wyandottes were back there being shy lol.

Welcome!!! I live in between Silver Lake and North Manchester! Glad to see someone else close by!

 

[AmLambson]

Hi fellow chicken lovers! I'm Ann-Marie and our family is new to the chicken world, we just got set up with 3 lovely ladies. We have a RIR named Big Momma Red, a golden comet named Goldie and a Easter Egger named Greysie. We live on 5 acres in Lebanon IN and have 4 young kids. We love the thought of starting a hobby farm and I'm interested in the farm to table movement. I was warned I'd get "Chicken Fever" and I have it!!!! Hehehe!!! All the beautiful chickens and colors of eggs! I cant think of anything but chickens and eggs!!!! BUT I lack experience! I've gotten books and magazines about chickens and hobby farms and such but I really learn better from experience. If anyone around the Lebanon IN area has a chicken coop/farm I could visit or you could give some advice to a beginner I'm all ears!! Thank you!!

 

[CluckAcres]

Hi fellow chicken lovers! I'm Ann-Marie and our family is new to the chicken world, we just got set up with 3 lovely ladies. We have a RIR named Big Momma Red, a golden comet named Goldie and a Easter Egger named Greysie. We live on 5 acres in Lebanon IN and have 4 young kids. We love the thought of starting a hobby farm and I'm interested in the farm to table movement. I was warned I'd get "Chicken Fever" and I have it!!!! Hehehe!!! All the beautiful chickens and colors of eggs! I cant think of anything but chickens and eggs!!!! BUT I lack experience! I've gotten books and magazines about chickens and hobby farms and such but I really learn better from experience. If anyone around the Lebanon IN area has a chicken coop/farm I could visit or you could give some advice to a beginner I'm all ears!! Thank you!!

Yay you made it here!!!! Like I said before, there is a lot of friendly chicken folk here! You can ask anything and you will get a answer. So what is some of your questions?

 

[ellymayRans]

Hi fellow chicken lovers! I'm Ann-Marie and our family is new to the chicken world, we just got set up with 3 lovely ladies. We have a RIR named Big Momma Red, a golden comet named Goldie and a Easter Egger named Greysie. We live on 5 acres in Lebanon IN and have 4 young kids. We love the thought of starting a hobby farm and I'm interested in the farm to table movement.  I was warned I'd get "Chicken Fever" and I have it!!!! Hehehe!!! All the beautiful chickens and colors of eggs! I cant think of anything but chickens and eggs!!!! BUT I lack experience! I've gotten books and magazines about chickens and hobby farms and such but I really learn better from experience. If anyone around the Lebanon IN area has a chicken coop/farm I could visit or you could give some advice to a beginner I'm all ears!! Thank you!!

Welcome! It's best to ask the questions you have and you'll get a lot of great advice and opinions! Most of us buy then build! Lol but it is much easier to build before you buy..just heed the warning..however many chickens you think you want, double that # at the least and build to suit that #! Chicken Math! A term you will hear/read a lot! Another tid bit, I would recommend buying from an individual or Rural King/TSC only because otherwise you're paying shipping which is costly. You can find just about any breed given a little planning and patience...all depends on what you're wanting. Once you know...ask us..someone can probably give you the scoop on where or who to go to. If you aren't sure what you want fill us in on your idea chicken or flock and all of us I'm sure will gladly brag your ears off on how wonderful "Our" breeds are! Lol.
We have a great bunch here..don't hesitate to ask away!!

 

[AmLambson]

Ok here I go, try not to laugh!

Do I need to leave a bowl of grit and a bowl of oyster shell out for my ladies?
I've had these hens about 2 wks and they are laying wonderfully! I am feeding them organic feed and organic oatmeal and organic fruits and veggies as treats. I recently bought both grit and oyster shell and put them in in separate bowls to help themselves if they needed it and then I noticed the egg shells appear to have like a slight wave almost like they are putting on extra shell maybe or maybe I'm just paranoid! Lol! I let them out to roam several times a day to gobble up as many bugs as they can find. I have a coop that holds 5 chicken inside a mesh covered 10x10x6 dog kennel because we have lots of wild life out here including 4 hawks who have been buzzing around us lately.

And what do I do about the ground??
I've been moving the kennel and coop over a few feet in the grass every 4ish days because of the poo. Should I just leave it in one area and just let it pile up or use sand maybe and then how do I clean it for them?? Ugh sooooo confused about the ground!! I just want happy healthy ladies and I don't want to mess it up.

 

[me me me]

I would have to level the coop ground to use pavers or I will end up tripping over the edges.  Still see the water level rising in the pavers though.  I think if it was completely covered with concrete it will raise the level higher than the outside and there will be no seepage either.

You could put a French drain around or through the coop to drain and divert water away from the coop or cover concrete with cardboard or tarps to avoid injuring chickens feet while it dries.

 

[Too Fast]

Ok here I go, try not to laugh!

Do I need to leave a bowl of grit and a bowl of oyster shell out for my ladies?
I've had these hens about 2 wks and they are laying wonderfully! I am feeding them organic feed and organic oatmeal and organic fruits and veggies as treats. I recently bought both grit and oyster shell and put them in in separate bowls to help themselves if they needed it and then I noticed the egg shells appear to have like a slight wave almost like they are putting on extra shell maybe or maybe I'm just paranoid! Lol! I let them out to roam several times a day to gobble up as many bugs as they can find. I have a coop that holds 5 chicken inside a mesh covered 10x10x6 dog kennel because we have lots of wild life out here including 4 hawks who have been buzzing around us lately.

And what do I do about the ground??
I've been moving the kennel and coop over a few feet in the grass every 4ish days because of the poo. Should I just leave it in one area and just let it pile up or use sand maybe and then how do I clean it for them?? Ugh sooooo confused about the ground!! I just want happy healthy ladies and I don't want to mess it up.

Welcome AmLambson. We are new to this also, but my advice about moving the coop/kennel (now officially a tractor ha ha) would be to move it instead of leaving in one place. If you leave it in one place too long then it will turn into a muddy mess. And you won't have to worry about the poop.

We had a red-tailed hawk family on our smallish lot last year, thought it was cool until we decided to have chickens this year. Now, not so cool to see them flying around this spring.

Not sure about what you're feeding them, our birds are only 7 weeks old and way too early for us to figure out what they need to eat next, but people here will help no doubt.

Oh yeah, you will notice that this is a very active thread.

 

[mcurry]

Half finished coop bit the dust during the storm last night. I had to go to my room & talk like a sailor into the pillow. No pun intended, but I was madder than a wet hen! Starting over as soon as it dries up out there & trying to get these BO's outside. They've outgrown the brooder. I'd put them in the coop with RIRs but afraid they'll get beat up. Anyone mix flocks like that? Or will I cause more stress by that than just letting them wait it out in brooder?

 

[Crafty chick]

Oh no mcurry! So.sorry about the coop. Depends the size difference on the BO and RIR... might take a while of them in a cage in the others coop to get them aquainted before letting them loose together. If you can fence a corner in the RIR coop for the BO, that might work.

 

[sirbuster]

I got some red pullets for my birthday now they are about 4 weeks old doing great growing and eating everyting. love going out when it is nice. we got them from tractor supply does anyoe know what kind of chicks they can be they are no very red i have some pics.