INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[chick rookie]

I need IDEALS for quick and temporary way to keep these dang birds OUT of my coop , my chickens are covered in bird poop and the house is nasty, I chase them out 8 to 10 times a day, my food is disappearing fast!!!! and I keep getting smacked in the head every time I go out to the coop. I'm really desperate.. ol'man still out of work and no money to buy bird netting or anything, I am running out of food for my chickens cause the birds.... the round bale netting does not work... I tried.... I'm at at loss. those birds pooping all over my girls and the house is going to kill my chickens. I don't keep feed in the house anymore cause of this, but they still go in.

 

[ChickCrazed]

I need IDEALS for quick and temporary way to keep these dang birds OUT of my coop , my chickens are covered in bird poop and the house is nasty, I chase them out 8 to 10 times a day, my food is disappearing fast!!!! and I keep getting smacked in the head every time I go out to the coop. I'm really desperate.. ol'man still out of work and no money to buy bird netting or anything, I am running out of food for my chickens cause the birds.... the round bale netting does not work... I tried.... I'm at at loss. those birds pooping all over my girls and the house is going to kill my chickens. I don't keep feed in the house anymore cause of this, but they still go in.

One of the solutions online recommended getting a clear heavy plastic car mat from walmart, cutting the bottom into strips and hanging it over the chicken pop door. It has to be heavy enough that it takes a chicken to push through (the plastic I tried was light and the wild birds went right through it). I only had mine up a day since it didn't work and my chickens wouldnt go through it, but I"m sure you could train them to go through it if it worked. It would sure be cheaper than covering the whole run area. Then I would go back to feeding inside where the birds hopefully could no longer go. I feel for you, I have been fighting the starlings here and they are nasty little buggers. Super persistant. I will be out there in the cold today covering every inch of my run with smaller netting to keep them out. I have a small enough run that this is possible, but if that still doesn't work I am trying the car mat idea.

 

[chick rookie]

One of the solutions online recommended getting a clear heavy plastic car mat from walmart, cutting the bottom into strips and hanging it over the chicken pop door. It has to be heavy enough that it takes a chicken to push through (the plastic I tried was light and the wild birds went right through it). I only had mine up a day since it didn't work and my chickens wouldnt go through it, but I"m sure you could train them to go through it if it worked. It would sure be cheaper than covering the whole run area. Then I would go back to feeding inside where the birds hopefully could no longer go. I feel for you, I have been fighting the starlings here and they are nasty little buggers. Super persistant. I will be out there in the cold today covering every inch of my run with smaller netting to keep them out. I have a small enough run that this is possible, but if that still doesn't work I am trying the car mat idea.

that's something I can do after we start getting work-comp checks, but right now we are Broke... as in eating hamburgers every night cause that all we have left... looking for ideals on like recycle something I could find out here in the yard or house, I have plastic but I remember you saying it didn't work for you, I tried the round bale netting the was suggested by someone else here that I was reading, that didn't work. It wasn't heavy enough. I hate being this broke!!!! This really sucks. if we don't get his check soon I just don't know what we are going to do. I need goat food, horse food, now I need chicken food, and that I was stocked up on. If I have to get rid of all my animals I will be so broken hearted but I wont let them stand out her hungry.

 

[CRSelvey]

I just set 3 1/2 dozen more eggs because I didn't want them to go to "waste". I really need to be advertising the silkie eggs! Lol. I'm getting overloaded with chicks now lol.

Which reminds me, anyone interested in silkie or Marans chicks? Lol

I really really am, but I need to sanitize everything before I can bring home babies. I need some warmer weather so I can get started around here.

kabhyper ~ The mix of Blue Cochin and Silver Laced Wyandotte sounds interesting . . . aren't you curious? Don't you think you should hatch that unique little chick?

Things are looking up for you!! You're now an alpaca health care provider, you cured your silkie's eye, and Lavender laid her first egg ---even though she's been a mother already!

CRSelvey ~ What does BLM stand for? Black Market?

Are you the one who mixed up extra paint and created a new shade of green that you used to paint the interior of the coop? I remember someone doing that, which was a good idea, I thought . . . maybe a poopy color would have blended better.

I agree with what you said the other day about being able to use a power washer-- or even a hose-- again! Since our hens use our deck like it's an extension of their coop, we usually keep it hosed off. Now it's dotted (large dots) with frozen chicken poop. Lovely. I use a large hoe to scrape them off, but it's kind of hoe-p-less. Sorry, I didn't plan that pun. I inherited that disorder, and I usually try to keep it under control.

I was thinking the same thing about the little mixed egg. It sounds like it could be so pretty! Black Market, probably not

. We were not that exciting of a family

. Thank you for the link on the greens. I added it to my favorites. I may as well plant for them too!

Absolutely! It is a great lice/mite preventative used in the dust bath. In addition to prevention, it can also be used to treat if needed. @armorfirelady used it exclusively to rid her flock of mites that they got near the end of summer using no chemical intervention at all. (Maybe she'll stop in and tell her story.) It actually suffocates the little buggers.

Thank you, that was an informative article.

Hello from crazy Chicken hatching nut!
KAB: you will be happy to hear all 9 eggs are thriving and show very clear growth!!! Yippee!!!! I have a feeling though I'm definitely going to have way too many Little fluffy butts hatching though!
Is friend of mine went to her coop this afternoon and found her Broody Splash Silkie dead on the nest. After checking the eggs they were still quite warm so she called me and asked me to come get them and put them in my bator...if I wanted to try t hatch them. So guess what... 9 turned into 19!!! She also gave me three d'Uncle Bantam eggs (I didn't spell that right did I). I think I need to build a brooder before they hatch! I don't think I'll have an issue selling the chicks that are "extra" though. People round these part ain't never seen the likes of a fluffy little chicken like these here Silkies! Lol

That is so sad that she died! Taking it seriously is one thing, but not surviving to finish the job doesn't seem very smart for a species. Its a good thing there are so many Silkie lovers here to help them along.

I think BLM stands for Bureau of Land Management but i could have the wrong acronym. here is a link on what they do http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en.html

Thanks for posting the link. That is the one I meant. I don't hear about them so much in Indiana, but in California we here about them more often. My dad wrote a mining law for different states which as a teenager was not super exciting. Going to all the mining shows actually was fun though.

Woke up and got caught up on our thread. Thank you, everyone. Its heartwarming to read so many pm's and prayers for his recovery.
My Brother did have a triple bypass. Open heart. He was awake a short time, but horrible pain. (Watched Dad go thru it in 1986, things have sure changed!)
He did have a heart attack, but there appears to be no damage!

His Dr was so pleased. So now we recover. He is nearby, in greenfield.
He has several of us ready to take care of him once he is home.
Congrats to everyone on egg development and hatching! I feel for those who have been dealing with power outages too.
Its so upsetting to wake up freezing cold and realize your incubators are cold too! Congrats to everyone with new chicks coming, and delivered!
See some very exciting choices in breeds too, congrats to you that are saving an endangered breed

That is really good news about your brother. I hope he recovers quickly!

I need IDEALS for quick and temporary way to keep these dang birds OUT of my coop , my chickens are covered in bird poop and the house is nasty, I chase them out 8 to 10 times a day, my food is disappearing fast!!!! and I keep getting smacked in the head every time I go out to the coop. I'm really desperate.. ol'man still out of work and no money to buy bird netting or anything, I am running out of food for my chickens cause the birds.... the round bale netting does not work... I tried.... I'm at at loss. those birds pooping all over my girls and the house is going to kill my chickens. I don't keep feed in the house anymore cause of this, but they still go in.

Can you post a pic of the setup? Maybe it would help with ideas? I'm not too far away if we have anything that could help you.

 

[ChickCrazed]

that's something I can do after we start getting work-comp checks, but right now we are Broke... as in eating hamburgers every night cause that all we have left... looking for ideals on like recycle something I could find out here in the yard or house, I have plastic but I remember you saying it didn't work for you, I tried the round bale netting the was suggested by someone else here that I was reading, that didn't work. It wasn't heavy enough. I hate being this broke!!!! This really sucks. if we don't get his check soon I just don't know what we are going to do. I need goat food, horse food, now I need chicken food, and that I was stocked up on. If I have to get rid of all my animals I will be so broken hearted but I wont let them stand out her hungry.

If it comes to it I will take my chickens back - or some of them back however many you want to re-home. Maybe you could sell a couple animals on craigslist to get food for the rest. It would buy you some time. I'm sorry, it sounds like you are having a hard time. If you have any fencing or hardware cloth you could make a tunnel with some curves to put up against the door - something small enough that the birds would have trouble flying through but the chickens could walk through. Try googling it and see what others have done. The internet has lots of ideas, if you search you might find someone that used something you already have.

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

Woke up and got caught up on our thread. Thank you, everyone. Its heartwarming to read so many pm's and prayers for his recovery.
My Brother did have a triple bypass. Open heart. He was awake a short time, but horrible pain. (Watched Dad go thru it in 1986, things have sure changed!)
He did have a heart attack, but there appears to be no damage!

His Dr was so pleased. So now we recover. He is nearby, in greenfield.
He has several of us ready to take care of him once he is home.
Congrats to everyone on egg development and hatching! I feel for those who have been dealing with power outages too.
Its so upsetting to wake up freezing cold and realize your incubators are cold too! Congrats to everyone with new chicks coming, and delivered!
See some very exciting choices in breeds too, congrats to you that are saving an endangered breed

That is good to hear that was no damage. Now for a fast and full recovery

 

[Little Ameraucana Mom]

I need IDEALS for quick and temporary way to keep these dang birds OUT of my coop , my chickens are covered in bird poop and the house is nasty, I chase them out 8 to 10 times a day, my food is disappearing fast!!!! and I keep getting smacked in the head every time I go out to the coop. I'm really desperate.. ol'man still out of work and no money to buy bird netting or anything, I am running out of food for my chickens cause the birds.... the round bale netting does not work... I tried.... I'm at at loss. those birds pooping all over my girls and the house is going to kill my chickens. I don't keep feed in the house anymore cause of this, but they still go in.

I'm with you on the darn starlings !! I use to have a sparrow trap, worked great, I caught alot of sparrows and starlings in it, but it is old, and had wood on it, and wood is rotting from being outside. I think I might try getting another one, and try to trap them year around, anyone know of a good one that won't break the bank !!

 

[hogster160]

Woke up and got caught up on our thread. Thank you, everyone. Its heartwarming to read so many pm's and prayers for his recovery.
My Brother did have a triple bypass. Open heart. He was awake a short time, but horrible pain. (Watched Dad go thru it in 1986, things have sure changed!)
He did have a heart attack, but there appears to be no damage! His Dr was so pleased. So now we recover. He is nearby, in greenfield.
He has several of us ready to take care of him once he is home.
Congrats to everyone on egg development and hatching! I feel for those who have been dealing with power outages too.
Its so upsetting to wake up freezing cold and realize your incubators are cold too! Congrats to everyone with new chicks coming, and delivered!
See some very exciting choices in breeds too, congrats to you that are saving an endangered breed

So glad there was no damage! Prayers continuing!

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

that's something I can do after we start getting work-comp checks, but right now we are Broke... as in eating hamburgers every night cause that all we have left... looking for ideals on like recycle something I could find out here in the yard or house, I have plastic but I remember you saying it didn't work for you, I tried the round bale netting the was suggested by someone else here that I was reading, that didn't work. It wasn't heavy enough. I hate being this broke!!!! This really sucks. if we don't get his check soon I just don't know what we are going to do. I need goat food, horse food, now I need chicken food, and that I was stocked up on. If I have to get rid of all my animals I will be so broken hearted but I wont let them stand out her hungry.

Sorry to hear about your lack of money. I know its not fun. Here is a suggestion for the goats and chickens. Maybe go to a feed mill and ask them if they sell fines. At my local feedmill I got 500lbs for $50. Of course you have to have $50 but when you are tight on money and need it to go a long way it helps. My feed mill puts this stuff in theirs that helps livestock gain weight. I believe people who raise hogs and cows include this in there diet. I would by no means be feeding this to them all the time. I dont think it is a good diet. But if it is for a few weeks and it keeps them full, when you get your check you can spoil with lots of fruit and veggies. Now I dont have any advice for horses, they are money pits.

.

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

I'm with you on the darn starlings !! I use to have a sparrow trap, worked great, I caught alot of sparrows and starlings in it, but it is old, and had wood on it, and wood is rotting from being outside. I think I might try getting another one, and try to trap them year around, anyone know of a good one that won't break the bank !!

I have seen people listing bat traps on craigslist. I wonder if that would work?