INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[pginsber]

I am sure I am going to be bummed about missing out on ChickenFest...Boo for me, but I do hope all our ChickenFesters have the *best* time and post pics.

A group pic would be wonderful!

x2--Bummed to have to miss the meetup, hope all have a safe and fun time, and a group picture would be great!

 

[Quinstar]

You must be thinking of the somewhat rectangular wire fencing. That sounds great. My girls walk through my square stuff. I am surprised yours don't like the pines. At my last rental, EVERYONE enjoyed the pines. Reminds me that if you give them treats where you want them to be, you help your success.

Pics I have on hand are the chick tractor OUTSIDE the chicken area where you can see the square wire fencing (with chicken wire on bottom 3 feet). Two cockerels recently escaped it to get back to the chickies and away from the big girls.




Otherwise, you see my big girl coop SMACK up against the fenceline. The red building is the neighbor's You can see how close all the pleasures are to chicken home. You may also see the 2 doors making a TeePee in the compost area. I have now also painted an AC shell to provide cover /shade. I am still trying to plant things for shade that rival the temptations at the neighbor's.

I'm planning on doing some planting around the yard as well to entice the birds to stay in our yard. The fencing I'm pricing out is the field fencing, but it's space smaller at the top then the bottom so I don't think I'll have problems with the grown birds getting through.

Quinstar ~ That is just bizarre that nice neighbors would shoot your birds for trespassing without even discussing the situation. Apparently they didn't think you would find out? Or maybe someone else shot them. I know you asked for advice about fencing, but I have to put my two cents in even though it may not be correct. If it were me, I'd go to them and say, "Someone shot Carl! I'm so upset! Do you know who would do that?" If he admits it, I'd say, in a surprised and hurt tone, "Really? I would have thought that you'd talk to us if Carl was causing a problem." That way you are getting your message across, but you're not accusing him or acting out in anger. If you start putting up a fence, you're assuming that they shot your birds, and it makes the situation even more uncomfortable since there's been no communication. It seems like the most important thing is to discuss it with your neighbors. That way the situation is out in the open if you decide to put up a fence. Disclaimer: I am not a trained professional.

It's a terribly awkward situation. My neighbor came over and told us that he accidentally killed Carl. Carl was in their yard a lot, and my neighbor would shoot him with a pellet gun to get him out. I didn't really mind since Carl was not a nice bird and I didn't think the pellet gun could really hurt him. Apparently we were wrong. I really do think it was an accident, but the very next day he came over again to tell us that his wife killed one of our guineas the exact same way trying to get him away from their turkey and was supposed to tell us. I feel like you can accidentally kill one bird, but two? It just seems a bit odd. Anyhow, I just want to make sure we are never in that situation again. It's better to just keep our birds on our property and then no one is ever in a bad spot. I don't want them to feel like we are fencing them off, but I really don't want another dead animal in the future. It's my job to keep my birds as safe as I can. We are planning on letting them know that we are putting up a fence to try and keep our birds in our yard so that they (our neighbors) are not put in a tough spot again.

Sorry to hear of your loss. Its worth a try, the birds will respect the wire. If I had to permanently coop them, I would probably cut numbers drastically! Its just not ok for me to cage them all day.
I know for many its impossible, and they keep their flocks small to allow ample room.
I have to agree on the comments with roo aggression. My polish, orpington, OEGB and maran roos are sweet and no problem. My orpington roos will even brood with the hens, and "mother" the chicks.
My EE, Australorp and wyandotte roosters will go after people. I even have a few silkie roos that challenge me! I do notice that the human aggression goes away when the cockerels are growing up, and the roos are maintaining their spots. I usually only remove roos that are cruel to their hens or other flock birds. Since my species all comingle, roosters usually wont challenge me due to my ganders standing watch. If I get attacked, that roo goes to "jail" (dog kennel) for 2 weeks immediately! Unless the gander has flogged him before I catch the roo

I have 2 boys, Red my GLW and Bruce my Australorp that are in jail "frequently"

I can't imagine permanently cooping them. It just doesn't seem far to them. I think the fence will work. I really only have 2 other hens that go next door very often, the rest of the flocks sticks to our yard. That's too funny about the ganders. I never knew they were that protective. Maybe that's what we need.

Just a quick question about roosters. At about what age should they start showing aggression. I have several roosters ( most have just started crowing) that are not mean at all. They all live in the same area (we are building separate pens now) and there is not much fighting, more like pecking order stuff. My family and I are in the yard with all of them all of the time and they have not been aggressive to us at all. We have a RIR roo, SLW roo, 2 Australorp roos, 2 Wellsummer roos and an EE roo. Most I have raised from day old chicks. We also have a white leghorn roo and a French copper maran roo that are in the same coop and run together with hardly any fighting . Did I just get lucky or is there a chance their behavior will change. I love all my guys. I don't actually pick them up and stuff, but I do talk to them and interact with all of them on a daily basis. They all come right up to me, my roos are actually a lot friendlier than some of the girls. They are also really good to our dog (who I think is starting to think she's a chicken) none of them attack her or anything and most of the roos are a lot bigger than her. It is so funny sometimes I will catch her eating out of the feed dish with all the chickens.

From my very limited experience Carl (my EE rooster) didn't get nasty until he was about 7-8 months old. He was the sweetest little cockerel, but turned into a jerk when he matured.

 

[BlossomSilkies]

Hey folks, anyone know where I can get a large (25 to 50lb bag) of Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth? (besides ordering online, too, too expensive)

Thanks

 

[atrueb00]

atrueb00 ~ Aww-- and those are your first chickens ever, aren't they? They are beautiful! I'm glad my two are blue since I'd never be able to keep them so clean like yours.

Tomorrow, my son is bringing over some "safety scissors" (his GF is a teacher) to trim my Silkie's feathers so they can see better. His GF read about Silkies on BYC and learned that some people's Silkies died from not being able to see where the food/water was. I'm sure that wouldn't happen to mine since I make sure that I see all of my chickens eating and drinking everyday mainly making sure that the leaders aren't being bullies. However, I would like to trim them because I want them to be able to see better. Do any of you who have Silkies or Polish or breeds with obstructed viewing ever trim your birds?

They are my first chickens ever. Glad you think they are clean, every time I give them a bath, they seem to rebel and take a dust bath. LOL

I used hair tape to tape up the crest on my silkies. Seemed to help get the feathers to stick up straight more as they were growing out and since then, I haven't had to use it much.





I've also used hair clips in the crest while the feathers were drying after a bath to help them stick up more instead of falling into eyes. Once the feathers were dried, then I removed the clips for fear the bird would eat it.



In both cases, this chicken was separated from the others to ensure no curious pecking ensued.

 

[Quinstar]

They are my first chickens ever. Glad you think they are clean, every time I give them a bath, they seem to rebel and take a dust bath. LOL

I used hair tape to tape up the crest on my silkies. Seemed to help get the feathers to stick up straight more as they were growing out and since then, I haven't had to use it much.





I've also used hair clips in the crest while the feathers were drying after a bath to help them stick up more instead of falling into eyes. Once the feathers were dried, then I removed the clips for fear the bird would eat it.



In both cases, this chicken was separated from the others to ensure no curious pecking ensued.

This is just too funny!

I love it!

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

Hey folks, anyone know where I can get a large (25 to 50lb bag) of Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth? (besides ordering online, too, too expensive)

Thanks

TSC

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote:

Quote:
@KristyAz
If you can't get at TSC or Rural King, try calling Honeyville Feed (Near Shipshewana...it's a drive but I'll be going out that way this week and could pick up for you if they have it). PM me by Wednesday if they have it and you want it


https://www.facebook.com/pages/Honeyville-Feed-Farm-Supply/129759297072648
(260) 593-9943

 

[kabhyper1]

I'm parting with my black pair of silkies if anyone is interested. They are just under a year old. They have leakage, but would pair nicely with paint or partridge. They are correct otherwise. I am very cautious about re-homing my birds, so I apologize in advance for being particular about where they go.

 

[atrueb00]

Thx for the friendly remarks and I too am looking forward to making the trip from WEST Virginia to meet everyone. Pricing tents today. Reservations made at Whitewater camp ground for the 18th thru 21st. Would anyone mind if I brought my dog with me for company and security? this is my girl her name is Chickadee. (Chicky) for short.

What a cute dog! Love the name too!

 

[BlossomSilkies]

Quote:

@KristyAz
If you can't get at TSC or Rural King, try calling Honeyville Feed (Near Shipshewana...it's a drive but I'll be going out that way this week and could pick up for you if they have it). PM me by Wednesday if they have it and you want it


https://www.facebook.com/pages/Honeyville-Feed-Farm-Supply/129759297072648
(260) 593-9943

I haven't seen big bags at either TSC or Rural King. I will check out Honeyville feed, thank you for offering to pick it up, I'm actually heading there next week though. You still need to stop by and visit when you are out my way!