INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

[COLOR=900000] I was hoping you'd post pics of your coop! That's the one I was thinking of when I replied to hoosiercheetah's post! I knew I loved that coop, just couldn't quite remember who to tag in reference to it!


Edited for spelling. I'm getting as bad as Hoosiercheetah for post edits! [/COLOR]

 

[Leahs Mom]

@jchny2000
In my chicken shed photos above....with the broody, the yellow chick is "Mister".

 

[Leahs Mom]

A word to the wise....

One of my daughter's college instructors was late to class today. They had a heat lamp in her 10 yo son's chicken coop that he and his dad had built together. It caught fire and burned down.


It is my opinion that heat lamps have no place in any animal building. There are plenty of other ways to heat or brood.

Of course...I have electricity in my hen shed and items that could short and cause a fire just because electricity can do these things. But a heat lamp? It's a fire waiting to happen.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Cat vs Chickens?

Two neighborhood cats are a couple houses away & looking toward my chickens! My roo (who rarely crows) made a lot of noise for about 2 min straight. My dog was frantically digging at the fence trying to get to them. The cats have lived in the neighborhood for over 4 years and can be seen roaming free. They have rarely entered our yard. I know our dogs discourage most animals from entering, but my dogs will have to come inside at some point. If the cats do decide to visit, will an Orpington rooster be able to protect the hens? Honestly, I'm not sure if the cats are interested in a chicken dinner, but they were looking. Although I'm sure a barking dog trying to rip them apart would also be something they would want to watch. Do cats like to hunt chickens? I have no experience with cats.

Some cats... yes they will go after chickens. A barking dog should be enough to stop them.

 

[Kassafrass]

It is normal for chickens to stop laying when you move them, or for them to wishy washy about it in this case. 

Thanks!How long does it last? Or is it indefinite?

 

[Faraday40]

Did I see Brad @bradselig lurking? I thought he'd like to see this!

Ga Ho chickens are apparently going to be imported to the U.S. by next spring:

https://www.facebook.com/oldorchard...3037039422185/789359737789913/?type=1&theater

Edited to add the @ mention thingy.

Oh My! That's a scary looking bird!

 

[Kassafrass]

@hoosiercheetah I wanted to show you how we did our shed and nest boxes and it might give you some ideas. I have an area that is the "people" part that the chickens can't get into. That way I can go in the door and not have chickens under foot. I also use that as a little storage area. My nest boxes are accessible from the people side so I can gather them in there, out of the weather, without having to go on the chicken side. The chicken part is divided into 2 areas so I can either close one off or keep it open depending on if I have a need. I used one side for the mamma broody or for brooding chicks if I brood w/out a broody. I could also do like you're doing and raise a batch of meat birds or whatever on that side. There is now a 2nd pop door on that side that leads out to the kennel run. I just divide the run with temporary fencing and then when I don't need the divided area I can open it up so everyone can have the larger run. Here is what it looks like: Looking in from outside. You can see the nest box to the right. On the people side: The box has a turning latch so that no critters can get in it and go through. (I leave the front doors clipped open all spring, summer and fall so the interior has to be predator proof.) On the chicken side: Standing in the people entry looking in. The divider gate is open so that they are accessing the whole area in this photo. You can see it just to the left of the chicken. That door is raised up with a short wall underneith so that it can swing without hitting the bedding. All interior wall and door framing is framed so that there is not a large expanse of wire that an animal could push into easily. The smaller frames make it more predator proof. (Nest box over there to the left.) Here is mamma broody using the right side with that interior gate shut behind her. (This was in January with temps in the teens and 20s. Mamma did a great job.) [oops...a huge broody poop in the corner...better ignore that ] Outside with the temporary divider. Using plastic netting you can just clip it up or use temporary stakes from the farm store and then remove when no longer needed. I found that I had to go all the way up to the top, however, as the "man" would get right out of the 4 ft. high fence so I had to hang a second one above. Used eye hooks screwed into the shed on the one end and clips on the kennel side. This side now has a 2nd pop door so that they can enter it from the "broody side". It wasn't installed in this photo. Rolled back. Here it is with the pop door showing and the temp fence down. You can see both pop doors here. (Both of them are on a timer to open and shut.) The newest "chicken children" using the new pop door entrance earlier this summer.

Your setup is amazing! And i have appreciated all the educational info!

 

[Faraday40]

Some cats... yes they will go after chickens. A barking dog should be enough to stop them.

Thanks everyone. The cats stayed away. They've been around for 4+ years & my chickens for 1.5 yrs. Nothing has happened so far, so perhaps they were just looking. It doesn't bother anyone that the neighbor's cats roam around. Of course no one is bothered by my hens & rooster either. Basically, we have great neighbors here, so I don't want to make an issue. I just got a little nervous while they were "watching" my chickens. The cats rarely come within sight of our backyard, but today they were about 3 houses away - maybe 200 feet away from our fence. Our dog was going crazy because he believes everything belongs to him. Good to know that cats normally prefer smaller/younger animals & that a chicken would fight back.

Thanks everyone.

 

[CharlemagneRoost]

Help! I have too many chickens!

Because of my limited amount of space, I was trying to reduce the number of different breeds I am raising and with winter on our doorstep, I still have too many ... and I'm having a hard time deciding what to let go of. Here's my list of breeds ... I'm definitely keeping the ones with the asterisks:

• *Norwegian Jaerhon (as long as I have chickens, I'll always have NJs)
  
• *Ayam Cemani
  
  
  
• Sumatra
  
  
  
• Barred Old English
  
  
  
• Self Blue D'Anver (plus one black hen and some chicks of varying colors including quail)
  
  
  
• *BB Red Phoenix
  
  
  
• Silver Phoenix (a male/female pair of chicks)

I just received hatching eggs this afternoon for Genetic Hackle chickens and am excited and nervous - hoping I get a good hatch. This breed will be a long term project for me. I also have a pre-order in for Ohiki hatching eggs. They will be a keeper, too.

So, I have three breeds that I'm thinking about subtracting from my roost. I'm more inclined to get rid of the bantam show birds, but those little d'anver are so cute! I was thinking about selling my pair of Sumatra until I heard the hen making the coolest jungle bird noises last night - it made me feel like I was in a different part of the world! However, I'm still thinking that this is a pair I should put up for sale.

What to do what to do what to do ... I'll probably wind up being an idiot and investing in more cages ...

HELP!!!!!!!!!!

 

[barb s]

Just wondering if anyone has heard from Barb S lately. I had issues with my phone and it deleted all my past conversations and many of my phone numbers (even th ones that were backed up)! Need her phone number back!!! I miss my buddy!

I've been lurking off and on. Been busy trying to get things ready for winter and trying to get some things done with the house.

Sent you pm