INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Mother2Hens]

Advice needed...

We have a coop big enough for maybe 45-50 chickens to sleep (roost wise, we have 52 feet of perches). We had 12 chickens inside the coop, and then in the run we had a 10ft by 10ft dog kennel with perches inside (and covered) to integrate 21 "teenage" chicks. They are now 15 weeks old. They have been inside the run (and the door has been open, so really everyone is together completely) for about a month now. During the day, the run door is open and they have access to 2 acres.

Having said all that............... The babies have made the dog kennel their home. They want no part of the coop. They don't explore it (that i've seen) and I don't want them in the kennel forever. I have the nest boxes (17) in the coop and I want them to use those.

Any ideas on getting them to go in? Should I take down the kennel and give them no choice? Should I put them in the coop and close the door for the night? I'm not sure if the bigs will run them off, but that is a fear of mine.

@twoacrefarm ~ I agree with @Faraday40 's advice on pg. 5172 — there's no need to change their routine yet.
Big chickens are always a concern when adding small ones to the flock and coop. When I start the integration process, I use chicken wire to partition part of the enclosed coop/run, and I cut an opening at the bottom that is just large enough for the new chickens to fit through, but not large enough for the attackers to enter. @Leahs Mom has posted a photo of a similar set-up she's used outside, so that younger chickens have a place to zip into if a bossy hen is harassing them. Leahs Mom— If possible, please post your photo again. Thanks!
Here's a photo of Mr. and Mrs. Mallard who had stopped by our house on their route between two small lakes. My cats found them very intriguing! DD had given them some bird seed, so I told her not to encourage wild birds because of avian illnesses.

 

[hbrown322]

Let my two hens out today as the rain has stopped & the sun is out. Went inside for 5 minutes and when I came back out I only had one hen. Searched all over and no sign of the other one. I'm wondering if an owl picked her up.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote: @CochinCuddlr

I do know someone that has 3 different coops/barns for their birds. They do all free range together and come into their respective coops at night.

HOW DID SHE ACCOMPLISH THIS?

They have to imprint to their home. So she broods and raises each group in their own house from hatch.

She told me that it is difficult - if almost impossible - to have them change later on.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

[COLOR=8B4513]Mark me down for a Silver Grey Dorking pullet next year! @pipdzipdnreadytogo has raved about them, and it's nice to have a new breed. [/COLOR]

Yesss, give in to the cuddles and come to the Dork side!

No, but seriously, they're the best. Look at these big loves!

(P.S. I'd also be quite interested in more SGDs next year. Actually, I avoided getting more this year because I knew I'd have an awesome source for them soon. )

 

[Leahs Mom]

@2AcreFarmer @Mother2Hens


I have done various things in the various areas that we've had the chickens. I'll show a few below, but also wanted to ask a question or 2 just to be sure I understand correctly.

-Is the kennel against their house in such a way that they all have to exit to free range from the kennel? In other words, do they come out the house into the kennel, then out to range from the other side of the kennel?

-If so, do you use the kennel as a way for them to go outside when they can't free range? Do they sometimes have the kennel gate shut so they can go out from the house into the kennel but not the bigger yard? If so, how often do you use it that way?



So here are some thoughts in the meantime....

If you want to train the littles to use the main house, you could TEMPORARILY divide off an area inside the house and keep them in it for a couple of weeks. (They don't get to go outside during this time.) This could help them get the idea that it is home and change the habit. You can set it up with a temporary roost - whatever will fit. I've used 2 blocks with a board on top strapped with bungie cords for such a purpose among other things.

For an example, though these were done outdoors, they could also be done right inside your house if you have a way to attach them. This is plastic netting clipped up to make a temporary area.

YOU WOULD DO THIS INSIDE YOUR HOUSE to train them that the house is their home.






Clipped to the kennel in this case, but you could find some creative way to accomplish this inside your house. In the photo above, we used eye hooks screwed into the wall of the house to clip the net to.

See the eyehooks on the house below:



If you go that route, after a couple of weeks, you can do one of a couple of things. You can go in at night and just totally remove the temporary divider. When they wake up in the morning they are still inside, but no division. Let them spend the day as normal and see if they come back to the inside at night. If not, keep them in that arrangement a little longer.


Or...you could slightly raise a part of the temp area so that it's high enough for the young ones to go in but not the olders. That way they have a protected area to get away if needed. Etc.



Ways to give the youngers a reprieve area...
When we were using the little house, we had the house and a kennel pen attached. We found these fencing pieces at Menards that were just wide enough for the younger birds to go through, but too small for the elders. We used them as a get-away area for the youngers and we could give them some mealworms, etc. - and even regular feed and water - without the elders chasing them away.


The youngers could come and go at will through the bars. Some of the more adventuresome elders would want to try to fly on top of it but a piece of the plastic netting laid across the top can fix that if it's a problem. You can see netting across the top in this photo:












In winter I put out this dog house (we picked up on the side of the road for $5) for a wind shelter in case they were timid to go in the house.








When we moved operations into the barn, we put kennel pens in the barn to keep them in the area we wanted them to be. We also had one 6x6 area that we could shut off for a "jail" of sorts if there were any particular birds that were really attacking others...or if we needed a first-aid bay, etc.

Last year was the first year we brooded chicks in there. I wanted a more "mouse/rat secure" pen for brooding. At that time my husband built a frame 6x6 with hardware cloth. This pen sets right up against the other kennels with a door between.

In that little area we added....CHICK DOORS. They can be set up for integration so that the chicks can come and go but adults can't. So this is more permanent, of course. THEY CAN ALL SEE EACH OTHER AT ALL TIMES so they are not so separated that they all of a sudden show up in the main flock.

Then, as the chicks become part of the flock on their own, all the big doors are open and everyone can come and go everywhere...but it also makes a good reprieve is someone needs to be separated for some reason. For example, the rooster spent his winter there so the girls had reprieve from him while they were in close quarters. I also have used it to separate away some mean birds on occasion but it ends up butting up to another 6x6 kennel area in that case so they have 6x12 in there.

So here is an idea of what the kennel setup looks like in the barn in general:



Roost area then, to the right was a 6x6 that could be shut for jail or whatever:










New Chick pen area behind...made with hardware cloth to keep out mice,etc. You can see that area with the green painted framework behind and another 6x6 kennel to the front where some young'uns are hanging out...makes that area 6x12 altogether when opened to the front.






2 Different sliding chick doors.... One slides up and down, the other sideways. I like the sideways one better. Open it just enough to let them go through.




I pull it open and bungie it just wide enough.









How we keep the birds out.... TEMPORARY NETTING again!

























ETA: Of course that door is closed at night so no vermin get in!


Also...on dividing off an area inside, it doesn't have to be large for your new younguns. Just big enough to give them a place temporarily to learn that inside is home for the night and for laying.

 

[Faraday40]

Aside from some silliness (which is to be expected from happy middle school girls) last night's rehearsal went well.
The hair & headpieces stayed in place the entire night. The girls are looking forward to their big recital tonight.

 

[CochinCuddlr]

[COLOR=333333]Found Someone Selling 11 month old laying pullets for $5 each! [/COLOR] e
So excited! I might buy 10+ Hens and Maybe get a Rooster.
Anyone have a pretty Rooster for free? 

I do! I'm up by Fort Wayne. I've got a lovely Blue Cochin x Ameracauna roo that needs a new home. He's a very nice boy.

C.

 

[CochinCuddlr]

These are the stories I need!!! It helps me maneuver my brain. I

did read in a hatchery catalog that they are very docile! Glad to see you experience the same. How big do they get inch wise? I know the expected weights but being new I can't translate that into size! Do you have pictures? Is a 13x10 inch door going to be sufficient? It sounds like they run with your chickens?

Here are some shots of our yearling hen. She's smallish.

C.

 

[Delawaremommy]

We lost our blue English Orp roo Junior recently. He was Cogburn's son and a wonderful boy, not quite as big as Cog but with a better comb. With all the rain, I had been avoiding the chicken yard and he was so fluffy Jay didn't notice until he was seriously ill. Crop impaction AND sour crop. I put him on Nystatin and he was better for a few days, then crashed and burned. He died in my arms. I'm still pretty busted up about it. I have no blues to replace him with, but I think I'll keep a solid chocolate cockerel and have mauves. I may hatch a few this season with my choc cuckoo boy and my four blue hens. Anyone interested, potentially?

Lots of chicks hanging around and in need of new homes. Chocolates and chocolate cuckoos mostly. I am redoing my lav breeders and will have some still quite productive lav hens for sale to people I know later on this year. They still lay great, but we are full with young girls.

I have a lovely but lonely choc cuckoo pullet available. Hatched 1/31. @ellymayRans has a pair of her siblings and @Mother2Hens also has one from last season (Mocha, seen in her last post); she also has one of my chocolates, Zipporah. They are so pretty! This pullet is living alone and not liking it. Would give listers a deal on her!

Our Australorp layers are very productive, as our silver grey Dorkings. The latter get boyfriends next week, so I'll have SGD chicks next year. They are SO sweet. They adore DH. I'm getting some LF Cochins and Hamburgs just as pets, all females.

We finally had such a hardcore Orp broody I had to give her eggs to sit. No idea if any will hatch. We'll find out late this week. If it works, it will be our first natural hatch. I hope it works out. We only gave her four eggs and two have gotten soiled, so keep your fingers crossed.

where are you at? i may be interested in the choco cuckoo....it would add a little more variety to my already varied flock...i have an EE, a barred rock, a white leghorn, a new hampshire red, a light brahma and a D'Uccle...I am in mooresville...

 

[Delawaremommy]

I'm going to try this again....I would like help with a sexing question but my picture didn't show up last time....I have a 5-6 week old barred rock that looks half roo half pullet....no pointed feathers anywhere no saddle but red comb and tiny wattles...hopefully it shows up this time...