Keeping Chickens Free Range

[duluthralphie]

I have been letting my birds out to free range last few days with the nicer weather. I let them out around 9:30 after most the eggs are laid. This morning I look out the window while having my coffee and t see a barred rock hen walking down the driveway. Apparently she decided to NOT go into the coop last night. I suppose that means I have a hidden nest to find in one of the sheds...Silly birds.

My hen turkey is going through a late molt, she has been wiggling into the coop with the chickens at night, instead of staying out with the turkeys, another silly bird.

And lastly my Dixie rainbow rooster refused to go into the coop last night. I had to force him in, and he just went right back out into the covered pen. He stayed outside in the pen, silly bird!

it has dropped 15 degrees since 6am and the wind has picked up 15-20 mph and it is snowing again. I bet they go into the coop tonight. Winter is back.

 

[SmColorInDaPan]

Okay, the spots on the neck of the leghorn, on the L, is harder to see. The rest of the spots are obvious? At least 1 PR has had a molt. Does it look Molt or pecking? Will be a while b4 i can get in for Pecking stuff, Week AFTER holiday….so any reasonable advice would be appreciated. Poor PRs have lost their tail feathers so look kinda silly….

NOAA is saying 2-4 inches from tomorrow night til weds. Will see if I can see 'The Rope' "the Burro's tail' in the morning. he's been colder than it has been, HERE, last few days. GOOD LUCK EVERYONE, with weather..

 

[Tikkijane]

  Sorry Tikki, I was so focused on answering/responding to Aph, Forgot i was on a billboard, public posting, WHATEVER, didn't word myself well.. .. My girls are showing spots of red bare skin, where it 'appears' they're being pecked. They are ALL free range so hard to pinpoint who's doing what. Thought I would use the pecking stuff, for the behavs, since One of my PR can be a bully…
They are ALL molting FOR SURE. NO tail feathers. Why, since the Molting seemed to start with the older PRs, 2-3 yrs, I asked if the yr younger Sexlink and Leghorn seemed to follow…..Gonna starve me, the lil beggers….   Not that big a deal since I can't DO a thing about the molting...
         have pixs but Puter & Camera, well, need to kick some butt there...
 Cooling down again, storm that was in W heading E. They were having such a good time getting away from the house…I've spoiled them with hard boiled eggs so much, THEY barely notice when i drop the shells amongst them….picky peddlers, they are….LOL    
 thx for the education! C.~

Do you have boys? I wonder if the girls are getting scraped up, which then brings attention to those areas and then the pecking?

I really like Blu Kote for things like this- antibacterial, antifungal, antiseptic; but best of all, it disguises owies so the others leave it alone. This is one thing I keep on hand.

I'm surprised at how late some seem to have started molting. Seems like most folks found an earlier molt, which usually means we're in for a wicked winter. SOOOO glad mine zipped through in an average of two weeks.

We here on the Eastern side of the US ar getting hammered with this noreaster. We've got heavy, soaking rain, and deep puddles. So there's going to be some wet peeps today

 

[chicksurreal]

Ours are going through various stages of molt right now. Seems like it's been going on for months! This is their first adult molt and some of them are just looking ragged, poor things. One girl looks like a NN, except her neck is covered in pin feathers, looks painful.

 

[Tikkijane]

I have been letting my birds out to free range last few days with the nicer weather.  I let them out around 9:30 after most the eggs are laid. This morning I look out the window while having my coffee and t see a barred rock hen walking down the driveway. Apparently she decided to NOT go into the coop last night.  I suppose that means I have a hidden nest to find in one of the sheds...Silly birds.

My hen turkey is going through a late molt, she has been wiggling into the coop with the chickens at night, instead of staying out with the turkeys, another silly bird.

And lastly my Dixie rainbow rooster refused to go into the coop last night. I had to force him in, and he just went right back out into the covered pen. He stayed outside in the pen, silly bird!

it has dropped 15 degrees since 6am and the wind has picked up 15-20 mph and it is snowing again. I bet they go into the coop tonight. Winter is back.

We do a head count every night and then go search if we need to. It took us 2 weeks to find the last hidden guinea nest across the street this last time. By day 29, they abandonded the nest and were back with the flock.

We've found broody nests in the hay loft, under the shed, in other parts of the barn, but the one that left us scratching our heads was a following morning when we found an EE hunkered down in one of the *latched* well houses. She must have slipped in during the day at some point and then was quiet the rest of the day. Poor girlie!

 

[SmColorInDaPan]

Ours are going through various stages of molt right now. Seems like it's been going on for months! This is their first adult molt and some of them are just looking ragged, poor things. One girl looks like a NN, except her neck is covered in pin feathers, looks painful.

Yes, that's the same with me. My leghorn is near bare on her neck! I have 2 lil roos, Bantams of some sort and One larger, older Bantam roo. None are very aggressive to the others. My Sxlk is sticking to the older roo but the others like their 'men' younger? Will get into Big City soon for Blu Cote. Have a horse spray called mannix, but think it would be too strong a dose for ckns.
I know it builds strength along the way, BUT the 3-4 inches WE WERE TO GET, is turning out to be 1-2. Supposed to HIT at 6pm last night? A dusting now...
One of these days I'm going to chain a weatherman to a tent in my front 'yard'.

 

[SmColorInDaPan]

Do you have boys? I wonder if the girls are getting scraped up, which then brings attention to those areas and then the pecking?

I really like Blu Kote for things like this- antibacterial, antifungal, antiseptic; but best of all, it disguises owies so the others leave it alone. This is one thing I keep on hand.

I'm surprised at how late some seem to have started molting. Seems like most folks found an earlier molt, which usually means we're in for a wicked winter. SOOOO glad mine zipped through in an average of two weeks.

We here on the Eastern side of the US ar getting hammered with this noreaster. We've got heavy, soaking rain, and deep puddles. So there's going to be some wet peeps today

I answered your question in previous post, sorry, Tikki. Yes, Bigger, older Bantam roo in in center of photo, other 2 bantam Roos are about a yr old. My older girls seem to favor the younger men, sexlink the older Roo. Fine wine over Kool Aid?
Anyway, I appreciate your posting the Blu Kote name for me. Will get for pecking & add to standing critter MD supplies!

 

[vpatt]

Tikki....north of you and we got the rain...now snow. Most of the chicks wont come out of the coop.....I have three under the porch. I hope they will go back in this evening. Who knew? I thought they would want to come out to play. I am learning from the birds.

 

[Tikkijane]

Tikki....north of you and we got the rain...now snow. Most of the chicks wont come out of the coop.....I have three under the porch. I hope they will go back in this evening. Who knew? I thought they would want to come out to play. I am learning from the birds.

Mine do, although they still prefer I shovel a path for them, lol. By the end of last year, they had decided that catching falling snowflakes was fun.

 

[chicksurreal]

Mine do, although they still prefer I shovel a path for them, lol. By the end of last year, they had decided that catching falling snowflakes was fun.

Lol! That's so funny. I'd love to see chickens chasing snowflakes. We don't get too many chances for that here.