Let's talk about the not-so-nice stuff

[ChickyWhicky]

Don't get me wrong, I love love love my chickens and have zero intentions of being chickenless however... We all know it's not always a ray of sunshine in the poultry keeping world. Tell me about your LEAST favorite aspects of poultry keeping. I'll give you some of mine:

The classic winter water dilema. Anybody who lives in below freezing temps knows the struggle can be real trying to keep water available. Even with electricity and all our fancy tricks, it can still be a pain in the cheeks. And for me, I hate it! Give me warm, sunshiny weather ALL YEAR ROUND!

The p word... POOP. If you free range, you know. Poop in places I didn't even know the chickens were. Poop in places I didn't even know poop could be. Give them 5 acres to roam and they will still poop right next to your home.

Saying goodbye. Not to get too emotional, but when is this NOT hard? Sometimes I wish they could stay around forever.


I will follow this up by mentioning again that I dearly love my birds and life wouldn't be the same without them wandering about the farm. But sometimes you just want to acknowledge the not-so-nice stuff and that's okay!

 

[Brooks_]

Predation
Butt head cockerels
Feed bill

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Winter issues and dealing with mareks. If my flock didn't have that, everything would guaranteed be 10% as hard as it is now

 

[ChickyWhicky]

Predation
Butt head cockerels
Feed bill

Grrrr I've had my share of dirtbag roosters!

Winter issues and dealing with mareks. If my flock didn't have that, everything would guaranteed be 10% as hard as it is now

I havent had to deal with Mareks but know its a pain. So sorry!

 

[sdm111]

Culling/killing the inferior ones for the good and preservation of the breed.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Grrrr I've had my share of dirtbag roosters!


I havent had to deal with Mareks but know its a pain. So sorry!

Honestly I don't have a lot of birds even show symptoms. Just looking at my flock, they look as healthy as one csn really expect no-show chickens to look. But because they still carry it, I can't even give unneeded birds away to lighten my load, they either have to live with me or be put down, which is hard when visually these birds are healthy. I'll be clearing house this winter though, by at least half.

 

[Happy hen lover]

Poop! even though having poop boards have helped.
Pullets!! not going into coop @Dusk, laying eggs everywhere BUT nest boxes!!
Feed bill!! and getting egg cartons back!

 

[wrathsfarm]

I've dealt with rats in the past. It topped everything else I've experienced.... Ever!!

 

[ksbkeys]

Don't get me wrong, I love love love my chickens and have zero intentions of being chickenless however... We all know it's not always a ray of sunshine in the poultry keeping world. Tell me about your LEAST favorite aspects of poultry keeping. I'll give you some of mine:

The classic winter water dilema. Anybody who lives in below freezing temps knows the struggle can be real trying to keep water available. Even with electricity and all our fancy tricks, it can still be a pain in the cheeks. And for me, I hate it! Give me warm, sunshiny weather ALL YEAR ROUND!

The p word... POOP. If you free range, you know. Poop in places I didn't even know the chickens were. Poop in places I didn't even know poop could be. Give them 5 acres to roam and they will still poop right next to your home.

Saying goodbye. Not to get too emotional, but when is this NOT hard? Sometimes I wish they could stay around forever.


I will follow this up by mentioning again that I dearly love my birds and life wouldn't be the same without them wandering about the farm. But sometimes you just want to acknowledge the not-so-nice stuff and that's okay!

Having to decide if it is time to cull a sick or injured hen. I call this "playing God" and really hate this part of caring for chickens. I hate to have them suffering. I often ask myself in each stage of their time being injured or sick, what would the chicken's preference be if she could tell me? This helps me gauge whether or not culling is the answer. Should the need arise, I am always relieved once the agonizing decision is made and the deed is done.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Predators and pests in general, but... Last night, I had to treat my entire flock, one by one, for mites. Again. Such a miserable and exhausting process to go through with 100+ birds!

I agree with a previous post about culling, too. I do not enjoy that I'm going to end up eating so many perfectly healthy and handsome cockerels simply because they're not quite what I'm looking for for my breeding program. Working with a bantam breed in an area where only large fowl birds seem to gather much interest means it's hard finding homes for my extra boys, even if paired with a pullet, and I just don't have the room to keep them all, especially in the wintertime. I have a bunch of cockerels going to the freezer in a few days and it hurts my heart every day I go out there to feed them in the mean time. They're beautiful boys, but have their flaws, and I just can't keep them all. I do know despite these feelings that it will be a relief to have that many fewer mouths to feed over the winter and to have fewer of their antics stirring the flock up all the time. But still. Breeding for the improvement of a variety is truly not for the faint of heart!