- Mar 25, 2007
- 1,310
- 10
- 181
I'm right down the road from you, in the Boroughs off Rte 9.
-Yes, you will have predators. Lots. Coyotes, fisher cats, possums, raccoons, foxes, rats. Read as much as you can in the "Predators and Pests" forum to find more info on how to predator-proof your coop. On the plus side, the Mass. Dept. of Ag. tells me that I am allowed to shoot anything that goes after my chickens.
-I highly recommend getting a breed with a pea comb or at least a smallish comb. Look on Feathersite or Henderson's Chicken Breed Chart for breeds marked "cold hardy." I got Buttercups, whose combs are susceptible to frostbite. Both of my boys lost a couple of points on their combs despite having a flat panel heater and a completely enclosed barn.
-About those flat panel heaters: yes, they work, my chickens all roost around it at night. Hope you don't mind a $150 increase in your electric bill, though, because it WILL be on continuously for three months straight. Honestly, I think economics-wise it's better to get cold-hardy breeds with small combs and spend your heating money on water defrosters/heated water bowls. If there is one thing I hated this winter, it was getting up 45 minutes earlier in the pitch-black to defrost the waterer. My mother got me heated water bowls, and it was the best thing ever.
-Whether or not the girls will find one man too much for them to handle, whether or not they wish to go out in 3 feet of snow, depends much on what kind of chickens you get and their individual personalities. I have some that are very aggressive girls who tolerate 2 roosters to one hen. I have some that are very passive and need saddles to keep any feathers on their backs at all from the boys mounting them. I have one adventurous hen who doesn't mind snow one bit, but the others take one look at the snow and say, "we'll stay in here, next to our nice warm panel heater, thanks all the same."
-The Dept. of Ag. guy will come visit you to check on your chickens. It's not a big deal. He just looks at them to see if they have any obvious diseases, then gives you a piece of paper saying they are healthy. I do suggest getting the Marek's vaccination from wherever you get chicks.
-Tufts in Grafton has good avian vets, should you run into any emergencies. They are expensive but very good.
-Yes, you will have predators. Lots. Coyotes, fisher cats, possums, raccoons, foxes, rats. Read as much as you can in the "Predators and Pests" forum to find more info on how to predator-proof your coop. On the plus side, the Mass. Dept. of Ag. tells me that I am allowed to shoot anything that goes after my chickens.
-I highly recommend getting a breed with a pea comb or at least a smallish comb. Look on Feathersite or Henderson's Chicken Breed Chart for breeds marked "cold hardy." I got Buttercups, whose combs are susceptible to frostbite. Both of my boys lost a couple of points on their combs despite having a flat panel heater and a completely enclosed barn.
-About those flat panel heaters: yes, they work, my chickens all roost around it at night. Hope you don't mind a $150 increase in your electric bill, though, because it WILL be on continuously for three months straight. Honestly, I think economics-wise it's better to get cold-hardy breeds with small combs and spend your heating money on water defrosters/heated water bowls. If there is one thing I hated this winter, it was getting up 45 minutes earlier in the pitch-black to defrost the waterer. My mother got me heated water bowls, and it was the best thing ever.
-Whether or not the girls will find one man too much for them to handle, whether or not they wish to go out in 3 feet of snow, depends much on what kind of chickens you get and their individual personalities. I have some that are very aggressive girls who tolerate 2 roosters to one hen. I have some that are very passive and need saddles to keep any feathers on their backs at all from the boys mounting them. I have one adventurous hen who doesn't mind snow one bit, but the others take one look at the snow and say, "we'll stay in here, next to our nice warm panel heater, thanks all the same."
-The Dept. of Ag. guy will come visit you to check on your chickens. It's not a big deal. He just looks at them to see if they have any obvious diseases, then gives you a piece of paper saying they are healthy. I do suggest getting the Marek's vaccination from wherever you get chicks.
-Tufts in Grafton has good avian vets, should you run into any emergencies. They are expensive but very good.
