Michigan

[NovaAman]

Don't let them out of the coop for a few days... Throw treats inside the coop at bed time to entice them to go in...

 

[chicken grandma]

I was wondering if some of you experienced chicken keepers can help with my new problem.

My chickens were all going into the coop at night no problem, every night. UNTIL the 4th.

Hi Lucy,
Our chickens did not want to go in when it was hot. Could you put a fan in the window, open the door and use the fan to blow the hot air out before sundown? Just a thought.

Also, could your chicken sitter put a pie tin of fresh yummy treats on the floor of the coop before sundown and then when they all go in just shut the door?

I worry about closing birds in when the temperatures are so high. I wonder what temperature your coop is running in the evening?????

 

[chicken grandma]

Don't let them out of the coop for a few days...

I think you might have baked chicken.....

 

[NovaAman]

Very true... Didn't think about that...

 

[hippychickster]

It's been slightly cooler here in the evening the last few days. I really thought that might have been the problem. I'll try the treats and fan for now and see what happens.

Do you think it could be because of the fireworks? The only problem with that theory is that the go in the coop to get to the nesting boxes to lay eggs everyday. However that is during the day. I wonder if they are suffering PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) from all the noise. I know it sounds silly to some but they were fine until that night.

Thanks!
Lucy

 

[chicken grandma]

Lucy,
I do think it is possible that the fireworks made them wary of the coop at night.

I just know that our chickens did not like to go into a hot coop. I used to set frozen gallon jugs of water in the coop and put a fan in the window to get it cooled off before the sun went down.
When you said they perched in the doorway, that sounded familiar to me....mine would perch on top of the coop if it was hot.

Do you have a thermometer to check the temperature inside?

 

[uchytil]

Have fun Farmerboy!!!!!

Has anyone noticed that the blueberries this year are early and tasteless?
I bought blueberries from 2 different farms. One was organic and one was not.
The berries were smaller than I remember from the last couple years and they did not have much flavor.
Has anyone found good berries?

My berries are late but there's a farm selling quarts next to my place (2 lbs) for the standarsd 4.99. Good stuff. RT 120 between North Muskegon and Twin Lake. Just west of Riley Thompson Road, you can't miss it. My bushes are loaded I just don't water like the commercial guys.

 

[1muttsfan]

Hippychick, toss them in and shut the door at night. They will get over it.

There is not a predator alive that would make me wish for winter. And I have not yet seen a coon on my place - I think the coyotes and bobcat pretty much drive them off. And I love seeing a fisher - what a truly spectacular animal! The only problem I had with the bear is that the horses went through the fence at 2 o'clock in the morning and we spent about 2 hours getting them rounded up and back home. Twice. Very entertaining, traipsing around in the middle of the night with two cop cars and a pickup truck following you, your horse friend, and 3 horses down the road. But I would hate to live some place where bears, coyotes, wolves, and fishers were not possible. I have not yet lost a chicken to any predator, except for the 1 time that the chicken coop door was left open overnight. It is very possible to build a predator proof run. yes it is expensive and time consuming, but in the long run saves you a tremendous amount of time, trouble and money. I will say that in areas where there are no natural predators, varmints like raccoons can become a huge problem. Fortunately. that is not a problem here.

 

[RBahmer]

Hippychick, toss them in and shut the door at night. They will get over it.
There is not a predator alive that would make me wish for winter. And I have not yet seen a coon on my place - I think the coyotes and bobcat pretty much drive them off. And I love seeing a fisher - what a truly spectacular animal! The only problem I had with the bear is that the horses went through the fence at 2 o'clock in the morning and we spent about 2 hours getting them rounded up and back home. Twice. Very entertaining, traipsing around in the middle of the night with two cop cars and a pickup truck following you, your horse friend, and 3 horses down the road. But I would hate to live some place where bears, coyotes, wolves, and fishers were not possible. I have not yet lost a chicken to any predator, except for the 1 time that the chicken coop door was left open overnight. It is very possible to build a predator proof run. yes it is expensive and time consuming, but in the long run saves you a tremendous amount of time, trouble and money. I will say that in areas where there are no natural predators, varmints like raccoons can become a huge problem. Fortunately. that is not a problem here.

ALL my pens are becoming predator proof but it takes time. I hate winter as much as the next person but really, 40 coons !!! At least with snow they are denned up.

 

[teeville5]

Quote:

Has anyone noticed that the blueberries this year are early and tasteless?
I bought blueberries from 2 different farms. One was organic and one was not.
The berries were smaller than I remember from the last couple years and they did not have much flavor.
Has anyone found good berries?

My youngest daughter and I picked some on Wednesday for DH. The lady running the place said the berries were called 'bonus' berries, but they are small this year. She even had a lady say they were puny. We picked them anyway and DH is eating them, but said they are a bit tart.

Had a leghorn get injured sometime today. My daughter called me at work and said she found the leghorn in the yard all beat up. I checked her over when I got home, but I haven't a clue what happened to her. No obvious wounds, bite/claw marks, blood or anything. She was very dirty and one side of her face was swollen w/ eye shut. The other side the eye was wide open, but it was dilating/un-dilating over and over very fast and she seemed to be having a problem keeping her head upright as if something was wrong with her neck. My first thought is she got hit very hard by something and had a concussion. Stupid question, do they get concussions? I told DH and he thought the same thing. Or maybe she had a fight with another chicken perhaps? We've got her crated right now. Her swollen eye is open a tiny bit now and the other eye appears to have stopped dilating and her head is still kind of lolling a bit so hopefully she gets better, but I have some concerns about it.