Montana

[Azriel]

Hi, hope everyone is ready for winter, brrr. Lets hope that white stuff holds off at least till the end of Nov, (I won't say the S word). I've been working on getting wood for the winter heat, I hate to start a fire this early in the year, but it was only 50 in the house this morning, so I broke down and started one at least to get some of the chill off. Its raining this morning, but looks like the sun is comming out and might be a nice day. We got 3" of rain last week thurs and fri, it was needed.
Karla, check the Thrifty Nickle for straw, if you cant find small squares, 1 big round would be the same amount and probally cost less. Then you just stand it up on the flat side, cut the strings and use as much as you need all winter, it will unwrap eaisy that way, i'd also put a tarp on it to keep it dry. I use shavings, I think its cleaner, but I did keep one big bale of oat straw from my field that I'll put some in every week so they can pick through it and find the oats. They love it, and their digging through it helps stir the litter.
I do use heated waters, but have never used extra heat, even in last winters -40 temps everyone was just fine, no frostbite and as long as they had snow free ground they went outside every day. I also use some extra lighting, I sell about 15 dozen eggs a week, so I need to keep my production somewhat up.
Hope everyone has a great weekend.
Bonnie

 

[karlamaria]

Hey. Girl, getting ready here also . Got the tarps up and over and around the pen, putting the lamp in this next weekend and a new heated waterer in. My girls I'm sure will fare well as our coop is insulated well. Heard we need to put Vaseline on there waddles and comb? It will be nice to let the dogs out again with out chicken poop lol, my dogs have had to go out the front door all year, with snow they can go in the back yard and I will be thrilled. Still have to get some wire mesh for the gate so they do not put there heads out of the pen and the dogs get it. We are having a new fence put in the next week, chain link so the fence sill be higher and less concern of dogs getting in and getting my girls.
I'm going to miss my girls not coming to my back door for goodies. It's a long winter here in Montana, I just hate it. preparing to store all there goodies in the freezer so they do not go with out them. Squash, zucchini ,blue berries , already looking forward to spring lol. Plan to have a new coop built and adding 10 more birds then.

 

[Herechicks]

no kidding

gotta love getting ready for this winter.. I still gotta get heat lamps and lights. I think I'm going to bring in my bantams though for the winter. Don't really have the funds to get bales of hay for them or straw. I was wondering though if I put the two coops that are made out of pallets and boards together if that would be enough and put plywood around the coop if that would be warm enough ???

 

[karlamaria]

Quote:
You can always wrap it in tarps, how is your run done? Are you wrapping it in tarps to keep snow out? I hear you can put cardboard all around your coop then tarp it, this is like insulation. Are these pallet coops not insulated at all? With our winters you have your hands full if your coops are not at least insulated enough to keep the drafts out .

 

[Herechicks]

what i was gonna do is is take the plywood and put it on the outside of the two coops. one side has carpet on it so the air doesn't get through . Well the runs aren't very big cause they are in my back yard but if I put them together the runs would be bigger for the bantams.


With some of the pallets I have there are no spaces between them and I have that side out. Oh I'll make sure that there aren't any drafts .

 

[karlamaria]

Sounds good, how many girls do you have? We have 5 back yard girls. Hope to have a new coop and 10 more next year. We had our coop made and it's nice but to small to add more. Pen is 10x10x10 dog kennel. This made it easy to contain them and put tarps on the top and sides. At least the girls will have a snow free, dry pen.

 

[Herechicks]

With my Bantams I have one Mille Fleur D'uccle rooster, Mille FLeur D'uccle hen, a Porcelain D'uccle hen and a red and brown partridge silkie hen. Then I have Ms. Elizabeth she's my pyncheon hen I'm gonna bring her inside since she doesn't get along with the other bantams.

I've still got chicks inside and hatching eggs in the three incubators. And my new porcelain project silkies one roo and one hen. They are gonna be inside too. But hubby and I are still going to build that bigger coop make three individual coops where they also have their own run. It's going to be insulated as well.
My large fowl I've got my light brahmas on rooster and one hen. My Naked Neck rooster ( hybrid) he's half white leghorn I've got him with my 5 Easter Egger hens.

Ive got some RIRs hens two I'm sending to a friend and keeping two . I inherited a RIR rooster and I'm gonna put them with him when they get 5 months old.

 

[karlamaria]

Quote:
you must have one heck of a back yard!! how do you bring them in?? not your house right? sounds like you have some interesting birds, love to see pictures

 

[Herechicks]

Quote:
you must have one heck of a back yard!! how do you bring them in?? not your house right? sounds like you have some interesting birds, love to see pictures

Well it's not a very big back yard. I've got one big coop and a run. It's got my NN rooster and the hens in that one. And on the side of that run is a dog house with a small run. I'm going to put my RIR rooster in that once the person comes and gets my other chicks. I have some in my house right now in the kitchen.

most are chicks. I have some NN's now and Im sending them to a lady

and her kids. I've got the pynafleurs

I'm done hatching those for now. And my D'uccles any eggs I get from my hens I'll send to my friends to hatch or stick them in the fridge . And I've got some buff oprington chicks now inside. Those will probably go in the bigger coop once we get it built.

I've got some ameraucana eggs now in the incubator any hens I get I'll put some with my light brahma rooster, and my Buff orpington rooster.

Any roosters I'm gonna sell.

 

[karlamaria]

Sounds like some cool chickens, how close are you to butte that you could sell me some. This spring I'm looking for some more chicks to raise, we have buffs and austerlorps. The buffs are very very sweet, the lorps seems more standoffish . We are going to be getting a 8x10 shed and having it put on skids then adding windows and insulation next spring. Seems this will be the cheapest way to go since the cost of anyone building anything for me costs me so much. The windows can be gotten cheaply since many glass places have these from orders people did not pick up or no longer wanted. This os how we got our three windows in the first place for the coop now. It's just the kids and I , and I had to hire someone to do my coop. He did not finish it, and he did not do it the size I wNted it. I had to get someone else to finish it. No more of that!