3lackbeard
In the Brooder
Apologies for not having my profile all filled out. I'm in Central Texas. This is just a story, no point, just getting it out there.
A few years ago I bought my house in the country, it came with a big sand box, 20x20, with heavy lattice on thee sides at least 10 ft tall, with sort of a pergola roof on it. One entire side was a swingset. Last year I tore out the swingset and built an awesome 8x8 A-frame coop, I fended in the sandbox into a true run. In January I bought 8 chicks, 7 lived to become happy pullets. I put a Happy Henhouse automatic door on the coop to keep out predators. I bought 6 more chicks a couple weeks old, one didn't make it, and they merged with the others just find. Everything was looking good.
As of today, I've lost every one of them but 3. Lost one chick due to sickness. Lost 2 or3 pullets out of the coop one night and figured raccoons were getting their hands under the automatic door, slight modification fixed that. Next, I installed electric wire around the base of the run, two courses, one about 4 inches and one 12, the raccoons, possums, skunks etc. learned quickly to leave the run alone.
Next I lost one to what appeared to be Mareks. now it's spring and they've started laying eggs, things are going great. Found a snake or two in the coop that I dealt with. I guess I've got 8 chickens now. Big and strong. My property has lots of trees and lots of cover. Predators have learned to leave them alone. So I start letting them free range during the day. These 8 free ranged all day long for about 6 months with no issues. Then I come home one day and I"ve got 7, no sign of the missing one. Come home another day and now there's 7. Back into the run they go. After a few weeks, I start letting them free range again when i'm home, keeping a close eye. Nope, in the last 3 weeks I lost 2 more, now I'm down to 4. Dammit, all birds in the run all the time now. Came home early on Monday and caught a hawk inside my run eating one of the chikens. Today, I spent all day hawk proofing my run, it's getting to be fort knox now. Go out this evening to check the birds and find another dead in the front yard, looks like hawk. Now I've got two freaked out birds, and one broody.
Guess I'm starting over this year. Neighbor gave me some fertilized eggs to put under the broody hen, and when they hatch I'll go get some more chicks. This time I'll be keeping them all in the run until I have a big mean rooster. Maybe next year will be better.
A few years ago I bought my house in the country, it came with a big sand box, 20x20, with heavy lattice on thee sides at least 10 ft tall, with sort of a pergola roof on it. One entire side was a swingset. Last year I tore out the swingset and built an awesome 8x8 A-frame coop, I fended in the sandbox into a true run. In January I bought 8 chicks, 7 lived to become happy pullets. I put a Happy Henhouse automatic door on the coop to keep out predators. I bought 6 more chicks a couple weeks old, one didn't make it, and they merged with the others just find. Everything was looking good.
As of today, I've lost every one of them but 3. Lost one chick due to sickness. Lost 2 or3 pullets out of the coop one night and figured raccoons were getting their hands under the automatic door, slight modification fixed that. Next, I installed electric wire around the base of the run, two courses, one about 4 inches and one 12, the raccoons, possums, skunks etc. learned quickly to leave the run alone.
Next I lost one to what appeared to be Mareks. now it's spring and they've started laying eggs, things are going great. Found a snake or two in the coop that I dealt with. I guess I've got 8 chickens now. Big and strong. My property has lots of trees and lots of cover. Predators have learned to leave them alone. So I start letting them free range during the day. These 8 free ranged all day long for about 6 months with no issues. Then I come home one day and I"ve got 7, no sign of the missing one. Come home another day and now there's 7. Back into the run they go. After a few weeks, I start letting them free range again when i'm home, keeping a close eye. Nope, in the last 3 weeks I lost 2 more, now I'm down to 4. Dammit, all birds in the run all the time now. Came home early on Monday and caught a hawk inside my run eating one of the chikens. Today, I spent all day hawk proofing my run, it's getting to be fort knox now. Go out this evening to check the birds and find another dead in the front yard, looks like hawk. Now I've got two freaked out birds, and one broody.
Guess I'm starting over this year. Neighbor gave me some fertilized eggs to put under the broody hen, and when they hatch I'll go get some more chicks. This time I'll be keeping them all in the run until I have a big mean rooster. Maybe next year will be better.
