My Story, Our experience, join me on my adventure!

[XxMingirlxX]

I was doing the coop quarterly clean out (I change the bedding every week but every few months I give everything a wash) and when scrubbing down the perch I discovered some red mites! There weren't many and I check all of the girls vents and couldn't find any so came to the conclusion that I found them early.

Once everything was clean I added the shavings and got my demite lice and worm duster out and duster the perches and shavings. I then dusted the girls when they were in the coop at night.

I'm super annoyed as I haven't had any mites before and I want to make sure I don't have them again - any advice? My duster is all natural and is made from the place I got my hens (they have blocked my email but that's a story for another day ) anyway I figured I will check each night under the perches for signs of any more and dust each day for a week and do another big clean out. I'm off at the moment so I have the time. The girls are all fine - acting normal and laying as usual - so I think I caught it early.

 

[XxMingirlxX]

Hey all,

Today when I went out to see the girls, Zazzles was in the coop. When she jumped out there was yolk on her beak chest and feet. When I checked in the coop, there were three eggs but Babs' was destroyed and there was only a bit of shell left. I'm hoping I don't have an egg eater on my hands but Babs' egg always have thin shells and this one was like paper. So I am hoping that when Zazzles sat down to lay her egg she broke Babs' and then decided to eat it and that its a one off. Let's hope

I found another couple of mites on the perch so I renuked the perches with dust.

When I came home tonight the girls had gone to bed but I couldn't see peggy, I then spotted her on top of the coop asleep. She was completely out - it was like handling a pair of shoes. When I popped her on the perch she looked at me blearily and uttered a single cluck. Awwww <3

Included Babs' broken egg I got three eggs today, this is the first egg Babs has laid since Peggy began so I was hoping for a full house, oh well.

 

[growsaposy]

Loved your story, you have had adventures. We've got 6 hens, (one rooster had to leave to another home) 1 dog 3 cats. The big yellow cat has adopted the hens- when they "free range" in the large backyard, he lays in the middle and watches them, kind of "hensits!" They are all good layers: one Australorp, 2 Americaunas, 1 speckled maran and 2 Wyandottes. Our coop and yard are good, but they prefer the lawn, of course. My husband and his friend have invented a new automatic chicken door and it is a lifesaver, I am sure, as we have a good quantity of skunk, raccoon, possums, and occasionally a coyote in our neighborhood. We have one Wyandotte no one likes so she hangs around the outside of the flock and has learned to run really fast. She has her own cage at night and is a neverfail layer of a beautiful pale light bluegreen egg. They are all about 1 yr old. We use DE food grade and oat hay for bedding. The girls definitely prefer my husband to me 'cuz he built the coop right around them. They loved all the powertools noise! Anyway, hope all goes well, don't give up. I lost my whole initial flock to Merrick' disease and waited 3 yrs to try again. Doing great after 1 yr, Thank goodness. Good Luck and Good Clucks!

Growsaposy is me, Barbara, N. California!

 

[XxMingirlxX]

Loved your story, you have had adventures. We've got 6 hens, (one rooster had to leave to another home) 1 dog 3 cats.  The big yellow cat has adopted the hens- when they "free range" in the large backyard, he lays in the middle and watches them, kind of "hensits!" They are all good layers: one Australorp, 2 Americaunas, 1 speckled maran and 2 Wyandottes. Our coop and yard are good, but they prefer the lawn, of course. My husband and his friend have invented a new automatic chicken door and it is a lifesaver, I am sure, as we have a good quantity of skunk, raccoon, possums, and occasionally a coyote in our neighborhood.  We have one Wyandotte no one likes so she hangs around the outside of the  flock and has learned to run really fast. She has her own cage at night and is a neverfail layer of a beautiful pale light bluegreen egg. They are all about 1 yr old. We use DE food grade and oat hay for bedding. The girls definitely prefer my husband to me 'cuz he built the coop right around them. They loved all the powertools noise! Anyway, hope all goes well, don't give up.  I lost my whole initial flock to Merrick' disease and waited 3 yrs to try again. Doing great after 1 yr,  Thank goodness. Good Luck and Good Clucks!

Growsaposy is  me, Barbara, N. California!

Thanks! Your flock sounds great, do you have any pics?

 

[XxMingirlxX]

Well, this is a post I hoped I wouldn't have to make again.

When I returned home, Peggy was missing and there was a small pile of her feathers on the floor just outside the electric fence. She was nowhere to be found. Maybe she will turn up but we don't think so. We think that is was really bad luck because the electric fence was working as always, the other hens weren't stressed at all and if a fox had got in the run it definitely couldn't have got back out again. Peggy hadn't flown out in ages so we assumed that she didn't any more, we think that she flew out on a rare excursion just a fox was passing through. We have made sure the others are safe - they are to large to fly out and have a wing clipped.

Either way, today I have lost a great hen who was quirky and beautiful and sweet who layed the most adorable eggs. She loved dust bathing and smuggling next to Babs and Selma at night. She will be dearly missed.

Rest In Peace. Peggy the Appenzeller Spitzhauben. I love you and will miss you xxxx

 

[XxMingirlxX]

Hi all, sorry I haven't posted recently.

Two weeks ago Zazzles was killed by a fox, we saw it lurking afterwards. We don't know how it got in but have confined the two remaining girls to the enclosed run and letting them out for supervised free range.

I blew Zazzles' last egg. She was a mad, quirky, bossy, funny, girl and I will miss her very much. Xx

I went to Preston two days ago to look at larger enclosed runs and found a relatively cheap big one so that they can still roam. I then spent two hours looking at the chickens, the Frizzled buff polish and Silkied cracked me up. They had sold out of Orpingtons but I plan to get a chocolate or black Orpington in the summer. Then in autumn I might get two chicks.

Rest in Piece my gorgeous mad girl xx

 

[XxMingirlxX]

Coop and run version 5.0 is finally complete and they love it! Now I can think about which breeds to get to keep these two company, I am thinking - a Frizzled Buff Laced Polish, a Black English Orpington, a Welsummer and maybe a double silver laced Barnevelder or a Wheaten Marans or a Gold Laced Wyandotte, or maybe a Silkie or a Salmon Faverolle or a Cream Legbar. GAHH!! There are too many choices, you guys will have to help me decide, I am thinking of getting 4-6 giving me a total occupancy of 6-8.

 

[Free Feather]

You might want to try using a stronger wire over the chicken wire, like welded wire. I would not worry as much about the holes being super small because your main predator is a fox, but the wire needs to be stronger.

 

[XxMingirlxX]

You might want to try using a stronger wire over the chicken wire, like welded wire. I would not worry as much about the holes being super small because your main predator is a fox, but the wire needs to be stronger.

Thanks, I agree. It is very strong but you can never be too safe. I have some left over chicken wire that I will wrap around the lower two foot of the run so there is a bit extra to add on the ground for dig proofing when I get home from Turkey.

 

[XxMingirlxX]

Avian Flu confirmed in Lancashire. I should be OK, it was about and hours drive away from me and there is a six mile exclusion zone around it and the birds were culled. It wasn't a very pathogenic strain (H7N7) so there is little risk to consumers.

However the place I was going to buy the new hens from is in Preston and has decided to stop selling birds until further notice