New Chicken and Duck Mom

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redrascalsranch

In the Brooder
Jul 10, 2025
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26
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Hi everyone,

My partner and I have 25 acres in southwestern Ontario and are new to farming. We have hay fields and will be bringing in beef cattle this fall and have recently ventured into small-flock poultry. We just got 6 red sex link baby chicks (1 rooster, 5 hens) and 6 Welsh Harlequin ducklings (hopefully all female). They are both about a week old.

We've never had poultry before so I have tons of questions and a lot of learning to do. Right now I'm focused on trying to design their poultry area, keenly aware that I only have about 5 weeks before we need to have it ready.

Look out for me on the forums!

Kelly
 
Bsmac said:
Hello! Welcome to BYC! Do you have a secure place to house them? There are a lot of predators that are a serious threat to poultry including cats and dogs!
Click to expand...

We will! Right now they're in a brooder in our shop, totally safe (even from our dog haha). I just posted in the Coop Design forum looking for advice on how to design the poultry area. It is definitely going to be predator-proofed all the way around, just not sure how to design what actually goes in it yet that makes both flocks happy.
 
redrascalsranch said:
We will! Right now they're in a brooder in our shop, totally safe (even from our dog haha). I just posted in the Coop Design forum looking for advice on how to design the poultry area. It is definitely going to be predator-proofed all the way around, just not sure how to design what actually goes in it yet that makes both flocks happy.
Click to expand...
That`s good!! I am pretty sure there is all sorts of info here about coup design. Good predator proofing starts with 1/2 inch hardware cloth fastened with fender washers and screws. You could use heavy duty pound in staples but makes it tough to remove if you need to for some reason. Another tip, plenty of ventilation well above the birds heads while roosting. I think 1 square foot per bird is recommended. Have fun with you new chicken adventure! 😊
 
Greetings & Salutations. Welcome.

It looks like you already found the Forums! Wishing you the best in your new homestead. Share pictures of your new flock when you have time.

This is a wonderful site on which to Learn and enjoy. We are pleased to have you in the community.
 

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