New to the world of chicken keeping

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Groovy Girl Creations

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Nov 14, 2020
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Hey everyone.

I am relatively new to having chickens. I live on a small family farm (we don't actually do the farming, just live in the little house/rental property the farm owners have) in Southern Wisconsin. The lady who owns the farm has recently had some health issues and is no longer able to take care of them so I volunteered to help out for the last few months. Well apparently that has turned into me taking over all aspects of the chickens with the exception of the farm provides the food, coops/attached yards, and vet care if needed. However, all aspects of the daily care-feeding, watering, egg collecting, enrichment are left up to me.

The flock is currently about 30 hens and 4 roosters. I am unsure of breed(s) with the exception of 1 mischievous leghorn. There are about a dozen or so large white birds with red combs, and the rest are dark colored with an almost blueish-green sheen. There are 2 big red roosters, 1 dark colored rooster, and 1 that is yellow and dark (very pretty). I love watching them and finding new things to keep them entertained.

I'm interested in learning different ways to keep them from getting bored, treats that are good for them, and ways to improve their coop/yard (within the confines of what I am allowed to do-meaning no major renovations) especially during the harsh Wisconsin winters. They are normally separated into two different coops/yards but for the winter they are all housed together in the main coop. I am loving getting to know the birds (even the one grumpy red rooster that likes to peck my boots) and collecting and sharing the 12-18 eggs I get daily.

In addition to the chicken collection the farm has a lot of dairy cows and barn cats and my husband and I personally have 2 pugs, 2 cats that were dumped on the farm who were clearly pets at one point and not a fan of becoming barn cats and an antisocial hedgehog.
 
Hello and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.
If you're curious about breeds, post pictures in the Breed and Gender Forum.
Generally speaking, birds like clutter in their run. You can add perches, stumps, pallets leaning against each other to form a triangle, boxes to jump on. You get the idea.
 
Last edited:
DobieLover said:
Hello and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.
If you're curious about breeds, post pictures in the Breed and Gender Forum.
Generally speaking, birds like clutter in their run. You can add perches, stumps, pallets leaning against each other to form a triangle, boxes to jump on. You get the idea.
Click to expand...

I will definitely add more clutter to their runs. We have a lot of spare wood we normally use for our firepit, but will happily share with the birds. I've seen a few posts about making benches and swings with them. I am looking to try my hand at a couple of those soon.

Is there anything I can do inside the coop to keep them from getting bored when they don't want to be outside? I currently just go out and open the coop door in the morning and they all run out and start playing while I get their food and water taken care of. Then while they are eating I can get all of the eggs collected. The inside of the coop is pretty basic. Just has nesting boxes and a few shelves for them to perch on and ramps for them to get up up off the ground. I just think if it were me, I'd be bored just sitting around all day. I do go out and try to interact with them at least a few times each day, but I'm really not sure what else to do with them for inside entertainment.
 
BlueBaby said:
Hello, and welcome! Nothing like having a ready made flock to be able to practice on to know if you might want to have your own in the future. Good luck!
Click to expand...
I've already come to the conclusion that when we have our own place I HAVE to have chickens! I've already been sketching out coop ideas. I'd love to redo the coops and yards here, but I have to talk to the farm owner first.
 
You could hang a cabbage for them, or make a treat ball (plastic ball with holes you fill with treats) put up a few mirrors (not glass) and get a few toys they can explore
Ps. chickens love music.
-BYC-sign-flash.gif
 
Groovy Girl Creations said:
I will definitely add more clutter to their runs. We have a lot of spare wood we normally use for our firepit, but will happily share with the birds. I've seen a few posts about making benches and swings with them. I am looking to try my hand at a couple of those soon.

Is there anything I can do inside the coop to keep them from getting bored when they don't want to be outside? I currently just go out and open the coop door in the morning and they all run out and start playing while I get their food and water taken care of. Then while they are eating I can get all of the eggs collected. The inside of the coop is pretty basic. Just has nesting boxes and a few shelves for them to perch on and ramps for them to get up up off the ground. I just think if it were me, I'd be bored just sitting around all day. I do go out and try to interact with them at least a few times each day, but I'm really not sure what else to do with them for inside entertainment.
Click to expand...
Are the runs covered with a solid roof? If so, they can be winterized so the birds continue to use them during the winter. It is very good for them to continue to go outside year round.
 

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