NY chicken lover!!!!

[Gramma Chick]

Quote:

 

[BakerzDozen]

The grain is ground.
Huh, maybe I'll go back to "Nutty" (sorry

, I get fibro fog and it causes problems with my cognition & memory) and get the "uncertified" grain for the girls I really want to do it the organic way.
Thank you for being so kind and answering my questions.

 

[Metella]

I am very skeptical of the "blue" layers ... the Whiting is similar to the Arkansas Blue .... and I got AB pure birds who are laying a barely blue egg and all of very small size ....

The AB was supposed to be a commercial equivalent to the Leghorn - and I have not gotten many eggs (now have 6 AB hens only one gives a nice color) nor of a size or color promised. In addition that web sight started with GREEN in the egg description ! Makes me think they can come out in a variety of colors - and they are trying to downplay it.

I really wanted blue eggs a few years ago - used 3 different breeders and was disappointed in the color of all of them. At least all the birds were healthy --- so - I really hope it works out for you - but that was my experience .... I now am only going to breed the bluest of my blues to get a really good color strain going at my place.

 

[boskelli1571]

What is this mini chicken stock you speak of, Tao chick? Is it like a stock fair? Where and when does it occur?

Look for the thread mini chickenstock NY 2016. It's going to be at Chickengirls place in Harpursville.

Also, as far as your chicken accommodations go - free ranging in the yard is fine. Do you have any predators around? Cats, dogs, hawks etc. - that would be my only concern. As long a they are secure at night they should be ok.

 

[tao chick]

Look for the thread mini chickenstock NY 2016. It's going to be at Chickengirls place in Harpursville.

 Also, as far as your chicken accommodations go - free ranging in the yard is fine. Do you have any predators around? Cats, dogs, hawks etc. - that would be my only concern.  As long a they are secure at night they should be ok.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1058760/new-york-mini-chickenstock-2016/60#post_16256226

 

[Gramma Chick]

Also, with regards to space per chicken, I don't have a coop, as such. They would wander around my small backyard during the daylight hours, then at night, I would put them in a pen or cage in my shed to sleep. At least that's what I hope to do. It's what I'm doing with my lone rooster right now. I know I'll have to give enough room for nest boxes in their pen. Please let me know what you all think. I don't have enough room in my yard for a big coop that they can spend the day in, so I would let them loose in the morning and lock them up at night.

a shed is fine ...you could make that into a coop .
what kind of floor does your shed have.? ( asking because of predator issue )
It doesnt have to be air tight as they need some fresh air for ventilation
Any windows ? Longs they are let out early ....to get light that should be fine .
Hens lay based on the amount of day light they get ....
Normally they like to roost on something ..so adding a roost might be good

 

[rancher hicks]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1058760/new-york-mini-chickenstock-2016/60#post_16256226

Unless someone from NY posts about the chickenstock on THIS thread I'll most likely not see it. I don't cruise other threads. Just a few that I post to.

 

[Chicken girl 15]

Unless someone from NY posts about the chickenstock on THIS thread I'll most likely not see it. I don't cruise other threads. Just a few that I post to. 

well I'm hosting and sent you the info. All the who what when and where are on the page. Its a potluck with a raffle and critter sale/swap . There will be an assortment of breeds and food. You could come with some EE eggs and have your wife make aprons for the hens or us cooks, pre order of course.

 

[HISIRISHGEM]

Wow! It's taken me DAYS to catch up.

Hi there to the newbies!

Okay, I bought hay for the coop. Gramma I can't remember if it was you or Rancher who puts bales in your runs during the winter. I've had a tough time finding straw cheap enough. Not seeing too many on Craigslist that are local. So I found some hay for 3.00 a bale. It was all inside their barn with the horses. I put my hand in and smelled it and it smelled great! I bought 4 and shoved them in my husbands Nissan Versa.

Put them in the run and put plastic behind the bales so the snow (or rain) won't rot them sooner than later. The girls are LOVING their new digs but the bales sure take up a bit more space. Luckily they have been out to free range.

I had to cut their wings. Two of them I caught on the fence headed out towards the woods and they were testing me. Too much poison ivy and my husband is allergic so I was forced to trim the wings. I thought I'd leave my 3 favorite birds alone. The 2 Australorpes and my black and white EE'er were the only ones WITH their wings not trimmed and the others isolated the 3 from the rest of the group from what I'm gathering was the fact they still had their wings. One of the Australorpes ended up on the fence a few days later and I trimmed everyone else's wings (one side). Now they're all happy. Not flying over the fence line though they still can fly a bit and jump. We've had some funny times. My 4 year old, my husband and I were chasing the group when they all got out of order. I found myself with a big belly laugh. It's been a while since we've had such a light-hearted moment. We had another one today with shoving the hay in a Nissan Versa. Hilarious is all I can say.

On the hay, I was thinking of doing wha someone else did and add some bales around the edges of their coop. I know a lot of folks don't like the hay. Since we have it close by for 3.00, would it really be an issue to use in the coop too around the edges to keep the coop a bit warmer or is it really a nono?

We got our pullets from Dianne's Happy Hens Groton, NY. She raises the chicks to pullets but she will usually give them to the owners earlier if they want them. I believe she orders them though. I don't think she breeds any. I could be wrong though. Ours are fine so far. Though they are not laying. Good news is the feathers are growing back on the ee'ers including the worst one which I've used that blue spray on (thank you for the idea). They have the black sunflower seeds. I hope I'm feeding them enough protein. Man is it a science or what? I thought it would be easy. Just get the chickens, throw them in a coop and they'd lay. Hahahahaha Okay, I did do some reading and knew a bit more but since we're having odd weather it's hard to say what's going on and I'm new to the whole thing including molting chickens. I'm learning a lot from you all.

We've stopped until the new year accepting new placements in foster care. My emotions have been heightened a little and I need to come down a bit. My husbands father has been in and out of the hospital and our daughter needs to enjoy some time with mommy and daddy for a bit. I watched "A Home For Christmas" and just started bawling. Anyhow. We're loving our fur babies and chickens over here. They bring an awful lot of laughter.

I hope your all doing well. Merry Christmas everyone!

 

[Gramma Chick]

HISIRISHGEM
On the hay, I was thinking of doing wha someone else did and add some bales around the edges of their coop. I know a lot of folks don't like the hay. Since we have it close by for 3.00, would it really be an issue to use in the coop too around the edges to keep the coop a bit warmer or is it really a nono?

Cant understand the question