NY chicken lover!!!!

[stonykill]

Thats what I kind of thought ...unsexed ...if only 2 ..probably be ROOS ...Acckk.
I hear Mama is a roo maker ..non of hers LOL
might be better to wait till they are older.. except yours like the wild outside ..& might be trained to be that way if older ? right ..?
Well they are pretty to look at ! just wishing at this point

I have 2 pens with Sumatra's and then the free range Sumatra's. The penned ones are like any chicken. All they have ever known is confinment and when they escape, they want back in pronto.

 

[Tough Old Bird]

Where to put it ? I would go with closer & easier for you ..Chickens dont care .If it has some shade that is good for the summer if they have to stay in the run for a while .
We moved the coop closer to the house for the winter ...Was so glad
1) hated trudgging thru the snow ..just that little bit .
2) chickens were closer to the house ( For me to hear if there were problems at night ..or anytime
We had a outside light on the shed for their safety ..( the coop backs up to the shed ) now they have a motion sensor light on the shed next to the coop .

We were going to put Linoleum in the coop ..WE Have a TILE Floor ! LOL
We had some old bathroom tile that was taken out ..so we cleaned it up & grouted the floor & up the sides a bit .
SUPER easy to clean . I shovel or pitch fork the stuff out ..Dries easily ...can be sprayed with cleaner if needed

Hi Gramma Chick - I think it's great that lots of people use materials they have around the place. Waste not, want not (and spend less)! Thanks for your advice on coop placement in favor of being closer to the house. Still mulling over these two potential spots and my hubby is going to walk around a little more with me later today. Wish I could combine the two locales' selling points, as each has benefits...but neither is perfect.

TOB

 

[stonykill]

killing roo's in the fresh snow is messy

 

[pharmchickrnmom]

Morning all! 4 fresh inches of powder and boy are the cheeps mad! I just had them out on monday freeranging as it was almost 60 and they were eating grass and everything else. I am getting death stares from them. On a good note, egg production has been up the last few days. Makes my egg customers happy.

Ginny--the 'screen' on the front of the big coop is actually hardware mesh. I only use that for all windows and doors as it is pretty much predator proof against anything except bears.

Stony--yeah, I can empathize. Been there done that. On the plus side though, the fresh snow makes for great cleaning material for inside and outside of the carcass and it cools the meat off pretty quick.

So I am listing the silkie boys on craigs list since no one here is interested. Hoping I find a buyer as these boys really need their own flock and are turning into superb roos. Still good boys for the most part.

Going out to shovel out coops and runs and paths to all of them, then check waterers and feeders. I am sure I will get an earfull from everyone about the evil white stuff. Sigh. Kids are always complainin about somethin!

 

[stonykill]

Morning all! 4 fresh inches of powder and boy are the cheeps mad! I just had them out on monday freeranging as it was almost 60 and they were eating grass and everything else. I am getting death stares from them. On a good note, egg production has been up the last few days. Makes my egg customers happy.

Ginny--the 'screen' on the front of the big coop is actually hardware mesh. I only use that for all windows and doors as it is pretty much predator proof against anything except bears.

Stony--yeah, I can empathize. Been there done that. On the plus side though, the fresh snow makes for great cleaning material for inside and outside of the carcass and it cools the meat off pretty quick.

So I am listing the silkie boys on craigs list since no one here is interested. Hoping I find a buyer as these boys really need their own flock and are turning into superb roos. Still good boys for the most part.

Going out to shovel out coops and runs and paths to all of them, then check waterers and feeders. I am sure I will get an earfull from everyone about the evil white stuff. Sigh. Kids are always complainin about somethin!

snow...bah. Just more work...with no pay. Well all of the chickens and the duckers are fed. Time to put on yukky pants and carry the water out to start plucking. Only 3 this morning. I'll do a few more on Saturday or Sunday. 2 of todays young Sumatra roos are pretty small. Going to crock pot them over the weekend after they "relax" in the fridge for a few days.
Predator proof against anything but bears and Mountain Lions and 40 lb bobcats. Like the Mountain Lion a friend saw in my yard or the almost 40 lb Bobcat I killed a few months ago.

My mutts I created last year by mixing Sumatra roo's with White leghorns are the BOMB! Small birds, don't eat much and lay nice big eggs...often! Fine! I'll have to incubate in a month or 2 to make more of them. They pay the food bill! And the roo's are tasty!

 

[Lapeerian]

Minor problem is some of us bring birds to sell, add to the auction and/or pre-arranged sales....don't know if another location would want other birds on their property and if the birds would survive if left in the car during a tour of another location.....If you have space for parking and tables we bring our own entertainment....US!!! (and some of us are pretty darn entertaining) Since I am always the one advocating a get together, I am more than willing to run/supervise the Chinese auction (I still have tickets....a roll of them sure does last a long time.) I have a pop up canopy I can bring to add shade to the location.

Ah, forgot about the birds everyone brought. That is what I get for thinking just before bed. I told hubby that Tab had asked if anyone was planning a gathering this year. I got a very quick "No, we are NOT hosting it!"

Party Pooper. So I am out for this year. I'd like to get the hole in the ground that was formerly an in-ground pool filled in before anyways. Then we can have a nice patio and fire pit to sit around. *sigh* There is always next year.

 

[Framac]

Great point about tearing the linoleum. Once it's ripped or punctured, its moisture barrier is obviously compromised. Actually, your comment about trying to avoid nailing things into the (new) wood flooring is one that I'll bet my husband has concerns about. How did you get around this? Thanks for the food for thought and the vote of confidence on the benefits of linoleum!

TOB

I pigeon toe all screws on all internal walls that touch the floor.All boards, when possible that form walls get screwed into the bottom board before being put into place. I do have multiple pens on the floor of the coop, and that has been how I got around screwing down into the floor.

Framac

 

[Tough Old Bird]

I pigeon toe all screws on all internal walls that touch the floor.All boards, when possible that form walls get screwed into the bottom board before being put into place. I do have multiple pens on the floor of the coop, and that has been how I got around screwing down into the floor.

Framac

Gotcha - thanks for clarifying. Will mention this to my handy-dandy architect wizard hubby, who will probably roll his eyes at me & say, "well, Duh!"

 

[Tough Old Bird]

Predator proof against anything but bears and Mountain Lions and 40 lb bobcats. Like the Mountain Lion a friend saw in my yard or the almost 40 lb Bobcat I killed a few months ago.

In the almost 20 years I've been in this home, I've never seen a bear here, but I found one pile of fresh scat 2 years ago, while pushing through thickets in pursuit of a warbler (crazy bird lady).

How the heck do you keep a hungry bear out of your pen and coop?! Hot wire?

Stony, where's Canaan? Near the Adirondacks?

TOB

 

[marquisella]

Quote:
Heres a hen. They have crests like stiff brushes...a V comb that is protected by the "brush" and buffs & beards like Ameraucanas.Feathers are spangled, that is where mine need work.

I got 5 eggs today out of 11 hens, they are finally settling down. I've only had them 3 weeks. Mine are Cream, they are the rarer of the 2 colors inthe US. The other is a darker gold color. They are not so flighty as a leghorn, I'm finding they were frightened at first, but now, actually come towards me when I am filling the feeder, so they are settling down. They do not fly up into my face, so that is a plus....

and they don't eat a lot!

Eggs are fertile, so another plus, the roo actually breeds the hens...

They say they can fly though, so I don't know how that will work out in the spring when I put the outside.

Rancher, if you are not feeding your Marans at least 20% protein feed, they won't lay eggs...