NY chicken lover!!!!

[Sally8]

I'm about a dozen pages back but I read on one of these threads where someone opens their feed bags and staples them to the Walls for added wind protection. Thought I'd try it this week end but my walls are plywood. Thought it might help with heat though. All my vents are just below the ceiling (rafters). It took a little tweaking until I got it just right. I'll try to post the pic I have of how it looked until it was just right. It was minus 13. Hasn't happened since.

 

[Metella]

Welcome - yes, over build - you will always have an injured animal or breeder pairs or young ones or something that needs a quarantine space and new ones coming along ....

And YES - there is no one way - also - there are best and ok methods ... like - I would like to take water out 3 times a day to my birds - but I don't have time.... so I do it once a day - in the middle when I hope it is warmest to give them the longest time to drink before it freezes. This has been the way it is all winter and they are fine - but I know they would like it more with water all day long - yet they manage.

So tell us so we can vicariously enjoy your chick order - what kinds and how many! ? I would love to have trios of almost every breed - but ha ha - can't. So I enjoy all the pics and stories shared here.

 

[Lynzi777]

EOrpBreeder & jdaly91215

x2 What Cass said: Take what works for YOU after reading what other's have done. Everyone has their own way of doing things when it comes to chicken raising, we're all here to share what works best for us and share what might be useful info with others. And I also have to agree - build big the first time if you can. I learned that the hard way.

 

[JerseyHen]

Hello

I'm in Westchester County NY. Just wondering if anyone is near me in Westchester, Putnam or Dutchess? My bf and I are new to raising chickens and our first chicks will arrive around April 23rd. In the meantime I'm keeping myself occupied researching and making plans of course. I can't wait!

I am not too far from you. I am in the very northern tip of NJ... great folks and information on here.

You might check out these threads also:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/534036/southern-ny-dutchess-county-and-below

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/746897/hudson-valley-ny-chat-thread

 

[jdaly91215]

pharmchickrnmom & Metella
We ordered 2 EE, 1 golden laced wyandotte, 1 silver laced wyandotte, 1 buff brahma, 1 Welsummer, 1 Delaware, 1 RIR, 1 sex link and 12 CX. Hopefully all of the first 9 will be hens. I'd like to choose 1 or 2 heritage breeds to focus on in the future, so we'll see. I've been doing a lot of reading about Dorkings and if I don't fall in love with one of the breeds we're getting in April I might try to get some next year.

Cass & Lynzi
I definitely hear you on building bigger :-D. We're planning a 16x8 coop to start with (maybe 20x8) and a permanent run (not sure how big the attached run will be yet) and then 2 - 10x20 pvc hoop pasture pens so they can forage during the day. We'll probably start out with one to see how it goes then build another if it works out well. I wish we could free range but the people who lived here before us tried that and lost all of their chickens in short order (off leash dogs and hawks mostly, even an eagle took a few). Heck, I watched a hawk take a blue Jay off of our feeder about 2 weeks ago. So hopefully these pens work well.

Jerseyhen
Thanks for the thread suggestions! I'll check them out! I love North Jersey, an old friend of mine has a beautiful dairy farm down there.

 

[rancher hicks]

It a weekly thing on our road. They never come early. 10am is unheard of. Trash day is today for us too, it's still out there and probably will be for another hour or so.

Lately our trash man has been coming in the dark. Late around 5pm. I do believe Syracuse Haulers is hiring. IMO there is not such thing as a ???? job. I looked up negative adjectives for "job" and google took me to sites for "positive adjectives". What does that tell you?

IMO everyone who has a job outside the home, no matter what deserves to be treated with respect. Even our trash men/women. (yes I know those who work in the home deserves respect too. I just know someone is going to read into my comment something that is not there. It's how some people think. Such is life.)

In either case Syracuse Haulers is hiring last I saw. If I could do it, I'd be there.

 

[rancher hicks]

I'll have to try that tomorrow. Maybe I'll boil a pot of water on the stove and then pour in right before I scrape. I sprayed it with a bleach solution a few minutes ago but didn't think to pour hot water in to be able to scrape. I'll spend more time with it tomorrow.

IMO the hot water treatment is a bit extreme, but that's just me. I say dry it out and air it for a bit and you should be fine. If there is no droppings of course.

Or you could call in the Hazmat team. Gloves, face masks, hoods the whole nine yards.

I've caught mice in my chicken runs. You don't think I'm going to do a whole disinfectant thing on them do you? Lord have mercy those poor girls would need ice skates after that.

Even so it is kinda funny to see them slip on the ice in the yard.

 

[rancher hicks]

After the bleach has done its work, you could wash that away with some vinegar and water...and the trash men on most Wed. Mornings are reving up their engines at our house as their first pick up. We like to put it out in the morning so it doesn't blow all over and end up in the ditch across the street. They delight in getting here before we get it to the road. They will self righteously not cross the street to get it if we bring it up when they come back down the road on the other side. And they don't fish it out of the ditch either. grrrr.

Now that I think of it the vinegar would be better than bleach. Less toxic and still disinfects. Vinegar is great for molds and mildews too. Did you know that vinegar is an acid?

 

[rancher hicks]

Hello

I'm in Westchester County NY. Just wondering if anyone is near me in Westchester, Putnam or Dutchess? My bf and I are new to raising chickens and our first chicks will arrive around April 23rd. In the meantime I'm keeping myself occupied researching and making plans of course. I can't wait!

please chick your sanity at the door.

 

[rancher hicks]

EOrpBreeder & jdaly91215

x2 What Cass said: Take what works for YOU after reading what other's have done. Everyone has their own way of doing things when it comes to chicken raising, we're all here to share what works best for us and share what might be useful info with others. And I also have to agree - build big the first time if you can. I learned that the hard way.

I agree. Build big. You can always keep less chickens, (not that that will happen) but it's not easy to add on when you get more chickens. And you will.

or duckses or gooses or turkeyses, or anything else that lays eggs.