Orpingtons! Do they did up your garden?

[Yogiman]

All 27 of my hens are "full figured" ladies and they all climb a 3 feet ramp every night to get to their roost without any problem.

 

[Mik]

Well at least I can get the coop I have been looking at. Thank you for all your advise. Michala

 

[Tuffoldhen]

I have ramps and steps into my henhouse from 3 directions...I have full-figured ladies too...

If your orps are going to be like mine..they will dig and scratch thru flower beds, and the garden...my lawn is over an acre so I don't see alot of damage since I only supervise evening free range but trust me they will ruin a small yard in no time... lol

 

[Standard Hen]

I no longer plant flowers at all. Many sections of my lawn are dug up for dust bathing including in front of my barn and horses stalls. Little bulldozers all of them. Mind you they have acres of woods to forage in and they do that too. My neighbor has horses also and the lawn in his "yard" is the kind to walk barefoot in. He fertilizes it and maintains it very nicely. The other day a couple of my rebel girls had climbed the hill and were eyeing his grass. My neighbor said he has the ax ready....lol But I think he likes them because when we are talking whenwe see each other out there I notice he is always staring at them like mezmerized,,,,,,like us! I think he finds them very soothing,,,I just hope they stay off of his emerald lawn.

 

[Happy Chicken Mama]

Yeah... I have 9 different chickens and my buff orrpington is one of the worst! They are all pretty bad though. Sorry!!!

 

[Happy Chicken Mama]

YES Standard Hen! Not only are MY flowers and gardens not safe... but neither are my neighbors!!! Everyday I find them at a neighbors... sometimes three or four houses down!

 

[NU CHICKS]

We have four hens on is an Orp. One day all of my onions and chives started to disapear, everytime I pick up the Orp. she smells like an onion.

 

[MissPrissy]

You just have to remember if you are starting with chicks - orpingtons or any other breed - they don't have a mother hen to teach them to go inside the hen house, when to go in and roost, etc. You have to show them how to go in the house, when to go in the house, and even put them on the roost poles so they can learn what they should do as a chicken. You are momma hen and you teach them. One thing you can't teach them is to not eat your garden. They will eat everything and leave nothing for you.

 

[rachelb]

Hi, I have two orpingtons and have spent most of today in the garden preparing the vegatable patch. My two love nothing better than a good 'ole dust bath wherever they can find a dry patch of earth whether it's amongst my parsnips or flower beds! So, if you want to keep your veg patch and flower gardens in pristine condition I would recommend a pen! They are a lovely breed but don't care where they dig. Good luck. Regards Rachel from across the pond.

 

[Mik]

Thank you to everyone for their kind advice. I think I will just not leave them unsupervised when they are out.
I popped to my friends house yesterday to go and see her newly hatched Buff Orpington chicks. She has had 3 out of the 12 eggs that she purchased as fertile Buff eggs hatch and they were so cute. I did notice though that they have a dark stripe by their eyes like Cleopatra and the lower half of their faces are paler in colour. I have looked on the net and all Buff chicks that I have seen are just pale Orange in colour. But these have some distinct dark markings running over their little bodies. Does anyone recognise the breed description?