Our newest Hobby~ Chickens

[Ashdoes]

Well the girls had outside time today. An octagon baby gate, that I gave my MIL 3 years ago, just happened to be free again...so she gave it back for the baby chicks. How lucky was that? No more babies at Nana's house? What are the odds? So, the chickies were well guarded, by the gate and Paige and Miya. They were in heaven! I've read that some chicks freak out, so we were prepared for that, but they dug right in. They were scratching, and pecking and flapping, it was great. Then we decided to get them a bug, not that there weren't any, but we wanted to find a big one. So, we grabbed one of the many moths in our lumber pile, took a wing off and chucked it in. They were on it in a flash. Although, as usual, Lola was the first on it, then Lula got it, then Lola got it back and finished it off. The others chased them, and tried to steal it, but those Golden Girls are tough cookies. All in all it was a fun hour. The chicks are covered in dirt and exhausted, and my girls had a blast. Chickens are tons of fun! I think everyone should have three or four, just for the entertainment....the eggs are just a bonus.
~Ashley

 

[kitten6566]

Barred rocks can get very big if you didnt know that. Do you know if the barred rock is a male or female? I just got 15 extra barred rock roos and they are bigger then any hawks ive seen and they arent even full grown. If you order your easter eggers and silkies make sure you have enough chickens in the order. i got the fifteen extra from a hatchry who sent them to "keep the chicks warm".

 

[Ashdoes]

Haven't added anything for a while, so a little pic heavy here. We'll start with the run pics and then i'll show you our new babies....

 

[Ashdoes]

And we got MORE chickens. Found a lady right next to us with Cochins and Silkies. Hubby loves silkies, so we got three and I fell in love with the Cochins so we got four of them. We know some might be roosters, and we'll decide from later what to do with them, since we have plenty of room and we're allowed to have them. Here's an over dose of cuteness for ya....

Itty Bitty Silkies first...Rob really likes the lighter ones, so he picked the two light ones
and i got him an extra one, just cause he loves them.




The Cochins. The girls picked the light ones and Rob and I picked the darker ones.


And now play...FIND THE SILKIES! too cute when they run over to cuddle the Cochins.



~Ashley

 

[Ashdoes]

And here's a couple pics of the finished coop...
The roost bars. Now that the older pullets are in the coop we have Sweet PDZ under the roosts...I really like it
all i do is scoop the poop in the mornings and everything is clean.


and here's the ramp that the chicks do not use very well...



And my Fav part...the dividers for the nesting boxes. When you look from the roosting side into the nesting side
The dividers say our last name on one and FAMILY on the other...totally my idea, but Rob did all the work.


~Ashley

 

[Ashdoes]

Picked up three more Cochins from the breeder. Of the first four we're pretty sure we have at least two roosters, if not three. So we went back and the breeder and I went through the 5 month olds and decided three were likely pullets. At least now, in 6 months when Rob gets back we'll know who we want or need to get rid of.
I feel bad, but I like the Cochins a lot more than our original five, which we picked for laying quality.
The Wyandottes are flighty and can barely stand being touched. The Golden Buffs are the only color out of all the chickens, so we're good with them. Our Barred Rock is the top girl so far, and I'm hoping she let's the Cochins and Silkies merge into the flock.
We're keeping the Cochins and Silkies in there outdoor pen for four more days, then the Cochins will free roam with the Layers but still go back to the garage at night. The silkies of course will stay in the little pen till I don't worry about them. The run is plenty big for all of them, so I'm not worried about any major issues.

 

[Pozees]

Ashley, it sounds as if you are having a wonderful time immersing yourself in the world of chickens!

OT for BYC, but had to share - I thought the same thing about trees when I first moved to CO from upstate NY, but having struggled to grow trees for the last 15 years in three different homes, I can tell you, they take a lot of extra work here. This year in particular has been very challenging, between drought and hot, windy days. I have trees that have been in the ground six years that I used to be able to water maybe once a week, that I have had to water every night this year. I let an Aspen go two days, when it was 100+ and windy, and it looked like someone took a torch to it. Luckily it recovered. Over the last 6 years we've been on 42 acres just south of Pueblo where we have planted hundred of trees, and lost dozens - lost three Lombardy Poplars to gophers over two winters. We have developed a planting technique that is a huge pain in the neck, but it works. We did the hole, then line it with a double layer of the small-space chicken wire molded into the hole, like a basket. Gophers can still chew some of the roots, but they can't get enough to actually kill the trees, just slow growth. Last year, Bob trapped (as in, kill trap) 23 gophers, this year we're up to 8 so far. About the time the trees look really great, one of the following occurs:

1 - MAJOR hail storm strips them all bare, about 80% recover
2 - Antelope come by and bite off all the new branches - not to eat, they leave them lying on the ground around the tree; now have water-shooting scarecrows around their favorite targets
3 - Young buck antelope scrape all the bark off with their horns (just happened again to a Maple and three Locust - with thorns!)
4 - rabbits girdle the trees - chew a circle all the way around the trunk which kills the tree (and they are too cute to kill, so now we feed them to keep them away from the trees - sounds crazy, but it has worked for 5 years)
5 - Borers attack the only two big trees we have, Cottonwoods, which grow fast if you water them; $100 worth of borer treatment later, one is essentially recovered, the other is still iffy

Trees that were weeds in NY - Sumacs - we now plant on purpose because they will usually survive, recover from having every leaf removed by Antelope, and grow - slowly, but they grow.

Anyway, back on topic - right now I have one Blue Cochin, and she is an absolute delight. She still isn't exactly fond of being picked up and held, but it doesn't matter, she is the funniest, silliest hen, and I adore her, I don't blame you one bit for preferring them, and there's nothing wrong with that. The others will still do what you selected them for. The Cochins you selected because you just like them - so they are fulfilling their purpose as well.

Best of luck to you.

 

[Ashdoes]

I have noticed that specific trees grow super well here...it just happens that I don't like any of those. They all look so trashed and old. We just planted a weeping willow in our front yard. We built a moat around it's base, and water everyday. The nursery gave a schedule for it, with regular watering for the next two years. I'm hoping to plant a lot more trees as time goes. Just not looking forward to watering schedules.
I do appreciate any comments, chicken related or not.
~Ashley

 

[Pozees]

Well, against my better judgment I have three willows (Globe, Contorted, and a Pussy Willow), and they require water every day during summer and at least once a month during winter. Once the leaves fall off, unless the ground freezes the roots continue to grow and must be taken care of. Willows tend to be shallow-rooted, so they dry out faster. There are prairie willows that do better, but they aren't as attractive.

Shade trees that do well here include Locust, Green Ash, Cottonwood, and Elm - Elms you can get seedlings almost anywhere in the spring, people pull them as weeds they grow so easily and quickly, so just advertise that you will come dig them up if you want them. I used to turn up my nose at them, but I have one planted now, and it gets very little water and still grows. My recommendation is not to go for inexpensive 6"-12" seedlings that only need a small hole dug, as tempting as it is, but instead look for larger potted trees, which can be planted anytime the ground isn't frozen if deciduous (really don't fare as well if they are evergreen and you try to plant in fall although it can be done). I was in the Lowe's on Constitution and Powers two weeks ago and they had Locust trees about 8' tall for $35 - I so wished I had the pickup with me instead of my little car, I would have brought some home. I like Locust because they grow fast and the leaves are so small you don't always have to rake them in the fall.

How are your chicks doing?

 

[Ashdoes]

Yeah I tried to grow one that I bought at about a foot tall, that poor thing never stood a chance. And I'm not even sure what went wrong, since I watered it all the time and kept an eye on it. One day alive next day dead.
The chickens are great. Our big girls go in the coop on their own at night, and run up to us anytime we're out there. The big Cochins are about 6 weeks now, so we made them sleep in the coop for the first time last night. They seemed to be fine this morning. I'm really hoping they mesh a little more as a flock, as of right now they stay in separate groups. The silkies and new Cochins are still in the garage brooder, but go out during the day. I really can't wait to be done carrying chickens back and forth. The little silkies won't be able to be free in the run until they at least 6 inches tall...and they grow slow. I do have fun with them though. I spend about an hour in the barn and run every morning, cleaning up and just hanging out with them.