Pennsylvania!! Unite!!

[LittleMissPurdy]

You would've thought that Daffy would've educated him by now! Ugghhh looks like I gotta go have a talk with him... Never had to give anybody the talk before, hopefully it works!

Believe me, it is not something either side is ever ready for!
The kids want to hind under anything and you just want to make dinner, or sweep or anything but that. Good Luck !

View attachment 1687586

very cute, tiny

 

[BullChick]

Me too! Ne p.a Wayne county aldenville by 170

 

[Mina MEOWZA]

Welcome from Kennett Square! Orpingtons, Wyandottes, Welsummer, Production Red, Australorp all in my coop--I am hoping to add a white chicken (I think they are beautiful) and some on Dennis' blue layers this spring.

Oh my goodness- HI! I'm currently in Valley Forge but I used to live in West Chester and frequented Kennet Square from time to time...

I'm thinking of raising:
Rhode Island Red
Barred Rock
Wellsummer
Speckled Sussex
Molted Java
Buff Orpington

Do your chicks that aren't particularly 'heat tolerant' fair well enough in our climate?

 

[Mina MEOWZA]

sorry this is late..Hello & Welcome
You've come to the right thread for enabling, er...support in your backyard adventures.
I am sure others have already introduced you to the plethora of wonderful & amazing fur & feathered lovelies to become totally obsessed, er...in love with.
Glad to have you!

Thank you!! I'm already overwhelmed and loving it!

 

[Mina MEOWZA]

that's funny...ahh, the joys of broodies
Will be looking for Cordon to start her first round of nutty-mother in about a month or so. End of March beginning April... Seems as soon as the weather really breaks, that's when it get's fun picking on each other for the best corner, squawking & growling whenever we tell them to go outside & enjoy the day.

Hi! Speaking of broody... Would you suggest non-broody breeds for a newbie? Or, is it just something you learn to deal with...?

 

[OneMountainAcres]

Hi! Speaking of broody... Would you suggest non-broody breeds for a newbie? Or, is it just something you learn to deal with...?

It's something you learn to deal with. Setting up a broody breaker pen is something we all end up learning how to do lol.

 

[Mina MEOWZA]

It's something you learn to deal with. Setting up a broody breaker pen is something we all end up learning how to do lol.

Awesome. Great insight. Appreciate it! I won't ask what a broody breaker pen is yet but, I'll put it on my list for when the time comes... Heh.

 

[LittleMissPurdy]

Me too! Ne p.a Wayne county aldenville by 170

Hello & Welcome!

 

[LittleMissPurdy]

Awesome. Great insight. Appreciate it! I won't ask what a broody breaker pen is yet but, I'll put it on my list for when the time comes... Heh.

It is just an extra cage or space/area in the coop or outside that you put the hen who is a little overzealous about wanting babies & not laying eggs.
I use a med-large metal dog cage.
If it is nice outside I will put it out with the other girls so the broody-hen can be out in the light..not direct sun, geesh...& still hang with the girls. I put food & water in with her also.
It has worked best for us to be able to get the brood-hen out of the coop & in the company of the others, broods like it dark and quiet.
Now, they won't appreciate all the work you will have done for them, so be patient.
They may/will growl or even try to peck, but it is for their..your own good, but this is only for those who do not want eggs to be sat on, like when they haven't been fertilized because you don't have a rooster...
Sometimes we have to do this for a week, maybe just a coupe of days..all depends on how nuts, er...broody they have gotten themselves.
If you start seeing too many belly feathers or one of the girls like to be sitting in a corner or nest box a bit too long..like ALL day, that is a good sign you have a broody brewing
There are a lot of others here who have more experience with them than I, so feel free to ask questions..about anything. There are no dumb questions, except for the ones not asked
We have all started at the beginning once. ,my gosh this is getting to be a bad habit, this long windedness...

 

[dheltzel]

Oh my goodness- HI! I'm currently in Valley Forge but I used to live in West Chester and frequented Kennet Square from time to time...

I'm thinking of raising:
Rhode Island Red
Barred Rock
Wellsummer
Speckled Sussex
Molted Java
Buff Orpington

Do your chicks that aren't particularly 'heat tolerant' fair well enough in our climate?

I drive through Valley Forge on my way to work in King of Prussia!
Chickens as a species are very heat and cold tolerant. They can take anything our climate can dish out - with proper housing. I build my coops to be very open and breezy for summer, then tarp them up for the winter. Another way is to build an enclosed coop and large run with roosts and a roof to keep out rain. In the winter they will be indoors a lot, in the summer hardly at all.
The "cold tolerant" breeds simply have smaller combs to avoid frostbite. Hens of any breed have small enough combs to prevent that. "Heat tolerant" breeds are those with large combs, that helps them dissipate heat. A shady, breezy place to rest makes even the small comb breeds comfortable, and a non-drafty but ventilated winter coop prevents frostbite for most every breed.