Redinator's First Hatch-Along w Bonus Broody: And Everything Thereafter

[ChickenChick46]

I was about to order them yesterday, but then I realized if I want a male I have to order 5 . . . why on Earth would I need 5 males for 5 pullets? I even tried ordering one male and 5 pullets . . .order wouldn't go through . . ..

Oh wow. I wonder why they require that?

 

[redinator]

Oh wow. I wonder why they require that?

I get the 5 chick minimum per order, but 5 of each breed or gender seems bit much. I might have to get an assortment of 'colored egg layers' instead and hope I get the breeds I want and sell the rest.

 

[ChickenChick46]

I get the 5 chick minimum per order, but 5 of each breed or gender seems bit much. I might have to get an assortment of 'colored egg layers' instead and hope I get the breeds I want and sell the rest.

Yeah I agree. I definitely get the minimum number of chicks. But I find breed minimums and especially gender minimums to be odd.

 

[redinator]

So I rewatched the video I made on all the things I intend to get done this month. I might have overestimated my energy level and ability to not play with chicks instead of actually getting things done.

Here's the list:

• replace Storm door
• Mow front yard
• lid for feed bucket
• install bird spikes and clean off landing
• replace torn pool noodles
• move yard tools to materials yard
• move cinder blocks and pavers (in progress; as needed)
• set up auto waterers; need diverters
• organize "junk"
• use edging along fence line
• put metal nest box in run for bantams
• clean under landing and add pavers under stairs to prevent chickens from laying eggs there; add bedding pellets to reduce odor
• move shade cloth poles to side yard and hang shade cloth
• remove old ramp and foundation pavers; save plywood
• set up grazing boxes and dust bath area
• remove t-posts along back of the yard
• replace netting with welded wire above 4ft chain-link fence
• install fencing on t-posts to divide chicken yard from main yard
• Mow side yard
• Organize material yard
• set up hides for chicks
• build perches in runs
• Build 8 bay nesting box and figure out where to put it

Doing these last; because once they're done I'll end up hatching more chicks:

• turn henhouse into Brooder
• clean incubator

I've decided to hire someone to do this because I don't have the tools or skill set to do it properly myself:

• install skirting; need professional help

I could also use some ideas on what to do with metal panels I kept when I tore down my old shed. I was planning to use them to wrap the run during winter, but I've decided tarps would be easier since I plan to remove them every summer.

I'll be updating this list as I go . . . wish me luck, lol.

Edited: 8 bay nesting box

 

[redinator]

Well I worked on integration of the incubator chicks (turning 3 weeks tomorrow) with the nearly 10 and 11 week olds.

An interesting turn of events happened. Some of the more skittish 10 and 11 week olds were interested in the chicks enough that they came and perched in my lap with them .

Cookie and KitKat are the more adventurous of the bunch and they wandered away from me and explored the run a bit. When they would get pecked by one of the older chicks they'd quickly come running back to momma.

The Black Sexlinks and Cinnamon Queen (Red Sexlink) are definitely gonna make integration a challenge. The Buff Orpingtons and Buff Cochins bantams seem to be the more accepting of the bunch and one of the cochins took up residence in the pen with the babies. She went in and just hung out and wasn't bothering them or chasing them from the feeder so I decided to let her stay. A couple of the chicks snuggled under her and she wasn't bothered by it one bit. She might be my next broody.

Ok I had my dose of chick therapy, now to get some real work done.

 

[TwoCrows]

Well I worked on integration of the incubator chicks (turning 3 weeks tomorrow) with the nearly 10 and 11 week olds.

An interesting turn of events happened. Some of the more skittish 10 and 11 week olds were interested in the chicks enough that they came and perched in my lap with them .

Cookie and KitKat are the more adventurous of the bunch and they wandered away from me and explored the run a bit. When they would get pecked by one of the older chicks they'd quickly come running back to momma.

The Black Sexlinks and Cinnamon Queen (Red Sexlink) are definitely gonna make integration a challenge. The Buff Orpingtons and Buff Cochins bantams seem to be the more accepting of the bunch and one of the cochins took up residence in the pen with the babies. She went in and just hung out and wasn't bothering them or chasing them from the feeder so I decided to let her stay. A couple of the chicks snuggled under her and she wasn't bothered by it one bit. She might be my next broody.

Ok I had my dose of chick therapy, now to get some real work done.

It's always nice when integration goes relatively smooth, makes keeping chickens so much more pleasant.

 

[redinator]

I had Sweety and her chicks out of the run with the rest of the older chickens for a bit today. Mama got spooked by a crow cawing and bolted back to the run leaving the chicks behind. (Poor girl, so nervous) I waited with the chicks until she realized her mistake and came to collect them. We'll be doing small/short excursions for the next few days/weeks until she's more comfortable having them out. I would leave the run open, but the chicks need to figure out where the gate is before I'm comfortable with that idea.

 

[redinator]

To make this explanation a little easier I've decided to 'name' the two separate flocks I seem to currently have. Eventually they'll all be one flock (I hope) but since there are two batches of chicks (the incubator chicks and Sweety's chicks) in two separate runs being raised differently things are a bit crazy.

The two flocks are Sweety's flock, the 7 and 5 month olds w Sweety's chicks. Then there's the Tractor Supply (TSC) chicks which are the 10 and 11 week olds which also includes the incubator chicks that are still penned in the run with TSC chicks. I hope that makes sense.

I've tried for several days to integrate the TSC chicks with the incubator chicks, but a few of the older chicks just keep harassing them so I decided to try a different tactic.

Initially I wanted to toss the more aggressive TSC chicks in with Sweety's flock and let them figure it out, but that was just frustration getting the better of me and would put Sweety's chicks in danger as well as the 4 more aggressive chicks.

What I decided to do was . . . over the past few days I've been alternating which group I let out of the run:

I would let the TSC chicks out of their run and the incubator chicks could come out of the pen (into the run) and get some exercise without being harrassed.

The next day I would let Sweety's flock out of their run so Sweety could get more comfortable having her chicks out without them being harrassed by the TSC chicks.

This is working out well so far since I'm comfortable with Daisy being loose with the TSC chicks, but on the days Sweety's flock is out I keep her in the house or on leash when I bring her in the yard.

I'll keep this up the rest of the week and plan to let the two flocks out at the same time this weekend when I'll be able to observe them and see how things go.

 

[ChickenChick46]

To make this explanation a little easier I've decided to 'name' the two separate flocks I seem to currently have. Eventually they'll all be one flock (I hope) but since there are two batches of chicks (the incubator chicks and Sweety's chicks) in two separate runs being raised differently things are a bit crazy.

The two flocks are Sweety's flock, the 7 and 5 month olds w Sweety's chicks. Then there's the Tractor Supply (TSC) chicks which are the 10 and 11 week olds which also includes the incubator chicks that are still penned in the run with TSC chicks. I hope that makes sense.

I've tried for several days to integrate the TSC chicks with the incubator chicks, but a few of the older chicks just keep harassing them so I decided to try a different tactic.

Initially I wanted to toss the more aggressive TSC chicks in with Sweety's flock and let them figure it out, but that was just frustration getting the better of me and would put Sweety's chicks in danger as well as the 4 more aggressive chicks.

What I decided to do was . . . over the past few days I've been alternating which group I let out of the run:

I would let the TSC chicks out of their run and the incubator chicks could come out of the pen (into the run) and get some exercise without being harrassed.

The next day I would let Sweety's flock out of their run so Sweety could get more comfortable having her chicks out without them being harrassed by the TSC chicks.

This is working out well so far since I'm comfortable with Daisy being loose with the TSC chicks, but on the days Sweety's flock is out I keep her in the house or on leash when I bring her in the yard.

I'll keep this up the rest of the week and plan to let the two flocks out at the same time this weekend when I'll be able to observe them and see how things go.

Hopefully they start to accept one another. With the ones I call my littles and my middles, it took several attempts. The groups were 3 weeks old and one week old when I introduced them. They were all bought from the same RK location, thus from the same hatchery, and had never been outdoors or around other chickens, so I wasn't worried about quarantine. Just my personal decision, I'm sure others might feel differently.

The first couple of attempts didn't go so well. There was a lot of pecking from both groups. But they came around. The third attempt, I gave them their treat (veggie and mealworms blend) when I put them together. I'm not sure if it was a part of the difference, but they did a lot better that day. The next day was spent entirely together with few issues, and by the third day, I felt comfortable enough to leave them overnight. They have been together since.

 

[redinator]

Hopefully they start to accept one another. With the ones I call my littles and my middles, it took several attempts. The groups were 3 weeks old and one week old when I introduced them. They were all bought from the same RK location, thus from the same hatchery, and had never been outdoors or around other chickens, so I wasn't worried about quarantine. Just my personal decision, I'm sure others might feel differently.

The first couple of attempts didn't go so well. There was a lot of pecking from both groups. But they came around. The third attempt, I gave them their treat (veggie and mealworms blend) when I put them together. I'm not sure if it was a part of the difference, but they did a lot better that day. The next day was spent entirely together with few issues, and by the third day, I felt comfortable enough to leave them overnight. They have been together since.

I've integrated chicks closer in age before and it only took a few days, maybe a week, but the size difference makes me more hesitant with this bunch. Sweety's chicks just turned 2 weeks and the incubator chicks are 3 weeks.

There's also Daisy's incident with Sweety's chicks that I have to keep in mind. I may not be able to let Broodies raise chicks in the future if it continues to make things more difficult. Or I'll need a better setup so I can keep Broodies penned with chicks until they chicks reach 4 weeks (the age I'd be comfortable letting Daisy around chicks unsupervised). I still have a lot to learn and figure out going forward.