Review My Shopping List!

[castillo_de_luz]

Maybe this is a weird request, but I'm getting ready to shop for a bunch of my chicken necessities (pullets come home first week of April) to begin chicken ownership, and I would so appreciate a review of my shopping list! Comments are next to items in case their purpose is unclear.

A couple notes:

- I've already purchased some things, which is why they aren't on this list -- locking metal feed buckets, gloves, respirator, for example.

- I'm not necessarily ordering everything through the Great and Powerful 'Zon, but it's easy to use this as a reference when I'm out shopping locally. My feed, bedding, etc. will all be purchased near me.

- I have a whole separate list for the stuff I need when the girls begin laying, but since that won't be for a few months I'm focusing my dollars on what I need now.

What am I forgetting that's critical? How do I make a 5-pullet homecoming go as smoothly as possible?

One more thing... I understand this is called a "Wish List" but I'm not wishing for anything here, I'm putting most of this stuff directly into my shopping cart and hitting BUY.

LIST LINK: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1H1B7K5NTQSX6?ref_=wl_share

 

[Mrs. K]

I have had chickens for 25 years, and I only have the feed and oyster shell on your list. Which I get from a local feed store. Along with low black rubber bowls that I use for winter water and feed bowls. I use waste hay as bedding, you might not have that available.

I do have two galvanized garbage cans that I keep feed stored in. A lot of people have heated water bowls if you have electricity to your coop for their winter water.

The rest of that stuff you really don't need. And certainly not for chicks.

Mrs K

 

[nuthatched]

Most of that stuff is unnecessary or a rip off.
Such as:
Vittle vault - buy a metal trashcan that holds twice as mush.

Pine pelleted bedding- you can but a 40# sack at the feed store for $8, RIP OFF

Chicken coop roosting perch, looks flimsy and staggered roosts encourage bullying.

The "automatic" (gravity fed) feeder- doesn't hold an entire bag, encourages wasting feed, since it's wide open and pests.

VetRx- snake oil, don't even bother. It's just vicks rub for chickens. RIP OFF

Coop cleaner- its best not to use liquids to clean, it's never necessary to clean like that. RIP OFF

Floral dust bath- THE pretty petals won't benefit your birds. buy a bag of Peet moss, makes the best dust baths. RIP OFF

Grubs- not necessary, buy elsewhere.

Flock raiser, that's like 3x the price it should be. Buy somewhere else.

Grandpa feed- overpriced, finicky, leaks. Pass.

You only need maybe five items on your list.

What's all the tarps for?

 

[castillo_de_luz]

I have had chickens for 25 years, and I only have the feed and oyster shell on your list. Which I get from a local feed store. Along with low black rubber bowls that I use for winter water and feed bowls. I use waste hay as bedding, you might not have that available.

I do have two galvanized garbage cans that I keep feed stored in. A lot of people have heated water bowls if you have electricity to your coop for their winter water.

The rest of that stuff you really don't need. And certainly not for chicks.

Mrs K

As I said, I'm not buying the feed online. And I definitely can't use open bowls for feed, we have too many pests and predators here.

This is for pullets, no chicks here.

 

[castillo_de_luz]

Most of that stuff is unnecessary or a rip off.
Such as:
Vittle vault - buy a metal trashcan that holds twice as mush.

Pine pelleted bedding- you can but a 40# sack at the feed store for $8, RIP OFF

Chicken coop roosting perch, looks flimsy and staggered roosts encourage bullying.

The "automatic" (gravity fed) feeder- doesn't hold an entire bag, encourages wasting feed, since it's wide open and pests.

VetRx- snake oil, don't even bother. It's just vicks rub for chickens. RIP OFF

Coop cleaner- its best not to use liquids to clean, it's never necessary to clean like that. RIP OFF

Floral dust bath- THE pretty petals won't benefit your birds. buy a bag of Peet moss, makes the best dust baths. RIP OFF

Grubs- not necessary, buy elsewhere.

Flock raiser, that's like 3x the price it should be. Buy somewhere else.

Grandpa feed- overpriced, finicky, leaks. Pass.

You only need maybe five items on your list.

What's all the tarps for?

As I said in my post, this is a shopping list NOT an Amazon list. I buy as much as possible locally, at better prices. I'm not buying any of the organic stuff online!

My own vet recommended having VetRx on hand, so I'm unclear on the snake oil comment. Does it legitimately do nothing at all?

My coop is plastic not wood, so a spray-down will happen sometimes.

The Grandpa feeder is 100% non-negotiable here, we have too many pests. Even if it's not perfect, it's better than leaving feed out.

The tarps are for covering the sides of the run in the rain/snow/sleet/wind.

 

[nuthatched]

As I said in my post, this is a shopping list NOT an Amazon list. I buy as much as possible locally, at better prices. I'm not buying any of the organic stuff online!

My own vet recommended having VetRx on hand, so I'm unclear on the snake oil comment. Does it legitimately do nothing at all?

My coop is plastic not wood, so a spray-down will happen sometimes.

The Grandpa feeder is 100% non-negotiable here, we have too many pests. Even if it's not perfect, it's better than leaving feed out.

The tarps are for covering the sides of the run in the rain/snow/sleet/wind.

Vetrx is nothing but camphor oil, it's just vicks rub for birds. It doesn't treat or cure anything. Does your vet know anything about chickens?

Use soap and water, a specialty coop scrubbing product is entirely unnecessary. It's likely some sort of acid.

Grandpa feeders are know to cause injuries and aren't nearly as pest proof as reported.
Most of your other feeders in your list aren't pest proof.

 

[aart]

Instead of shopping manufacturers for things marketed to chicken keepers, better to spend time browsing here and other chicken forums carefully to ascertain what they really need and what actually works for long time keepers. Take notes, save links, think long and hard and with good logic what you need to keep chicken healthy to meet your goals in your climate.

 

[castillo_de_luz]

Instead of shopping manufacturers for things marketed to chicken keepers, better to spend time browsing here and other chicken forums carefully to ascertain what they really need and what actually works for long time keepers. Take notes, save links, think long and hard and with good logic what you need to keep chicken healthy to meet your goals in your climate.

That's... what I did. This list wasn't born out of nothing, it's from MONTHS of research right here. Every product on my listed has a specific use.

 

[Evadig]

Here's my two cents (I'm not an experienced chicken keeper, just going off my own experience) :

Metal trashcans work wonderfully for me. I have two; one three gallon (I think) for scratch and one ten gallon (I think) for feed. I can fit a fifty lb. bag of feed in the ten (?) gallon.

It's hard to hold tarps down unless you screw a board over them; otherwise the wind just rips them off. I even had some hard plastic screwed down with a board and the wind still managed to rip it off.

Hay or pine shavings are much more economical than pellets.

I just use a regular chicken feeder like you find at the store and remove it at night. If you use crumbles there's definitely more spillage and mess but once they transition to pellets I rarely ever have any spillage (I put my feeder up on a cement block so they can't poop in it).

Congratulations on your new pullets!

 

[castillo_de_luz]

Vetrx is nothing but camphor oil, it's just vicks rub for birds. It doesn't treat or cure anything. Does your vet know anything about chickens?

Use soap and water, a specialty coop scrubbing product is entirely unnecessary. It's likely some sort of acid.

Grandpa feeders are know to cause injuries and aren't nearly as pest proof as reported.
Most of your other feeders in your list aren't pest proof.

My vet specializes in poultry, so I would hope so.

My other feeders aren't going to house chicken feed, they're for oyster shell and grit.

Injuries are a concern I hadn't hear about -- how are the chickens injured by it? Is there a way to prevent this?