Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[RoyalChick]

Bad picture day. I think I may have messed up the camera settings. It wouldn't be the first time.
View attachment 3070160View attachment 3070161View attachment 3070162

How do you get them to dig rectangular holes Shad?

 

[Marie2020]

On reading I'm thinking Agatha is trying to produce an egg so tomorrow I'm bringing her indoors for a few days and keeping her in the dark. Would anyone have any suggestions on what she could eat. Porridge is my one thought i just don't want her straining anymore

 

[Shadrach]

We've been disscussing coops.
There's a problem. I can, would and have built a very solid, portable (with effort), off the ground coop but it is only big enough, by my standard, to house 10 chickens. Anything larger made in a decent thickness of plywood with legs and frame strong enough to support the coop itself becomes to heavy to move and more complicated to build because one has to start joining ply sheet together. The cost in materials would run to £300.00 maybe more given the way the price of quality plywood keeps going up.
Building it would be a headache. No power. Nowhere to leave tools. It would have to be assembled in the current coop run. No way to get a coop that size in without having to dismantle a fence that is only just holding up now. The option to leave a gap in the fence overnight isn't there. Basically it's mission and I'm past enjoying building missions.

A prefab plastic coop, while the matter is under discussion, seems like a sensible option, that might just get a fast result.


This is about the largest affordable plastic coop I can find.

https://www.solwayrecycling.co.uk/shop/pig-poultry/hen-arks/standard-eco-hen-ark

As you can read, it states it will house 10 to 15 larger hens and up to 18 bantams. The floor area is stated at 1.6 square metres. With 15 chickens this works out at about 1,4 square foot per chicken. Not exactly spacious is it.

However, at last September when I started there were over 20 chickens roosting in the current coop which has a floor area of less than 1 square metre, approximately 11 square feet. That's 0.5 square foot per chicken roughly.

It looks a bit different now. Almost three times the amount of space different.
If we could get the plastic coop opperational in the coop run then the pressure to rescue the smaller broody coop and possibly the run part of the main coop would be considerably less.

C spoke to the person the most recent additions had come from about buying their coop which is a Solway. Their coop is a tight fit for 8, never mind 20 plus they wanted too much money for it.

I've long been resigned to the probablity at some point a new coop was going to cost me money. I made C an offer to split the cost of the Solway in the link above 50/50.
I've known for a while that C has some money put away for the allotments. Today C said there was £500.00 in the fund. And didn't rule out the possibility of using some of it. C has to talk to the other allotment holders apparently.
I know three will vote money towards a new coop and they are the three most active members.
I see a light at the end of the tunnel I think.

 

[MaryJanet]

On reading I'm thinking Agatha is trying to produce an egg so tomorrow I'm bringing her indoors for a few days and keeping her in the dark. Would anyone have any suggestions on what she could eat. Porridge is my one thought i just don't want her straining anymore

Healthy chicken pellets.

No human food.

 

[Shadrach]

How do you get them to dig rectangular holes Shad?

I've been teaching them Geometry. That's going okay. It's the Topology and Cartography that they are having problems with.

 

[MaryJanet]

We've been disscussing coops.
There's a problem. I can, would and have built a very solid, portable (with effort), off the ground coop but it is only big enough, by my standard, to house 10 chickens. Anything larger made in a decent thickness of plywood with legs and frame strong enough to support the coop itself becomes to heavy to move and more complicated to build because one has to start joining ply sheet together. The cost in materials would run to £300.00 maybe more given the way the price of quality plywood keeps going up.
Building it would be a headache. No power. Nowhere to leave tools. It would have to be assembled in the current coop run. No way to get a coop that size in without having to dismantle a fence that is only just holding up now. The option to leave a gap in the fence overnight isn't there. Basically it's mission and I'm past enjoying building missions.

A prefab plastic coop, while the matter is under discussion, seems like a sensible option, that might just get a fast result.


This is about the largest affordable plastic coop I can find.

https://www.solwayrecycling.co.uk/shop/pig-poultry/hen-arks/standard-eco-hen-ark

As you can read, it states it will house 10 to 15 larger hens and up to 18 bantams. The floor area is stated at 1.6 square metres. With 15 chickens this works out at about 1,4 square foot per chicken. Not exactly spacious is it.

However, at last September when I started there were over 20 chickens roosting in the current coop which has a floor area of less than 1 square metre, approximately 11 square feet. That's 0.5 square foot per chicken roughly.

It looks a bit different now. Almost three times the amount of space different.
If we could get the plastic coop opperational in the coop run then the pressure to rescue the smaller broody coop and possibly the run part of the main coop would be considerably less.

C spoke to the person the most recent additions had come from about buying their coop which is a Solway. Their coop is a tight fit for 8, never mind 20 plus they wanted too much money for it.

I've long been resigned to the probablity at some point a new coop was going to cost me money. I made C an offer to split the cost of the Solway in the link above 50/50.
I've known for a while that C has some money put away for the allotments. Today C said there was £500.00 in the fund. And didn't rule out the possibility of using some of it. C has to talk to the other allotment holders apparently.
I know three will vote money towards a new coop and they are the three most active members.
I see a light at the end of the tunnel I think.

The portability alone will be a huge benefit. And it may in time support the possibility of a second rooster and tribe, with the original coop coming back into service. Unless you're thinking of dismantling it entirely?

I'm confident it'll be predator proof or Perris would have had many more losses.

My only questions concern roosting and adaptability. The interior photo didn't show roosting bars. (That said I don't have my specs on yet so might've missed it.) And I presume plastic coops are not adaptable like wooden coops are. So once it's there, it'll be hands off except for moving it about.

 

[no fly zone]

Well, the 2nd Skeksis baby is out and it has that swollen abdomen condition even worse.

 

[Shadrach]

The portability alone will be a huge benefit. And it may in time support the possibility of a second rooster and tribe, with the original coop coming back into service. Unless you're thinking of dismantling it entirely?

I'm confident it'll be predator proof or Perris would have had many more losses.

My only questions concern roosting and adaptability. The interior photo didn't show roosting bars. (That said I don't have my specs on yet so might've missed it.) And I presume plastic coops are not adaptable like wooden coops are. So once it's there, it'll be hands off except for moving it about.

The original coop is beyond cost effective repair unfortunately. It needs a new floor, a new roof, a new nesting box and proper roost bars.
There are two roosting bars in the Solway.
One can alter/ make additions to, plasitc coops but it's a lot easier with wood.
There are two problems that I can see with the Solway coop. The ventilation is at roost height. Bristol is windy; not gentle breezes and the wind is invariably cold. Cowls of some sort could fix this.
The coop needs to be off the ground and stable. Wind problem again.
I have the material to build a frame for it to get it off the ground. Securing the coop to the frame might be a problem.

 

[Shadrach]

Well, the 2nd Skeksis baby is out and it has that swollen abdomen condition even worse.

This must be heartbreaking particulary given how you were hoping for Skeksis chicks.

 

[RoyalChick]

Well, the 2nd Skeksis baby is out and it has that swollen abdomen condition even worse.

Oh no!
It isn’t a genetic thing is it? Just luck if the draw infection?