Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Sortacountrychicken]

That reminds me. I had a small goat kid that free ranged with the chickens until he got too big to slip through the fence where it met the barn

 

[no fly zone]

Well, while i was at work today, my wife reported that one of the babies escaped the brooder. So now they are spending their first night out in the coop, as my wife is most definitely not a fan of animals in the house.

 

[no fly zone]

I must add it is projected to be a low of 69 degrees tonight. I think the babies will be fine all cuddled up.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Can hardly wait to get mine out of the spare room.

 

[ManueB]

What I would do, depending on just how inappropriate her nest site is, is let her lay her eggs there. Remove any other hens egg's if and when they lay them. Prepare a broody coop. Put some time and thought into it. I had two open during the day all the time.
This is one I made earlier.View attachment 3093791View attachment 3093792
The idea is the chickens get used to the coop being there so when you move a broody, or a sick chicken, their new accomodation gives the minimum of stress.
Make sure that the floor in the run and in the coop is removable. This allows for making nests in natural ground if appropriate and the more common hard floor type. Same for the run.

Wherever she lays and if she decides to sit you will have the maternity/isolation coop ready and familiar.
I used to move the broody hens at night when they nested outside and went broody. Most, if they were propely commited in the first place stayed on their eggs after the move.

I think it's a really good option because it's very flexible, and I love the one you're showing on the picture.

Unfortunately in our setting it would not be simple as there is very little flat land in the chicken zone. We would need to do some serious ground levelling and we can't get the excavator there. That was why we ruled out a second coop for the bantams. But as we have put down the old house wall, we have a ton of rubble that we need to re-use so maybe we could create a platform.

What material did you use for the coop (yellow part) wood, plywood , hpl ?
The dimensions judging from the chair and the door in the background I would imagine to be something around 1,50 to 50. Any idea of the weight ( like would I be able to carry something like it with my partner?)

 

[ManueB]

The same with DW, the girls were scratching up everything in the flower beds by the house so they are confined, with the 2 alpacas, to the fenced acre behind the barn. It also keeps them safe from foxes.

That reminds me. I had a small goat kid that free ranged with the chickens until he got too big to slip through the fence where it met the barn

View attachment 3094378

How did / do they coexist?
The time we had to house three ewes with the hens for a month was a nightmare for everyone. In fact the only animals from the neighbors that we have since refused for pasture on our land are the rams because those ewes turned me nuts.

 

[micstrachan]

That reminds me. I had a small goat kid that free ranged with the chickens until he got too big to slip through the fence where it met the barn

View attachment 3094378

I love this!

 

[no fly zone]

The babies made it through no issues.

 

[bruceha2000]

How did / do they coexist?

If you are asking about the alpacas and chickens it has improved a bit. The alpacas are never concerned about little chicks but for some reason when they are adults the black one thinks he should chase them. The chickens have full access to the barn alley and the 12'x50' space between the two barns, the alpacas can't get to most of that.

Lately he seems to mostly ignore them when they are out in the pasture. And in the summer when it is hotter, the alpacas tend to hang out in their area of the barn or on the north end of it in the shade. That gives the chickens full range regardless of Teddy's desire to chase them.

 

[Sortacountrychicken]

How did / do they coexist?
The time we had to house three ewes with the hens for a month was a nightmare for everyone. In fact the only animals from the neighbors that we have since refused for pasture on our land are the rams because those ewes turned me nuts.View attachment 3094771

They get along quite well here. The chickens enjoy cleaning up any spilled feed and will often hang out with the goats during the day. They enjoy perching on the goats and it's not uncommon to see a goat with a chicken catching a ride or napping with 3 or 4 chickens perched along it's back. I believe I would feel differently if the goats had access to the coop though. They would destroy the coop and everything in it.