Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Perris]

The coop at the moment at least is mite free.

That's good to read. Long may it continue.

Their latest coop design doesn't have it. Unfortunately things haven't improved much for a motor driven string opener because the door slides open horizontally.

They've done away with their string pull pop door system altogether and chosen what looks to be a cog driven system like the ones BDutch has.

Surely an improvement given the hassle the old auto-doors apparently caused. But now I'm wondering, could a dog/fox open it with its nose, if the keeper forgets to lock it shut, now that the pop door has a big solid handle and it won't shut automatically thanks to gravity?

That new Aspen design looks interesting, and can come with three nesting boxes! It's shifted the nest boxes to the side that is opposite the removeable panel, which is now a side rather than the back. The flat roof will be easier for potential predators to stand on than the curved roof is. And the overhang has shrunk, so the vents aren't now protected from driving rain or wind. And they seem to have abandoned the built in handles for portability, which I think is a real shame; but perhaps it suits better with the way some people use them - you and mother of chaos for example. The nest box front isn't obviously higher. And the guarantee has reduced to 10 years. So not all things are improvements in my book.

 

[Perris]

Re: mushroom ID apps. Those who use them and are failed by them won't be around to tell the tale, so expect only positive reviews

 

[BDutch]

That new Aspen design looks interesting, and can come with three nesting boxes! It's shifted the nest boxes to the side that is opposite the removeable panel, which is now a side rather than the back. The flat roof will be easier for potential predators to stand on than the curved roof is. And the overhang has shrunk, so the vents aren't now protected from driving rain or wind. And they seem to have abandoned the built in handles for portability, which I think is a real shame; but perhaps it suits better with the way some people use them - you and mother of chaos for example. The nest box front isn't obviously higher. And the guarantee has reduced to 10 years. So not all things are improvements in my book.

I was curious and looked for measurements and more info. Just sharing:
There are 12 Nestera chicken coops in the shop. https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0...etricEnglish_Unit-compressed.pdf?v=1757067532
But they all seem very dark inside and to lack ventilation.

The Aspen hen house can come with a sideways auto pop door, for an extra €199.
https://nestera.nl/en/products/the-aspen-chicken-coop

Within the FAQ I found they recommend the use of diatom earth against red mites :

• Are Nestera chicken coops red mite-proof?
  Unfortunately, nothing is 100% red mite-proof. However, Nestera chicken coops are cleverly designed to be extremely red mite-resistant! Red mites are tiny, and live in cracks and joints in poultry housing. Unlike wooden chicken coops, ours are made from solid 70% recycled plastic and created to ensure there are very few suitable places for red mite to hide. We recommend sprinkling Diatom powder around the coop when refreshing the bedding, so any mites present are quickly dealt with before they can multiply.

 

[Perris]

There isn't much point in leaving home if there isn't anywhere else to go and no other non tribe chickens to court and start family with.

Isn't one of the basic drivers of animal species dispersal resource depletion, when a successful group outgrows the carrying capacity of the habitat they are thriving in? Overexploitation, leading to depletion, leading to starvation, leading to some leaving to look for a new home elsewhere? I was wondering if, the flock having hit 36, they had crossed some sort of tipping point; not enough to drive some of them to leave of their own accord, but enough for them to be comfortable with the departure of some senior members as well as youngsters. Historic human colonising ventures were usually composed of a mix of old and experienced as well as young and bold individuals.

 

[Perris]

But they all seem very dark inside and to lack ventilation.

Why does the lack of light bother you? It doesn't seem to bother chickens roosting or laying, which is all they do in it.

The ventilation of the lodge (the design I have in 2 sizes and 3 iterations) is just fine, as the health of my flock surely proves.

 

[BDutch]

Why does the lack of light bother you? It doesn't seem to bother chickens roosting or laying, which is all they do in it.

The ventilation of the lodge (the design I have in 2 sizes and 3 iterations) is just fine, as the health of my flock surely proves.

When I started keeping chickens I had 4 tiny Dutch bantams in a small prefab coop with a little attached run. I was warned for draughts therefore I only left the pop door a bit open, Besides that there were only 2 small holes for ventilation.
The bedding got moist and damp it started to smell bad even if I changed the bedding every week.
After getting advice I left the pop door completely open. The stench subsided, but some smell persisted. It got better, but never disappeared.

The second year when I had chicks I made a very airy and light extension to the coop with roosts and all. The chickens started to roost in the extension as soon as I had finished it.
They obviously prefered the bright and airy extension over the small coop with less ventilation. The poop dries quickly in the extension because of all the fresh air and the smell disappeared.

I also gathered /read more info and learned that its better to have much daylight in the coop and a lot of ventilation to avoid health problems. In general parasites do not like daylight and fresh air.

This is why I bought the childrens playhouse with windows last year. And covered all the openings with hwc.
I do cover the openings partly every winter with a window and transparent plastic to avoid cold. I did so last week with storm Benjamin, when I noticed the chickens were sleeping very closely together in the warmest corner of the coop extension. Now they divide themselves over the roost again.

Like with the choice of food, I think the chickens know what is best for them if provided several options. Only exception I make is not allowing them to sleep outside bc of the nightly predators we have here.

 

[Perris]

The bedding got moist and damp it started to smell bad even if I changed the bedding every week.

So it is not just about ventilation. It is about poop quantity too. Another solution to the smell problem is to poo-pick daily.

The stench subsided, but some smell persisted. It got better, but never disappeared

Ammonia is absorbed by wood.

The poop dries quickly in the extension because of all the fresh air and the smell disappeared.

So the real issue is bad smells (and with it, eye, skin and air sac issues for any chickens condemned to live in it) from poop. The focus on ventilation ignores the cause in favour of one solution to it.

parasites do not like daylight and fresh air.

parasites did not evolve in coops. They live outside and are brought in.

 

[Perris]

More tax for more coop talk: Talgarth is filling out nicely

 

[ksbkeys]

Why deny them all something they want to eat because 1 of them is temporarily incapacitated by eating it? If humans did that there would be no alcohol industry (amongst other things).

A little tricky and impractical to manage a flock when they are out roaming in the yard, allowing some to eat something but not another. (I am no spring chick myself!) Not to mention I didn't know if there are also cumulative effects from them eating the mushrooms. It just seemed easier and wiser to prevent them from eating them in the first place. There are plenty of other good things to choose from to eat.

 

[Perris]

There are plenty of other good things to choose from to eat.

are you joining some of us in the 'let's see if I can ID all the things they eat' club?