So THIS is where all the chicken people are...

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Just a quick flock update. The Original 8 are doing well. Got their run covered with netting, added an old wooden ladder for entertainment, and they can now go beyond the run and forage a bit, which they love. They have finally begun to rebound from our two week cold snap from a couple weeks ago. Leading up to the snap, the 7 ladies gave me 104 eggs and during that two week stretch they dropped to pretty much 1 total per day. Now I'm getting 3 per and today will have at least 4 (one in the box the last time I went to check).

Making my plans for the new batch of chicks. Probably will wait until the first of March to order, but if I order from Atwoods, Ideal will ship my birds to their store with no shipping charge, as they are currently shipping there anyway. This is a win. Going to add 30 new birds to the mix and really try to upscale egg production for local sale. Going the multi-colored dozen route so I'll be adding at least two of each of the following breeds: Golden Star, Olive Egger, Arctic Blue Egger (this one is not on their website, but is on the official price list of which I have photo evidence!), Lavender Orpington, Speckled Sussex, Barnevelder, Black Copper Maran, Blue Copper Maran, Welbar, Welsummer, Production Black, and Golden Laced Wyandotte. Will also get three Roos: Welsummer, Golden Laced Wyandotte, and Blue Copper Maran.

The indoor brooder is in progress and I have an outdoor brooder area already half completed (began as a dog kennel, but we never used it as I had hoped), so they have a place to go when they are big enough to be outside, but still have a warmer place to hole up if they get chilled. The plan is to keep the Lavender Orpington ladies at the house and the others will go out to the larger flock. My wife is absolutely in love with the Lavenders, so she gets to keep those here.

If I wait until March 1 to order, that gives me about 8 weeks of in-the-garage time, then I need to clean that out for my 30 meat birds that will go in once we've moved the new layers out. They aren't in the garage as long and it will be June by the time they're ready to be out, so they will be fine in their Suscovich tractor at 6 weeks.

Big plans ahead for this chicken wrangler. I've had a bunch of people ask about my "chicken farming" and want to buy eggs when I have them, so I hope they still want them in 8 months!

Almost forgot the ducks! I plan to order 10 ducklings about the same time, so life will be busy; Golden Layers (and a drake), Rouens, and Buffs. These I will order from Meyer because Ideal only sells straight run ducks and I'd like to have only one drake.
 
KS_Chicken_Wrangler said:
Just a quick flock update. The Original 8 are doing well. Got their run covered with netting, added an old wooden ladder for entertainment, and they can now go beyond the run and forage a bit, which they love. They have finally begun to rebound from our two week cold snap from a couple weeks ago. Leading up to the snap, the 7 ladies gave me 104 eggs and during that two week stretch they dropped to pretty much 1 total per day. Now I'm getting 3 per and today will have at least 4 (one in the box the last time I went to check).

Making my plans for the new batch of chicks. Probably will wait until the first of March to order, but if I order from Atwoods, Ideal will ship my birds to their store with no shipping charge, as they are currently shipping there anyway. This is a win. Going to add 30 new birds to the mix and really try to upscale egg production for local sale. Going the multi-colored dozen route so I'll be adding at least two of each of the following breeds: Golden Star, Olive Egger, Arctic Blue Egger (this one is not on their website, but is on the official price list of which I have photo evidence!), Lavender Orpington, Speckled Sussex, Barnevelder, Black Copper Maran, Blue Copper Maran, Welbar, Welsummer, Production Black, and Golden Laced Wyandotte. Will also get three Roos: Welsummer, Golden Laced Wyandotte, and Blue Copper Maran.

The indoor brooder is in progress and I have an outdoor brooder area already half completed (began as a dog kennel, but we never used it as I had hoped), so they have a place to go when they are big enough to be outside, but still have a warmer place to hole up if they get chilled. The plan is to keep the Lavender Orpington ladies at the house and the others will go out to the larger flock. My wife is absolutely in love with the Lavenders, so she gets to keep those here.

If I wait until March 1 to order, that gives me about 8 weeks of in-the-garage time, then I need to clean that out for my 30 meat birds that will go in once we've moved the new layers out. They aren't in the garage as long and it will be June by the time they're ready to be out, so they will be fine in their Suscovich tractor at 6 weeks.

Big plans ahead for this chicken wrangler. I've had a bunch of people ask about my "chicken farming" and want to buy eggs when I have them, so I hope they still want them in 8 months!

Almost forgot the ducks! I plan to order 10 ducklings about the same time, so life will be busy; Golden Layers (and a drake), Rouens, and Buffs. These I will order from Meyer because Ideal only sells straight run ducks and I'd like to have only one drake.
Click to expand...
Sounds like you have your ducks all in a row! Good luck with your plans!
 
Indoor brooder is complete and awaiting the newbies (won't be until March 1...trying to stick to my guns cause that garage is COLD). Will start working on the grow out pen here fairly soon. Probably need to get a Sweeter Heater in there for the young ones as it can get chilly in April and May yet. Anyone have experience with a Sweeter Heater?

Original 8 have been locked in the coop the past day and a half. Temps got down to single digits with lows in the negative the past two mornings. Going tomorrow afternoon to scoop snow out of their run (as much as can) to get them back outside, if they so choose.
 
KS_Chicken_Wrangler said:
won't be until March 1...trying to stick to my guns cause that garage is COLD
Click to expand...
They can be set up out there.
I raised a group of 15 chicks out in my coop in NY in April when the night time temps dropped to the low 20s. They thrived.
 
KS_Chicken_Wrangler said:
Indoor brooder is complete and awaiting the newbies (won't be until March 1...trying to stick to my guns cause that garage is COLD). Will start working on the grow out pen here fairly soon. Probably need to get a Sweeter Heater in there for the young ones as it can get chilly in April and May yet. Anyone have experience with a Sweeter Heater?

Original 8 have been locked in the coop the past day and a half. Temps got down to single digits with lows in the negative the past two mornings. Going tomorrow afternoon to scoop snow out of their run (as much as can) to get them back outside, if they so choose.
Click to expand...
Sweeter Heaters are the more powerful and larger versions of what we use in the outside pen coops for them to snuggle up to at night, Cozy Coop radiant heaters. Even the adults lean up against those. It's -4F now though so wouldn't we too? :)

Our coops have heaters in them so those chickens don't get that luxury. One has a thin oil radiant heater (NewAir), and the other has some fancier electric heater. Both coops we keep to 40F in the winter months.
 
Big cold snap coming up in Kansas. Single digit highs with windchills at -20s. We're also probably getting 8-11 inches of snow tonight and tomorrow. Got the Original 8 locked into the coop for the duration. I made sure to muck it out today and set up a poop board under the roost. Want to try and keep it as clean as can for this extended time inside. They're back up to laying 3-4 eggs daily again, so I hope they can soldier on through our time on planet Hoth.
 

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