So what is the typical day like?

[andehens]

There isn't an animal alive that wants me out there before coffee in the dark!

 

[FarmerChick]

 

[annmarie]

This is fun to read! For me it depends a lot on the season, but here’s how it works this time of year for me and the hens:

Since it’s still totally dark when I head to work in the mornings, there’s no rush out to the coop when I wake up (plus I don’t want to open up the coop and let the body heat escape any earlier than necessary), so I basically do everything necessary to get myself ready for work first, then when I’m all set I fill up a 2 liter bottle with hot water, often add a splash of cider vinegar, grab the flashlight and head out to the coop. Normally I dump out the waterer the night before (once they’ve “gone to bed”) so I don’t have to worry about stomping the ice out of it in the morning. So when I get out there the first thing I do is pour the hot water into their bucket. Then I open up the pop door and whisper “good morning!” If it’s really horribly frigid that morning, I make sure to pretty much keep the flashlight off when I’m at their coop so I don’t wake them up. Otherwise some bird brain will come down off the roost and stand outside in the cold darkness all morning alone and freezing. If it’s going to be particularly cold that day, or if there’s going to be precipitation I close up the plastic sheeting over the run so they stay warm and dry. Then I go to work.

In the afternoon when I get home the first thing I do is head straight to the coop and say hello, check for eggs and make sure they have enough feed, and then open up the run door so they can free-range for a while (unless the weather is particularly bad). This time of year often they’ll only stand in the doorway and enjoy the view, unobstructed by hardware cloth, but if they can find any patches of bare ground they’ll head right to it, this is also when I’ll give them any vegetable scraps or treats that I might find in the kitchen. Just before it gets dark enough that I know they’ll be heading up to bed I’ll go out and throw them some scratch and if the night temps are going to be particularly bad we also grease their combs and wattles with bag balm at that time. Then when it finally is dark I go close the pop door so they’re all closed up for the night, and empty the water bucket so it’s ready the next morning. Oh the glamour of it all!

 

[farmerlor]

Momma always said we don't eat until after the animals eat so as soon as it's light and my clothes are on, I'm feeding the girlies. They get fresh water in the morning, leftovers from the night before and I check the feed hopper to make sure it's got chicken food in it. Then I come in and feed everyone, test blood sugar, drink caffeine, etc.... In the evening I just throw some scratch grains out there, gather the day's eggs and close them up for the night.

 

[ZooMummzy]

Weekdays I wake up around 6am (weekends 7am) and let the dogs out and back in before getting the kids up for school. The girlies aren't usually up this time of year since it's still pretty dark out. I'm a fanatic about the house smelling fresh every morning so I crack a window and spray some air freshner on every level of the house before filling all the cat and dog water and food bowls. Then I wipe down the cupboards and feed and water Quincy, my special needs house chicken and have my first cup of coffee.

By this time the sun is almost up so I go out and check the girl's food and water and give them some scratch. In the summer, when I don't have to take the kids to school, I will take my coffee out to the coop and drink it while talking to the girls. I miss doing that so much!

After I get back from dropping the kids off from school, I take the girls their treat and collect the first round of eggs. The rest of my day is filled with pretty much the same - cleaning up after pets and kids, doing laundry, running errands and to school and collecting eggs up until dinner time when I tuck them in for the night. Sometime around 10pm I get to crawl into bed with a book.

 

[KellyHM]

I let everyone out while my coffee is brewing. They have to wait until after coffee for feed/water, but usually they still have leftovers from the day before anyways. I am NOT a morning person. If water is completely dry I do go ahead and fill it. They stay out during the day and I check and fill feeders/waterers in the afternoon, then lock them in at dark.

 

[SunAngel]

Good weather 'now' days/School days:

Up at 5am'ish
Put dogs out-bring dogs in
Coffee, BYC until 6
Wake up DH and kids
2 kids and DH leave at 6:40
Get youngest DS breakfast
Back to BYC
7:30 head out to let out chickens & ducks
Check for early eggs
Toss out Scratch
Check to make sure all have food and water...refill as necessary
Run back in after spending too much time watching and talking to hens and hurry to get DS ready for school
Take DS to bus stop at 7:55
8:10 Check for more eggs
Check for eggs and bring out treats at various times during the day, usually whenever putting the dogs out.
3pm Lock juvies up for the night, recheck waterers
4:30 put all others away for the night...last check for eggs.

Bad weather/no school or work:

Same as above, but chickens dont get let out til around 8, maybe later if really pouring or super cold. Ducks don't have food and water in their house, so I have to make sure to get them out as early as possible, no matter the weather.

Warm weather/Summer days:

They are all let out as soon as it gets light and go in by themselves at night. I lock up just before dark. Lots of waterer checking and more free ranging time given.

 

[dgeter]

I only have one indoor chick right now. So in the morning I get up and I let NutNut (Peanut) out and I give her some scrambled eggs which she loooves. Then she follows me around the house as I get ready. I leave at 8:30 and my husband gets home at 3:00 and lets her out again. I ordered her diapers a few nights ago and as soon as those come in, she'll be going to work with me.

Our plan is to build a chicken coop as soon as its warm enough out and get more silkies. Peanut will most likely go out with the other chicks while I'm at work or I'll just keep bringing her with me to the office. So far she's a huge hit here. Eventually I'll start working from home though.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

I always drink my cup of coffee before I go out to the barn. The chickens are always left the night before with full waters and full feeders.
I always open my Cochin coop first to let the little bantams and standards go out before I open the "heathens" coop door. The Cochins like to go out behind the barn towards the woods for the day so I give them about a half hour head start. I then check their coop for eggs and put in fresh water, top off the feeder and clean up a bit.
Then I go on to the Silkies. I have one small pen I put a roo and 2 pullets out in with fresh water, pellets and scatter seed on the ground. I let the bachelor Silkies out into their pen with all the necessities.
I then go back and feed and check my Araucanas in 3 different tractors, collect eggs and feed/water.
By this time I am tired and ready to go to the house for breakfast but I still have to do the heathens........
This pen has mostly layers in it with a few roos. The coop has approx. 50 birds and when I open the door they come flooding out into the yard. They free range all day and I check their coop usually first when I open the door, then again at lunch, maybe before I go pick up DD from school or she may do it when we get back but they lay a lot of eggs all day so I try to keep up with them.

The Silkies like to go to bed well before dark so we put them up about 4-4:30 in the winter. I check the Araucanas after that and make sure everything is set for the night and go to the shed and make sure all the brooder chicks are good for the night (right now I have 2 pens full of chicks) and then I go beat off the heathens so the Cochins can go to bed. The boys love to taunt the sweet Cochins and I am in the process of making a new coop farther away from the heathens coop.
Once everyone is up in their coops from free ranging I close and lock the doors and go around to check to make sure every door and every pen is closed up for the night. then I get to go into the house and make supper.
Lucky me!

 

[patandchickens]

In the warm nice long-day part of the year: DH opens popdoor on tractor when he goes off to work around sunrise. I let the non-tractored chickens into their run whenever I get up (they have a *large* indoor area, and food and water, so this is sometimes not til 10, even). At that time I collect any eggs and scrape off the droppings boards into a bucket. When DH comes home around 4 or so, I collect more eggs, fill waterers and feeders as needed, and do any other occasional chores like levelling bedding or tidying a run. After dinner, when it's starting to get dark, I close everyone into their coop or tractor. Oh, and most days I toss 'em some kitchen or garden scraps at some point(s) during the day.

In the winter: When I go out to give the horses their morning hay at 8 or 9, I stop by the chickens to collect eggs, scrape droppings boards, and check that nobody's waterer or feeder is desperately low. At the moment only 1 pen has a useable run; on nice days I open that up to them, then close it in mid-afternoon or when the sun goes away. When DH comes home around 4 I collect eggs again, fill waterers and feeders as needed, and do anything else needed. (Also I usually hang out for a few minutes watching the chickens and petting them and talking with them

)

Pat