Sub-Arctic Summer Coop Build

[Alaskan]

The chickens have arrived! I'm pretty excited. I've wanted chickens for so long. So far so good. I've noticed a little yellow by their vent, I hope that's okay. Also, my biggest concern right now is they are too dumb to figure out the water cups. On well, I'll get up early tomorrow to check on them.

Congrats!!

I am no help on the water cup training.

 

[alwaystj9]

Well...did they figure out the water cups??

 

[SubArcticFowl]

Well...did they figure out the water cups??

I don't know. I haven't observed them using it, but the cups are empty after I leave them alone for a while. So they must be drinking the water out of the cup, I just don't know if they have figured out to peck at the flower to get more. I stick my finger on the flower to refill the cup whenever I am in there checking on them. I think I might order the tip cup style instead. For now, I am also putting extra containers of water in their coop just to be safe.

They are also super skittish right now. Every time I go into the hen house they hide in the far corner. They have also not used the pop door. When I first picked them I put the dog crate by the run door and they refused to leave the crate. I finally just moved in. At night I could not convince them to go into the hen house so I had to pick them up and place them in manually. Now every day I open the pop door, but they don't leave the hen house. I have not forced them out, but I do think it is funny. I guess they are just getting used to space and moving around. They came from a cage farm environment.

 

[aart]

So they must be drinking the water out of the cup, I just don't know if they have figured out to peck at the flower to get more.

Mark the water level on the container.

 

[SubArcticFowl]

Mark the water level on the container.

Yeah, that would make sense. I did that when I first built it to see if it was leaking. They don't seem to be drinking much from any of the containers either way.

 

[aart]

Yeah, that would make sense. I did that when I first built it to see if it was leaking. They don't seem to be drinking much from any of the containers either way.

If I were you, I'd ditch the cups and get them using horizontal nipples.
Much easier to heat during winter.

 

[SubArcticFowl]

Mark the water level on the container.

Thanks for the tip. I was a little concerned about spillage and the resulting increased coop humidity when I first was reviewing options, but I'll head your recommendation and give them a try.

 

[SubArcticFowl]

A couple of people have messaged me about updates. So I thought it would be best to post here. Overall it has been a successful summer, but now it is time for them to be moving on to their winter home.

I started with 3 laying hens (Babcock Whites) from an egg farm. They were very skittish and at first didn't want to go outside into the run at all. After a bit, they started spending more and more time outside. In the late summer, one had a prolapsed vent. I tried to soak it, spray with disinfectant and put it back in. I did that for a few days, but unfortunately, she ended up dying.

In the fall, most chicken keepers in my neck of the woods cull their birds. So I ended up adopting two young hens from a friend; one looks like a barred rock and the other I wasn't sure about. These chickens have a totally different mentality and run towards me instead of away. Unfortunately, they also bullied my two existing birds and I learned lots about integration. I ended up separating my run in two and building a loft on the side not attached to the coop to house the newcomers for the first couple of weeks.

I utilized a poop board up until recently, but it was no match for hard frozen poop. So I just took it out and now scope the poop out of the bedding. For bedding, I used a product I got at the hardware store called garden straw. It is a light, fluffy shredded straw. I really like it and will buy many more bags next year if they get it in again.

We had a very mild fall, but the weather is turning now. This morning it was -16 C (3.2 F) in the coop. -25 C is in the forecast later this week and that is the temp I said I would move them to their winter home, which is currently in construction under my deck. They seem to be handling the cold okay. The chickens spend most of their day outside, but do go to bed early. I have a light on a timer from 6AM to 9AM. Egg production has been good (0.75-1/bird/day), but they have been eating a ton.

 

[alwaystj9]

Brrrr. Hope the integration works out. I have to go look up "Babcock Whites" now.

 

[alwaystj9]

Once I got past the "Babcock White Peach Tree", I found the website and they look like a slightly heavier white leghorn. From the website:
"The Babcock White is a very productive and robust egg layer. It is known for its adaptability to different climates, including extreme heat or cold, while continuing to producing a high volume of first quality eggs per hen housed. The Babcock White is a balanced combination of high performance, egg quality, and excellent livability. The eggs produced by Babcock White laying hens are large sized with good internal and external egg quality. With its ability to lay a high number of eggs in a number of environments, the Babcock White provides strong performance for egg producers all over the world."

I was surprised at how large the combs are, that helps down here in the heat but mightn't they frostbite where you are?