Texas

[keljonma]

Carla, maybe this should be somewhere else on the forum, but I was trying to catch those Texan eyes here. When we lived in Tomball (Harris County) we didn't have chickens. Now for the life of me, I don't know why.....

Our dd and sil in Houston County have started discussing "chickens". The place they purchased has some outbuildings, and fenced pens, but I'm not sure what they are like yet.

Any suggestions for housing (for weather especially) would be helpful.

Thanks!
keljonma .... missing her kids and grands in TX

 

[allen wranch]

keljonma,
The two main things to worry about in Texas are predators and coop ventilation.

Your can never overkill on predator proofing. If there is any little hole, weak spot, loose board, etc., a predator will find a way to get to the chickens.

With our hot and humid summers, the birds need plenty of ventilation when in the coop. Windows (covered in hardware cloth) on opposite sides of the coop help. Even in winter, they need some ventilation (but not drafts). When outside, there should be a shady spot they can go to when it is hot.

Hope this helps. You can pick up more specifics in our coop and predator section.

 

[the1much]

and the birds will learn to LOVE sprinklers

in the summer, i turn the sprinklers on 3 or 4 times a day for them,,, and they RUN to get in it

 

[keljonma]

Carla, Thanks for the reply. As we lived in Harris County for 15 years, I figured about the heat. I will pass on the information to my daughter.

As far as predators, any suggestions on how you protect the flock from fire ants without chemicals? DD has 3 young children (10, 7 and 4 months) and doesn't use any chemicals.



Jim, that is funny about the sprinklers! Our flock here in NE Ohio HATE them. We use fans in our hen house and barn and soak the ground under trees and shrubs during summer. Thanks for the idea, though. Maybe my dd can use it for her flock in Houston County.

 

[havi]

Quote:
I use DE for everything! I use it in the coop to keep things dry and on the roosting boards to keep mites and other bugs away. I sprinkle it in the run as well. It never fails whenever it rains there is always a new ant bed that pops up somewhere I just sprinkle some on and it kills 'em. Heres a link that explains DE more.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=1560-Food_Grade_DE

 

[keljonma]

Thanks, Havi! We use Food Grade DE here also. I just wasn't sure about using it on the fire ants.

My recollection is that they are pretty hard to get rid of ..... I have one ankle that will forever be swollen due to an incident involving fire ants.........

 

[havi]

It may not be the best way to go, so you prob. shouldnt follow me.. You may end up

but w/o the smile. Lol


I will either step on the ant bed or use a long stick and poke holes in the hill. Then I take the DE and sprikle it over the bed. If I do the holes, then I sprinkle even more in the holes to get it deep down. Thankfully I have never been bit doing it this way, and

that I dont.

 

[allen wranch]

I have been using Gardenville Ante Fuego Soil Conditioner for years on fire ant mounds, and it really does the job.

It is organic and you can make your own.
See:
http://www.dirtdoctor.com/view_question.php?id=25

 

[keljonma]

Thanks for the smile, havi!

Carla, thanks for the link. I have forwarded it to my daughter.

 

[hottexaschick]

Wow there are a lot of us in Texas!

I'm kinda new to this group, we live in Collin County, about an hour north of Dallas.