Texas

[jnntefend]

We just use neon colored zip ties. Super cheap and easy to find. Also easy to see on the birds across the yard.

From baby to fully mature, we've only had to change them a couple times. When they're little, they will still stay on pretty well if you leave lots of growing room. Occasionally one will fall off, but hasn't happened to us but a couple times.

Oooo, good idea... (runs off to Atwoods)

 

[wlhtx]

I forgot to mention that we do check them pretty regularly just to make sure the ties aren't getting tight.

A couple weeks ago I had one pullet who had been limping for a couple days - not a bad limp, but she was a little gimpy. Well, I didn't think much about it until a couple days later when I had one of those wake up in the dead of night, sit up in bed moment's because my subconscious self had become convinced that her legband was too tight and was cutting off circulation, causing her limp. I wasn't about to tromp all the way to the other end of our pasture to check her out at 2:30am, but I could barely sleep the rest of the night since I kept envisioning her with a dead foot that was going to fall off, either killing her or leaving her to hobble around on a stump leg like a pirate. I flew out there at sun up, grabbed her off the roost, and lo and behold - her legband was just fine. She, however, was not so pleased with me disturbing her so early in the morning...

 

[Burns06]

I'm impressed. Where did you get your plans?

The plans were for a kids playhouse I got from Rockler.com. Its a carpentry site and the plans were worth the $12.00 they cost. It was originally supposed to have a front porch that went all the way across, but I changed it to add the "bedroom" in the front. This gave us an extra little bit of floor space. The whole house is 6'X6' and about 6' at the peak of the house.

Special thanks to my neighbor who gave me some of the old fence pickets he had stored in his barn.

 

[Imprfctme]

I am finally getting around to posting pictures of the coop. It has been "liveable" for the last month or so, but it still needs some exterior trim work and decorations. The girls really seem to like it. This was my first real attempt at construction and I am pretty proud of it. The girls "Farm House" The egg door Nest boxes with fake eggs. Some of the girls enjoying the evening breeze. Thanks for all the help to everyone.

That's fantastic! That's your first project? I'm so impressed!

 

[7acres]

Got my ferment going last night. It is bubbling and smelling. Are you sure all of you people are giving this to the chickens and saving the liquid or have you found another use for the liquid. From the smell I get visions of Popcorn Sutton. Can't wait to see what a drunk chicken looks like.

 

[wlhtx]

How are you fermenting? Two bucket method or one bucket? If you have it all completely covered with water (and it's still covered after sitting there a few hours), I would add a little more feed to it. I feed mine out at a oatmeal-like consistency. So it's not real liquidy and I don't have to drain anything because what liquid is in there gets absorbed into the food. (I tried draining in the beginning and that is super messy work!)

 

[hotrodflash]

What's the best thing to use to band chicks? How many times do you have to change them as they grow?

I use zip ties that I bought at Dollar Tree for $1, they are bright green, pink, blue and orange. Easy to see and came in 2 different lengths. 100 zip ties for $1 is hard to beat.

 

[Imprfctme]

I caught her this morning, but when I called the police, she pulled the whole "what chickens?" bit. They weren't running around there, so I assume she processed them. We both have large acreage, though, so she could have put them somewhere away from her house. The cops said it was a civil issue... makes me want to tote around my "law enforcement" device...

Grrr... I guess I'm a bit cranky today.

You have every right to be cranky, as everyone has pointed out. My friend has 2 RIR roo's left, they are very pretty.

I checked Amazon, and you can get a wireless camera system for $180 - or a pretend camera with a blinking red light for $8.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_s...eywords=security+camera&sprefix=secur,aps,221

just a thought. If they are stealing chickens, maybe they'll start stealing other things too.....

 

[7acres]

How are you fermenting? Two bucket method or one bucket? If you have it all completely covered with water (and it's still covered after sitting there a few hours), I would add a little more feed to it. I feed mine out at a oatmeal-like consistency. So it's not real liquidy and I don't have to drain anything because what liquid is in there gets absorbed into the food. (I tried draining in the beginning and that is super messy work!)

I probably put a little less than half feed in it last night, covered it with water. This morning it still had a little liquid on top and I added some more. It was bubbling this morning. I just went and checked it again. No liquid on top now and it was about to roll over the bucket. I scooped some out and put it in another bucket to keep it from spilling on my garage floor. Had to put it in the garage last night as my dog left his food and was gobbling it up when I was not looking. I think I will just start another bucket tonight so I will have some going all time. I am just using one bucket. I guess I will eventually learn about how much to put in to keep it from spilling over. Will it be o.k. to leave it in the barn in this heat? How many days will it be good to feed to avoid spoilage, if it will spoil?

 

[wlhtx]

You sound like you're figuring it out fine! I don't know how many birds you're feeding or how quickly you will go through it, but as long as you keep "feeding" the bucket periodically with new, dry food and water then it shouldn't spoil. Even in the heat. My husband kicked ours out of the shop because he really doesn't like the smell. So, ours sits on the back porch. For several hours in direct sunlight. The heat, IME, helps the ferment take place quicker. I really don't think it can go bad. If you don't stir we'll, then the stuff at the bottom will get extra fermented and smell stronger, but it's not spoiled per se.

Please note: you will see a film develop on the top between feeding times. Depending on what you're feeding, the film may be beige or grayish or white. This film is not bad mold. Don't worry unless you start seeing green or black stuff growing in there. It WILL smell strongly too. Some people (my husband) think it smells "rotten." Others (me) think it smells sour, but it's not a rancid smell.