The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[CoopChick719]

Here are a few of mine from today:

2nd Darth 'Bator SFH chick - do they get any cuter than this??


And my SFHs hatched by the white Silkiebator.


Boy!

Seriously BDM...cuteness factor of chick #2 is off the charts!!!

Didn't know what a SFH was until I came to BYC. They are just beautiful!!

 

[countrygirl74]

Such beautiful photos today from everyone!!

Jenndodd - love Little One's coloring too!

 

[lalaland]

Photo bomb!! Lol!

Loving all the photos today! Lala, not often you post pictures! Nice surprise

In a couple of months I'll have some chick pics, til then I've got my scruffy looking girls. oh well!

That's the chicken end of the trailer coop - you can barely see the hawk enclosure - fencing for a roof and snow fence for the sides . In the spring and summer they have access to the whole 4,000 sf run, but in the fall the owls/hawks feed on them. In the winter with the snow, they mostly stay under the coop or in a shoveled area.

Here's the other end of the trailer, my project this spring is to demo out the front half of the trailer and uncover the windows to make a coop area for the chicks that are coming this summer.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Another great idea for a hen house! I love seeing the photos of everyone's chicken housing. It gives me lots of ideas of things that I can keep on the look-out for to see if I can find any bargains!

I know I want additional housing for the chickens this spring and some kind of "run-in shelter" for spring meat goats and/or a beef so I'm keeping my eyes out and love the ideas!

 

[TheCrazyClucker]

Here's my pullet that I suspect is moulting. Every time she flaps her wings feathers go flying! It's my first time for any of my girls, so if she's not moulting I have no idea what's going on





It's our first week of sun in months - everyone is loving the dry run



My Easter Egger Anne Shirley is starting to pink up nicely


Little One - just love her feathers - and we thought she was going to be dull!


Lacey -our Dark Blue Laced Red Wyandotte

Moll - our black copper maran is starting to go red too




Fluffy Butts loving their new organic feed. It's different this time and they are loving it! Sylvie (LO), Little One (EE), Annie Shirley (EE), Nellie Olsen (EE), Moll, Lacey peeking over, and a touch of Mabel (BO)




Nellie Olsen - slowest to mature so far. At least her beard is starting to grow in!

Even the new babies got a touch of sunshine today for the first time!

Cruella DeVille checking out her first worm (Houdan)


Frizzle Bizzle finding her first bug (hoping it's a her!)






Goldie Hen

Aww, they're so cute! Makes me want to go back in time to when my Houdans were chicks... Dolly, Molly, and Polly are so skittish now...
I think your pullet is molting. She's adorable, by the way.
Are your BLRWs mean? We had someone tell us they are really nasty... but Lacy, our BLRW, is actually really sweet! (I just realized yours and mine have the same names!
Did I see Nellie Olsen...??? I love Little House On The Prairie!

 

[lalaland]

Yeah - I got this ex construction site trailer for $800 at an auction. I used it first to store my belongings while my house was being built - I camped out on my land for 5 months. After two months, I had running water from a hose, and soemthing to plug coffee pot into,and I thought life was good!

Once the house was up, I demo'd out the back half for a coop and moved the hens into it from a very small coop. The other half holds gardening tools, canning equip, camping equip, etc. It was wired and had overhead lights (nice!) but the wiring went out after some squirrels nested in the insulation under the floor.

I've pulled out all the insulation. Haven't missed it, the dl is a good substitute.

 

[lalaland]

Jenndodd, love the chicks. And....there is green!!!!! in your pics, so nice to see. Makes me have hope that spring might come !

 

[Mumsy]

Yeah - I got this ex construction site trailer for $800 at an auction. I used it first to store my belongings while my house was being built - I camped out on my land for 5 months. After two months, I had running water from a hose, and soemthing to plug coffee pot into,and I thought life was good!

Once the house was up, I demo'd out the back half for a coop and moved the hens into it from a very small coop. The other half holds gardening tools, canning equip, camping equip, etc. It was wired and had overhead lights (nice!) but the wiring went out after some squirrels nested in the insulation under the floor.

I've pulled out all the insulation. Haven't missed it, the dl is a good substitute.

That is a great idea. Dual use stuff is my favorite stuff of all. I loved the pictures. The snow made my jaw drop. There is some serious weather going on out there!

 

[Ashdoes]

Can some of the chick experts take a look at this link? She has chicks with the weirdest poos, and I have no clue about that stuff.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/760284/can-baby-chicks-have-worms-picture#post_10803240

 

[jendodd79]

Aww, they're so cute! Makes me want to go back in time to when my Houdans were chicks... Dolly, Molly, and Polly are so skittish now...
I think your pullet is molting. She's adorable, by the way.
Are your BLRWs mean? We had someone tell us they are really nasty... but Lacy, our BLRW, is actually really sweet! (I just realized yours and mine have the same names!
Did I see Nellie Olsen...??? I love Little House On The Prairie!

Our BLRW isn't mean, but she's not at all friendly to us. I'm going to work at that this summer! She won't come near us -

Nellie Olsen, is Nellie Olsen, minus the meaness. But she's super bossy and nosy! Lol!