The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[aaggjg]

Got home finally but after last nights fiasco I am not letting them out in this rain for only 2.5 hours to pitch dark! I will not sit out in this. Got to get things inside ready for the contractor from County doing the roof/house repairs. He called today that they will start tomorrow!!!! So clean house today and talk to chickens tomorrow about staying out of falling roof tear down! Or they will not be able to come out of kennel tomorrow. I don't want them hurt.

Besides after roaming ALL day beginning at 6:30am and fighting to get them in last night at almost 8..... One egg yesterday and still only 1 today. Hmmmm even with 20 degrees they were all laying every day. Thought they would lay everyday in spring. HMMMMMMM 3 year olds.

Chickens are like little kids! I read somewhere that someone put a light in their coop so that the chickens were not afraid to go in at night!!! And once they got the hang of it they stopped .... I remember weaning the chicks off of the brooder light and they would scream at night settling down in the beginning... That is why I love the idea of the ecoglow as all they ever know is dark arriving at night! I found when I had new chicks the young boys would keep the youngsters out much later then the older hens!! Once I got rid of my boys ... the young girls would follow the older ones to bed at a more civilized hour

 

[Leahs Mom]

Same here with the ecoglows. They just don't get warm enough to use out in the hen house unless it's pretty warm out

I've been searching for a long time for a "no light" heat solution for brooding in unheated housing. Have looked at lots of ideas but so far haven't found a good one.

Except for a broody hen!

 

[aaggjg]

I have this romantic couple that likes to roost in a tree right above my coop and run and fly around the neighborhood. They appear to be very much in love with each other, I never knew owls kissed? (see pic)

My question is, I keep hearing about hawks, falcons, etc. How much of a threat are these owls? My chicks are pretty big now and they are locked up at night, so is there a big worry about owls attacking them? Or will they only attack at night?

Thanks, Lynn



\

I am so glad you asked this question... I had a feeling they hunted at all times of day if there was food... but know they are predominantly nocturnal. I hear the Whooo Whooing all the time and I have found an Owl Pellet(?) right next to my run.... I thought it was coyote scat at first but then as I inspected it there were all kinds of rodent bones in there!! It was actually pretty cool..... Last night I heard flapping followed branches moving around dusk and I was sure I would get a glimpse of these owls but no luck!
I hear a lot of their calls in the early morning..... I figure they are discussing if they should wait and see if the chickens get to play in the yard today .....

 

[aoxa]

Same here with the ecoglows. They just don't get warm enough to use out in the hen house unless it's pretty warm out

I've been searching for a long time for a "no light" heat solution for brooding in unheated housing. Have looked at lots of ideas but so far haven't found a good one.

Except for a broody hen!

Camille has a no light heat lamp.

I am using ecoglows now. The chicks LOVE it. But they can't be used bellow 50F. I will be heating the brooder room so it's not an issue for me, but it would be for most who wanted to raise chicks outside in spring or fall (or even winter!)

 

[aaggjg]

Same here with the ecoglows. They just don't get warm enough to use out in the hen house unless it's pretty warm out

I've been searching for a long time for a "no light" heat solution for brooding in unheated housing. Have looked at lots of ideas but so far haven't found a good one.

Except for a broody hen!

I wonder about those ceramic??? "lamps" that they use at my acupuncture. They get really hot but I am not sure how safe they are as far as being a fire hazard....

 

[armorfirelady]

Kassaundra congrats on the new chicks. I love the momma feather dusters

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote:
I got one of the ceramic ones. No go.

It is only warm directly under it and barely raised the temperature inside the heated house except right under it and it had to be very close to the ground. The one I tried was the largest - 250 watts. The "heat circle" under it was only directly under the ceramic and didn't heat the "area". (I didn't even try it in the hen house...experimented w/it inside first and that was the result in a 70 degrees house).

AND... the ceramic itself is BLAZING HOT. If a chick touched it, it would likely be quite burned. Very frustrating.


eta: I had to put that lamp almost touching the floor to get 80 degrees in a 70 degree house. Too close to where the chicks would be for sure.

 

[aaggjg]

I got one of the ceramic ones. No go.

It is only warm directly under it and barely raised the temperature inside the heated house except right under it and it had to be very close to the ground. The one I tried was the largest - 250 watts. The "heat circle" under it was only directly under the ceramic and didn't heat the "area". (I didn't even try it in the hen house...experimented w/it inside first and that was the result in a 70 degrees house).

AND... the ceramic itself is BLAZING HOT. If a chick touched it, it would likely be quite burned. Very frustrating.


eta: I had to put that lamp almost touching the floor to get 80 degrees in a 70 degree house. Too close to where the chicks would be for sure.

Oh thats a bummer! Now that you mention it ... On cold days even with the ceramic lamp on I would get cold during acupuncture! And yes that ceramic gets BLAZING HOT!!!

 

[stonykill]

ROOSTER SURVEY

-Do your roosters "dance" for the girls and wait for the girls to accept their advances? OR Do they just grab and attack against their will?

-If they dance, at what age did they begin that behavior?



HU has said that he tries not to keep roosters that don't dance and court the ladies. (He touches a little on that here, but not as in-depth as the book) He states that the dancers don't injure the hens like the non-dancers do.

Now I don't have experience with this but what he's saying makes good sense to me and my intention is to select for dancers and remove those that don't when I have the choice. Please tell me YOUR experience with this.

yes


I have both. Even when a hen submits chicken mating is anything but gentle. The neck is tugged on roughly either way. Spurs still dig in either way. One could argue a "dancer" may cause a hen a LITTLE less discomfort, but ..... negligable imho.

I personally find the dance hilarious

Sue your persistance has paid off. I'll stick around when time permits

 

[Leahs Mom]

yes

I personally find the dance hilarious

Well now you know what us ladies think when guys are dating...do you remember the things you did when you were "courting" your wife?

Sue your persistance has paid off. I'll stick around when time permits