The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[armorfirelady]

Quote: "Put THAT in your pipe and smoke it!"

(That's what came to mind...okay, strange.)

I really could put them in the randomizer

but not ready yet. I think there are a few more out there somewhere.

 

[delisha]

Quote: all pullets

I can't get photobucket to load up but I know this is the link if you copy and paste into a new window can you open them?

My rooster has been getting dark cast on the back of his comb and then later it is all bright red! Does that happen with mood?

http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums...t Day- Got an egg/th_DSCF0023_zps608a8dfa.jpg

http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums...irst Day- Got an egg/DSCF0021_zps45b5e13f.jpg

http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums...hicken coop build/th_DSCF0025_zpsf30ca6fa.jpg

I see a healthy bird..nothing to be concerned about. My roosters combs get spots on them from eating FF and getting dirty, fighting threw the fence sometimes, and bruising from falling off hens..lol

going to try the rooster question again:

will a 16 week old rooster who is affronted by the beards and muffs of ameracauna pullets grow out of it, or are the odds that he will continue to run them off?

It has nothing to do with breed difference.
Some chickens can spot illness or something not right in other birds.
A cockerel will try to breed anything he can catch. He might be trying to catch and the pullets are not liking that cockerel. My silkie chases the females all day long. I get tired watching him and I am surprised he is not skin and bones. He looks like he is chasing them and he will grab them any where..wings..feet..etc..it looks like he is attacking and the sounds the girls make when he does grab them sound like they are getting attacked. Poor fella needs a pen of girls.

 

[BlueMouse]

I'd wait a bit longer with those lows and that age.

I have 4 week old broilers that I haven't let out yet because of the temps (and because I have 25 that are 11 weeks and will eat them), but this weekend they are going out. I have a lot of room for them inside though, so that is why they are still in. We have been pretty cold lately. Especially in the mornings. Frost and all. I'll wait until it warms up some on Saturday. I find they are a little stupid for a few days on where to go back in. I like to be home for the first two days they are out.

It is too cold out for any breed of chick that is not fully feathered. If it was 60-70 you might be able to get away with it. If you can build a temporary *heated room* in your tractor till they are feathered you might be ok. A heavy cardboard box with a 70 watt bulb might do it.

I was thinking a large cardboard box full of dry straw for them to "nestle" in? Do you think that would be enough or should they have the light as well? I might be able to rig up the light if I keep the tractor really close to the house for a week or so.


As far as mobile hoop houses that are predator proof.... This one is pretty good. We're upgrading in the spring with 1" hardware cloth. Right now it's chicken wire over everything but the door (hardware cloth there) but we haven't had a problem yet.

Most of our predators here seem to be the larger type, which cannot rip through the wood slats on th bottom, or squeeze between them. The whole thing is light enough that I can pick it up and pull it as long as it's going forward (it has lawn mower wheels on the back). I need my husband's help to turn it around though.


It's actually made out of the old wood flooring we had to rip out of our house. Oak. Very strong. and two cattle panels cut in half and bent across the top. It's 12X5 and about six feet tall in the center. It's housed our turkeys and guineas all summer, and I'll back it up to the chicken coop, cover it with a tarp, and fill it with deep leaves in the winter to give them a second covered area to go out into.

 

[Leahs Mom]

As far as mobile hoop houses that are predator proof.... This one is pretty good. We're upgrading in the spring with 1" hardware cloth. Right now it's chicken wire over everything but the door (hardware cloth there) but we haven't had a problem yet.

Most of our predators here seem to be the larger type, which cannot rip through the wood slats on th bottom, or squeeze between them. The whole thing is light enough that I can pick it up and pull it as long as it's going forward (it has lawn mower wheels on the back). I need my husband's help to turn it around though.


It's actually made out of the old wood flooring we had to rip out of our house. Oak. Very strong. and two cattle panels cut in half and bent across the top. It's 12X5 and about six feet tall in the center. It's housed our turkeys and guineas all summer, and I'll back it up to the chicken coop, cover it with a tarp, and fill it with deep leaves in the winter to give them a second covered area to go out into.

I really like that! Could you take some more photos from several angles?

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Quote: Thanks, I'm glad to hear that. I'm out of egg laying hens at the moment due to my decreasing for winter and changing breeds at the same time.

 

[aoxa]

"Put THAT in your pipe and smoke it!"

(That's what came to mind...okay, strange.)

I really could put them in the randomizer

but not ready yet. I think there are a few more out there somewhere.

Arnold Schwartzenegger.

Had a blue cochin named that once. We are weird.. what can I say?

I have a Cletus, Phoenix, and Jagger.

Previous boys: Stanley, Jagger, Steve, Carl <--- My favourite rooster name of all time....

 

[SallyinIndiana]

We have roosters named King Friday and Prince Tuesday.

 

[aoxa]

We have roosters named King Friday and Prince Tuesday.

Creative!!

 

[aoxa]

I'll name all my breeding roosters once they are old enough to pick from. It's too hard for Susan to grasp all the names I come up with, so I try to name them sparingly now.

We have now:
Phoenix
Cletus
Nora
Joy
Hope
Doc Holiday
Gertrude
Tina
Lucy
Lucy again
Lydia
Jagger II
Groucho
Ostrich
Sweet Brown

Oh yes and Bambi - not named by me.

Before we had:

Steve
Jagger
McDonalds
Nacho
Dixie
Penny
Denny
Wendy
Macy
Bertha
Martha
Stanley
Gigi
Skittles
Ruby
Harriet
Carl
Carl II
Carl III
George
George Jr.
Lorraine
Phyllis
Eedie
Eedie II
Spock
Fern
Willow
Agatha
McChicken
McDouble
Dovely
Betty
Bruce
Tom
Wanda
Penelope
Janet
Ruth
Honey
Bonnie
Hoover
Kathy
That's all I can recall

 

[BlueMouse]

My rooster is "Mr. Bennet" because he has a family of contentious ladies... lol... Yes. I'm a nerd. I've come to be ok with that.