The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[TeaChick]

Those barred rock are very pretty! They kinda make me dizzy when they're standing still!

Oprah perked up yesterday afternoon, running around with the other girls, scratching for whatever you can find in frozen ground. At dark she hopped up on the roost in between Tina and Juanita and snuggled in for the night.
Got up to go to work at 2:30 and it was a balmy 10dg. Not as cold as predicted. Yipee!

Oh, does that mean she's feeling at least a little better?

 

[Leahs Mom]

Oprah perked up yesterday afternoon, running around with the other girls, scratching for whatever you can find in frozen ground. At dark she hopped up on the roost in between Tina and Juanita and snuggled in for the night.
Got up to go to work at 2:30 and it was a balmy 10dg. Not as cold as predicted. Yipee!

Good to hear!

 

[Leahs Mom]

Aoxa - not sure if I missed the answer to this. Do you put your water bowls right on the floor or do you raise them up on something? Do you use the 1 quart or 5 quart size?

 

[delisha]

good news is that Booster the rooster shows no agression to me in the coop - and the coop is where the entire flock has been hanging out for days. feels like forever. For the most part, the oldsters take over the youngsters portion of the coop and the youngsters hang out in the oldsters part, which is sunnier and has more windows. Possibly a few degrees colder too.

Lots of roosting in the DL going on.

Booster has the worst frostbite I've ever seen - he has a huge comb which is pretty much rainbow colored (no green though). I have to imagine it must be painful. It isn't the moisture, as there are no frost crystals in the coop. If anyone has any suggestions for the care of a frozen comb, please chime in. Buster has more of a rose comb and has just a tiny blackened tip, but Booster has horizontal lines of red, purple, white and yellow.

stil subzero for another week, and windchills are predicted for -30 F.

I'ld like to invent a warm nest for them to lay in so there would be a chance of getting eggs that are intact.

Make deep nesting material or use insulated nest boxes for winter.

Quote: Could you explain what you mean? You might mean broody and I am just unnecessarily confused.
If you do mean broody..I remove them if they need additional attention or are poor mothers. I will not let them brood chicks again. I have a hen who is a wonderful mother, but when she has chicks she will kill other young birds who come close. She is not allowed chicks in any of my coops.

Quote: Have fun!

x2

It is different.. I would use your nose. Close up the coop for a week and test by smell. If you smell your chickens or ammonia you need to crack one of the windows. Do you leave the coop pen during the day? Poop door?

Aoxa - not sure if I missed the answer to this. Do you put your water bowls right on the floor or do you raise them up on something? Do you use the 1 quart or 5 quart size?

I wanna know too!!

 

[TeaChick]

Quote: Could you explain what you mean? You might mean broody and I am just unnecessarily confused.
If you do mean broody..I remove them if they need additional attention or are poor mothers. I will not let them brood chicks again. I have a hen who is a wonderful mother, but when she has chicks she will kill other young birds who come close. She is not allowed chicks in any of my coops.

Yes, I meant broody. I think I might have been mobile (the joys of auto-correct). I'm sorry.
Thank you.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Aoxa~ I would also like to know about the water setup.

 

[lalaland]

first one makes me think of bellying up to the bar! and I love the spaciousness of your barn. And, where is the poop? looks incredibly clean~

 

[Scott H]

Came home this afternoon and a muskrat was up by the coop eating frozen FF...at least someone likes it.

 

[TeaChick]

Came home this afternoon and a muskrat was up by the coop eating frozen FF...at least someone likes it.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Came home this afternoon and a muskrat was up by the coop eating frozen FF...at least someone likes it.