The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[mlowen]

Here's the goof-up:  this morning, I took some hardware cloth and made a wall from the back of the coop to the edge of the people door, partitioning off the coop into two areas.  Open the people door, and you are facing a nest box with a very placid broody, and a small area in front of the box.  

I didn't figure out ( 6 am, cold pouring rain,  working from outside the coop, and after a rough late night)  that........I can't fit through the chicken door to get their eggs!!! no way to reach them with the hardware cloth wall either!.

If I had a nickel for every time I built something and then had to take it apart because of something just like that...I could hire someone to biuild stuff for me. I vote do over.

 

[ki4got]

Quote:
or building something, get all the parts you need, only to find that the bolt long enough to go thru 2 pieces of 1" pvc ISN'T 3" but closer to 4" !!! how did 1 + 1 =3? because that's exactly how long the bolt is, and exactly how long the hole is! I just went to lowes last night for something else, now it's another 30 minute drive each way for 4 4" bolts and wing nuts to fit!

eta better make sure a 2" bolt goes thru 1 piece of pipe before I leave. LOL

 

[Leahs Mom]

Tina looks very happy!


I made a classic goof up. The sulmtalers hated by the rooster are separated and have their own tiny coop. Its a sulmtaler who is broody.
The little coop has a people door on one side, and a chicken door at the other end.



the nest box is in the corner facing the people door.

yesterday, the two other hens climbed in the nest with the broody and laid eggs, and the broody took all the "foreign" eggs I had given her, rolled them out of the nest box, and was sitting on her sisters eggs. I took her sisters eggs and put back the foreign eggs. It was day 1, so I figure it didn't matter that the foreign eggs were cold. hey, correct me if I'm wrong!!!


Anyway, I wanted to make a separate area for the broody so this wouldn't happen again.

Here's the goof-up: this morning, I took some hardware cloth and made a wall from the back of the coop to the edge of the people door, partitioning off the coop into two areas. Open the people door, and you are facing a nest box with a very placid broody, and a small area in front of the box.

Look to your right, and you see the roost and the end with the chicken door.
I figured the two other girls would have to make do without a nest and just lay on the floor.

I didn't figure out ( 6 am, cold pouring rain, working from outside the coop, and after a rough late night) that........I can't fit through the chicken door to get their eggs!!! no way to reach them with the hardware cloth wall either!.

I haven't read farther to see other replies so I may be duplicating here.... But when I divide temporarily like that I use the plastic netting. If you have a wood wall or stud, you can screw in some "eyes" or "cup hooks" into the wall and use a double end clip to clip the fence to the hooks. Just unhook and move it aside to get in, then re-clip.

Plastic poultry netting:
Like this but I get 48" high http://www.lowes.com/pd_157764-1311...t&pl=1&currentURL=?Ntt=poultry+net&facetInfo=

Clips like this or similar:

ETA: Of course you'd need to have a few places to clip on each end...maybe top, bottom and middle. You'd only have to take the top one off and bend it down to step over into the other side.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote:

What breed is yours? and now I need a picture.....

Mine is a red hatchery girl. I see that yours isn't a red girl but when I took a look she so reminded me of my girl.

 

[mlowen]

or building something, get all the parts you need, only to find that the bolt long enough to go thru 2 pieces of 1" pvc ISN'T 3" but closer to 4"  !!!  how did 1 + 1 =3?  because that's exactly how long the bolt is, and exactly how long the hole is!  I just went to lowes last night for something else, now it's another 30 minute drive each way for 4  4" bolts and wing nuts to fit!

eta better make sure a 2" bolt goes thru 1 piece of pipe before I leave. LOL

Yep. Wheels for the chicken tractor. I may have made three trips before the bolt length was right. But, thank goodness, Home Depot is only 2 miles away for me.

 

[lazy gardener]

Oh yeah... building goof-up's. I cut that board 3 times and it's still too short... Or, i'll get the pieces cut for a project, and before I start putting it together... I decide that it needs to be done differently, or bigger, rendering the pieces I just cut too short. Or get a project half done, and run out of screws, or need just one more piece of lumber... It's at least an hour round trip for me to drive to town. Not to mention all the miscellaneous bits and pieces I've bought for a future project... but when I get around to starting said project, I forget what I've bought, or where it's been put. And lost tools! I spent 3 days looking for one of my drills, only to find that it had been set on top of the freezer. When my grand-son opened the freezer for some ice cream, he just opened the lid, and dumped the drill off so it fell down behind the freezer.

 

[armorfirelady]

W

Here's the goof-up:  this morning, I took some hardware cloth and made a wall from the back of the coop to the edge of the people door, partitioning off the coop into two areas.  Open the people door, and you are facing a nest box with a very placid broody, and a small area in front of the box.  

I didn't figure out ( 6 am, cold pouring rain,  working from outside the coop, and after a rough late night)  that........I can't fit through the chicken door to get their eggs!!! no way to reach them with the hardware cloth wall either!.

If I had a nickel for every time I built something and then had to take it apart because of something just like that...I could hire someone to biuild stuff for me. I vote do over.

I am the same way. Thankfully the herb boxes are holding up even if the boards are not straight lol. I finally finished them up tonight & tomorrow get soil for them so I can get the seeds in before it rains for the next week. I got my cold frames built also so going to rototill the garden where they will go so I can get that seeded as well.

 

[Leahs Mom]

AFL - better be giving us some photos of those planters as you go along.

 

[lalaland]

It will be fine that they got cold..it is unusual that a bird will roll out eggs unless they are not truly broody. I would remove the sister for a few days and let her set them tight, then let the sister back in.
Remove your barrior and put up something different that works for you.

Delisha, thanks for your reaassurance about the eggs still being viable. I'm not sure the eggs are fertile so I should figure that out soon, and replace if I need to.

I haven't read farther to see other replies so I may be duplicating here.... But when I divide temporarily like that I use the plastic netting. If you have a wood wall or stud, you can screw in some "eyes" or "cup hooks" into the wall and use a double end clip to clip the fence to the hooks. Just unhook and move it aside to get in, then re-clip.

Plastic poultry netting:

Clips like this or similar:

ETA: Of course you'd need to have a few places to clip on each end...maybe top, bottom and middle. You'd only have to take the top one off and bend it down to step over into the other side.

Thanks for the ideas!

 

[armorfirelady]

AFL - better be giving us some  photos of those planters as you go along.

Me take pictures? Lol

Here it is so far. I finished 2 more tops with plastic wire yesterday then put plastic over them. I will be getting soil for it after the store opens at 9.

Eta thanks to stony for sharing the idea to use stair raisers to make the boxes like steps. I also lined inside with that black material you use to keep weeds out of your garden. As you can see they don't meet well inside so I am hoping it keeps the soil from falling out. Lala you can see they are not level at all. I tell people my carpentry skills give my projects character