The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[stonykill]

Thank you, it isnt pretty but it supposed to be either. It works. Next spring I am fixing the little things here or there that need adjusted or done better. Hopefully out of recycled goods.

I have 9 coops. I only purchased materials for my 1st one. All of the others are made from scrounged material, including vinyl siding on one of them. With enough vinyl siding left to do the rest of them.

 

[maidenwolfx80]

I have 9 coops. I only purchased materials for my 1st one. All of the others are made from scrounged material, including vinyl siding on one of them. With enough vinyl siding left to do the rest of them.

Thats wonderful. Do you have any pics?

 

[aoxa]

Ha ha, now don't I feel silly. Not really, I only have 18 chickens and 2 turkeys. Can't they all just get along?

I would assume that many coops would to keep breeding pens for pure breeding. That's a whole lot of coops though!

I have one big barn. Going to be making separate breeding pens out of old pallets my brother saves from his shipping job (Sameday Courier)

I have 9 coops. I only purchased materials for my 1st one. All of the others are made from scrounged material, including vinyl siding on one of them. With enough vinyl siding left to do the rest of them.

Takes talent to build 9 coops with scrounged materials.

 

[kian]

Ok... some one said they love pictures (I do too!) so here are some of mine:


Stella, Cuckoo Marans (on the roost in the coop)


Ruby, New Hampshire


Sunny, New Hampshire


Christmas card (without the writing). That's Georgia, Cuckoo Marans.

I have learned so much from these natural keeping threads. Thank you!!

 

[Miss Lydia]

We had a lovely day yesterday. Temperature in the upper 50s, sunshine and little wind. I spent a good part of the morning walking around with the girls and a camera. Here's my little flock of 5.



This is Pepper (Salt's on the left). She's just starting to come out of molt. She was a very reliable layer before the molt. Nice large brown egg.





This is Paula Deen (loud, brash, large and lots of grey). Lays a large blue egg 4 out of 7 days a week now. 6 out of 7 in September.







This is Ginger. She's the youngest and smallest. Even after repeated lock-downs, she prefers to roost in the cedars right behind the coop. Just like Ginger in Chicken Run, she longs for freedom, so, as of a couple weeks ago, she gets it. Don't know how long she'll last, but she is definitely happier. Hasn't started laying yet.





Salt on the track of some bug that has survived our mild (so far) winter. Lays about 4 out of 7 days now. Almost a daily layer earlier.





Blue, who just started laying. She's giving us an olive egg every other day.

Very pretty girls! Sorry ya'll I forgot.

 

[lalaland]

love love love everyone's pics. I haven't figured out how to post pics with this chromebook - my old laptop died - or I would add to the thread.

Especially nice to see green right now.

 

[Miss Lydia]

And I am still working on aoxas drive through feed store.

 

[Mountain Momma]

So, I guess my girls should be dead by now. Their coop is constructed completely from aromatic eastern red cedar. If left to their own devices around here, chickens would live in cedar trees. In fact, I have one who does. The entire flock spends the vast majority of their day foraging under a grove of cedar trees, pecking through a hundred years worth of needle litter, broken branches and stripped bark. This when they have 10 acres of mixed hardwood and open grassland to choose from. I would like to see an authoritative reference to your statement above, that cedar has any harmful effect on chickens. I might buy into the idea that commercially available cedar shavings aren't a good choice of bedding for young chicks, since it is highly aromatic, but other than that I need some proof that cedar poses any sort of hazard.

Good point Jeff!

I have cedar walls in my coup. They poop on the walls but I dont see any peck marks. My nester is metal and the roosts are Ipe (South American Hard wood, does not float or burn, need diamond bits to drill it) Pine shavings and Alfalfa in deep litter on the floor. Never any mites and the wild ones are always stealing feed. So they are exposed to all sorts of things from the environment, but never had any lice or mites as of this writing.
L

 

[lalaland]

my chickens only eat mixed grain from the feed store and and what they can find on the farm. is that natural chicken keeping?

Glad you're here and thanks for the pics.

I'll give it a shot, but for sure there is no one definition. I would say Natural Chicken keeping is keeping your flock healthy so you can avoid all kinds of issues: disease, parasites, etc. so you don't have to resort to wormers, antibiotics, etc. -
Probably if you keep your chickens in your house, or use chicken diapers, or medicated fees, or scrupulously pick up poop daily, or even just do things the hard way, or have trouble realizing your chickens, are....well....chickens! not your kids maybe...then probably you are swinging along with natural chicken keeping.

Definitely not one way to do it. Using common sense. Knowing that keeping chickens in confined areas too small can cause probs. Taking advantage of fresh air, as much room for the chickens as you can get as it looks like you are from your pics.

JMHO

 

[Melabella]

Here we go again.......