The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[delisha]

OffGridMAMA - GREAT job on the coop! I know your girls will love it!

PidgeonGuy - awesome input about the use of oregano and garlic on your roo! Glad he's looking so much better, and love the story about your wife!

x2

 

[aoxa]

I sure hope Marge goes broody again this year. She raised some really good layers for me.

 

[atmaclean]

If you "Quote" this post, and add your name and pick to it,,we can keep track of the voting. This is of course, if you want to weigh in on such an important,, earth shattering vote!

So far we have

Bulldogma- Welcome Wagon
Melabella- Welcome Wagon
Mumsy-Welcome Wagon
Jockeyeba-Welcome Wagon

sorry if I missed anyone...

I like the welcome wagon
Angela

 

[aoxa]

We have a couple large rubbermaid containers we use (in the house for now) with a heat element. Worked great for us last summer. We'll be keeping them in the laundry room for now. When I do my horse trailer conversion coop, there will be an area in there for chicks - YAYY! (But in these cold temps, they'd be in the house anyway if they weren't under a broody hen!)

Tried to find a picture of what I mean.. Here is one. My heat lamp has a low and high setting. Only one of them does.. I wouldn't brood in playpens outside in this cold, but you could. It's warm where you are!

 

[delisha]

Awww we need more pics of the new hatches!!

As far as freezing ..I don't know. I have never had my heated waters freeze. They need water more than food. I do have a neighbor who does not use heated waters during the winter. He waters once a day maybe. I have brought water to his birds and horses before. If snow is on the ground I do not worry so much. Wild birds do hold snow for moisture. My FF is freezing solid. I am over feeding now. Ugh. I am not feeding tonight.

I would make sure they had water somehow. Make an insulated area for the waters. You can get that stuf they insulate pipes with to suround the edges of the heating element, or purchase a bird bath defroster and put it in a shallow pan with water. They do not get hot enough to burn in this weather.

 

[aoxa]

Awww we need more pics of the new hatches!!

As far as freezing ..I don't know. I have never had my heated waters freeze. They need water more than food. I do have a neighbor who does not use heated waters during the winter. He waters once a day maybe. I have brought water to his birds and horses before. If snow is on the ground I do not worry so much. Wild birds do hold snow for moisture. My FF is freezing solid. I am over feeding now. Ugh. I am not feeding tonight.

I would make sure they had water somehow. Make an insulated area for the waters. You can get that stuf they insulate pipes with to suround the edges of the heating element, or purchase a bird bath defroster and put it in a shallow pan with water. They do not get hot enough to burn in this weather.

I'll steal the one heated waterer from the turkeys I guess. It does not freeze, but the geese and ducks make such a mess out of it that I confiscated it. lol

Guess I'll have to deal with it.

I'm only feeding fermented scratch and dry right now. The fermented feed freezes in less than an hour. The chicks and silkies are the only ones getting FF in their heated dog bowls.. even though they still freeze around the edges and top if it is not being picked through..

 

[aoxa]

​

Friday
January 25​

Saturday
January 26​

Sunday
January 27​

Monday
January 28​

Tuesday
January 29​

Wednesday
January 30​

Conditions
6am - 6pm​

​

Mainly sunny Variable cloudiness Mainly sunny Sunny Cloudy periods Scattered flurries

P.O.P.​

10 % 20 % 20 % 10 % 20 % 40 %

High​

-14 °C -13 °C -11 °C -9 °C -6 °C -1 °C

Feels Like​

-28 -22 -20 -18 -13 -9

Low​

-22 °C -18 °C -17 °C -17 °C -14 °C -12 °C

Wind​

W 25 km/h NW 10 km/h NW 10 km/h W 10 km/h W 5 km/h S 15 km/h

24-Hr Snow​

- - - - - close to 1 cm
​

Look!! It's going to heat up!!!

Oh my day just got better.

I try not to worry about the cold and the birds, but I do.

 

[delisha]

I worry too. This cold snap is a bit longer than I am used to. On my other thread for Wisconsin, many are loosing birds left and right. Wisconsin does not have weeks of below temps on a norm. They say it is supost to get warmer. 30 by Sunday. I can hope. The wind chill is what makes it so much colder, and all of this humidity.

 

[stonykill]

LOL - now, now, Stony - we don't do drama here.

I think MB has enough votes at this point, and folks are welcome to "welcome" new people with whatever Stony-annoying emoticon they like.

Group HUG!!


...moving right along...

seeing the same thing over and over just makes my eyes glaze over. Then I just skip to the last page. Not trying to cause drama, I just don't see what 4 pages of choosing a welcome sign has to do with natural chicken keeping. Bores me

 

[aoxa]

I worry too. This cold snap is a bit longer than I am used to. On my other thread for Wisconsin, many are loosing birds left and right. Wisconsin does not have weeks of below temps on a norm. They say it is supost to get warmer. 30 by Sunday. I can hope. The wind chill is what makes it so much colder, and all of this humidity.

I think the key factor in all of this is choosing the right breed for our climates.

My silkies are doing very well.. Huddling down low in the deep litter. The layers even go outside. Not phased at all. My NNs are mostly all right with it except one. She is really cold. I stuck her in with the chicks. Figured they could use an extra body to huddle with as well (and she's very good with chicks).

My Ameraucanas look cold as well. They are molting. Poor things. They stay roosted in these temps unless they are eating.

I got 20 eggs yesterday. Had my MIL collect them so none were cracked from freezing. Obviously my layers are doing quite well.