The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[TeaChick]

This is what i do..
I have leghorns (2) they are an older breed and not hatchery birds ..however I breed these birds and hatch out chicks..I raise them to sexual maturity, keep two pullets and butchery out the rest. I hatch early in the year so i have new birds to lay all winter long. New pullets lay the first full year with out moulting. If they stop laying the first year I butcher them in March or April .I do not want that in my flock. That work for early hatches only. late hatches might light molt and full moult in October/November so you end up with less eggs the first year from late hatches. So hatch early!!
Keeping a few leghorns every year will make sure you have eggs all winter. Hatching early will make sure you have winter eggs.
I hope this helps.
I would soup out all hens not producing by March. I would soup out all hens taking longer than two months to molt. You save the hen before health issues kills them and you get to use them for your family or feed them back into the flock if you are a vegan.

Sorry, this question was already asked, I just hadn't gotten that far yet. =o\

 

[Pozees]

LM I am just adding my two cents on heating the chickens - the way it was presented to me when I wavered was, what happens when you have a power failure? I know you didn't mean warm, just not zero or below, but it's the same basic concept. I decided after going back and forth that I need chickens that tolerate the climate I live in, meaning anywhere from -10 to 110 degrees F. We had two nights below zero this week, the coops all stayed above zero - not by much, but they did. The pens inside the big coop all have heated waterers in them, and there is a brooder with 5 chicks out there who do still have their heat lamp, but here's what persuaded me they will be okay: The heat lamp, your standard red 250 watt bulb, is maybe 18 inches from their little 1 qt chick waterer, which is not heated, and it froze both nights. The chicks are fine, and all the juveniles adults out there are fine. They aren't happy, but they're fine. I don't have a bunch crammed in a small space so they make lots of shared heat, I've got one pen with 2 juveniles in it, and another pen with an older pullet and two juveniles, the pens are 4x6, bedded with straw and shavings. We knew this cold snap was coming and added the straw, a nice deep bed of it, and I think it helped. They are loving it. They all nestle down deep into the straw, and seem pretty content. The other two pens have 5 Silkies each. They have always snuggled together at night, even in the summer. The floor is painted 3/4 OSB, and the shed is up on 4x4 skids, so they aren't on the ground, and that may be helping as well.

 

[TeaChick]

Big Bertha - Cornish X - CX or Meat King lays the biggest eggs in our flock. They are double the size of the others. She has been laying steadily 4-5 eggs a week

I know the golf ball is there for size comparison, but it's funny how many ppl suggest using golf balls to teach your chickens where to lay. I don't know if mine are too smart or too dumb for that, but they just played with the golf balls and took them as "don't lay here" signs. lol

 

[Pozees]

Nope. I do heat that brooder room, but that's it.

They are really starting to get used to the cold Acclimating.

Susan was in charge of chores last night and left the pop door open (no big deal, I have done this so many times) and I woke up to this:


"You forgot to feed us this morning."

I slept in.. They decided to chastise me for it. FULL VIEW to see the look on her face LOL

LOL nothing like a hen to put you in your place, huh?

 

[TeaChick]

Yeah, my wife yelled at me yesterday, "honey, the vacuum just quit." Check the cord....Oh.

Sounds like me and my DH!!!

 

[TeaChick]

Nope. I do heat that brooder room, but that's it.

They are really starting to get used to the cold Acclimating.

Susan was in charge of chores last night and left the pop door open (no big deal, I have done this so many times) and I woke up to this:


"You forgot to feed us this morning."

I slept in.. They decided to chastise me for it. FULL VIEW to see the look on her face LOL

My chickens are like this too. lol

 

[armorfirelady]

Aoxa I'm guessing the next step would of been knocking on the windows or door lol

For my DL I use leaves, pine needles, grass clippings and shavings. My leaves don't seem any wetter than usual. I just kicked up 6+ inches of the DL today in to big piles and it smelled like that wonderful earthy smell I then dumped a big bag of leaves, grass and pine needles in there. I had some moldy grass in the bag so i tossed that out in the run. Yesterday I put about a gallon pail full of shavings in there. Girls have been busy in there since I dumped the stuff. We are suppose to get a dep freeze this week and I wanted to make sure they had enough bedding to stay warm.

As for heat I am like pozees in thinking that what happens if you lose power ? My 8 do just fine in the below freezing temps. They just stay in the coop more. And thankfully don't bicker to much. I've seen people who posted about this who live in Alaska and they don't heat their coops. That was an eye opener that chickens can survive the frigid temps. Might not like it but they can survive.........

 

[Leahs Mom]

AFL - need to mention that your coop has a dirt floor so that makes it a little different in how things break down too.

Right now my 14 week olds are afraid to go in the coop during the day so they are out all day long. Heated bowls of ff and water are all inside. Since I'm gone during the day I'm getting a little worried about these kids. Today - when I've been home - I've taken out water and feed that is thawed about every 2 hours. They drink like camels at an oasis and they always eat. That's in their "safe place". I drug the dog house over there so they could go in it if they wanted. Even seeded it with BOSS and mealworms but they choose to stay outside.

I'd feel better about it if they were inside out of the wind where they could go up on a roost or other various things to keep away from the olders. There are always 2 older girls, just inside the door, looking like sentries to intimidate them from going in.

We'll see if this remedies itself in the next few days...

 

[aoxa]

I know the golf ball is there for size comparison, but it's funny how many ppl suggest using golf balls to teach your chickens where to lay. I don't know if mine are too smart or too dumb for that, but they just played with the golf balls and took them as "don't lay here" signs. lol

I use golf balls to entice them to lay. It does. They always usually pick the nests with the golf balls unless they are all occupied

LOL nothing like a hen to put you in your place, huh?

She is sassy!

That is a high bird feeder too. Only the turkeys ever used it as a roost. Now a Penny has started

 

[TeaChick]

AFL - need to mention that your coop has a dirt floor so that makes it a little different in how things break down too.

Right now my 14 week olds are afraid to go in the coop during the day so they are out all day long. Heated bowls of ff and water are all inside. Since I'm gone during the day I'm getting a little worried about these kids. Today - when I've been home - I've taken out water and feed that is thawed about every 2 hours. They drink like camels at an oasis and they always eat. That's in their "safe place". I drug the dog house over there so they could go in it if they wanted. Even seeded it with BOSS and mealworms but they choose to stay outside.

I'd feel better about it if they were inside out of the wind where they could go up on a roost or other various things to keep away from the olders. There are always 2 older girls, just inside the door, looking like sentries to intimidate them from going in.

We'll see if this remedies itself in the next few days...

I have this "sentry" issue with one of mine against another one. My Jersey Giant, by size and age, should be at the top of the pecking order (and I do think she's moving up); however, the hen who seems to be at the top is my buff-colored gold Comet (Sandy). Well, Sandy will take every chance she gets to peck Beauty (Black Beauty is my JG). If I throw treats out, Beauty dodges in there grabs something big and runs off with it and then comes back to see if there's anything left. Sandy, however, pecks Beauty whenever she gets a chance, feeding time, time to go in at night, etc. Some evenings, if Sandy knows Beauty is out or if she remembers to do it, Sandy positions herself just inside the doorway and pecks Beauty upon entry. >:-(