The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[armorfirelady]

 

Need to add that the waterer shown in the post that referenced above (the one with the bucket and the cup) did not work during the winter.  The spring in the necks of those froze.  Had to use a different waterer.

Nice find on the stainless steel heated bowls. I need to look into those for the future

I guess I should say, too, that my ss dog bowl didn't cost as much as the one in that link!!!!  I just posted it so you could see what it was. 

My local "Big R" store had them for $29 I think.  I waited a long time before buying one as I can get the plastic ones for about $16.  But when I realized that those pyrex dishes can sit right in them (I got one from their housewares department and took it over and tried it in the ss bowl to see if it would fit) then I thought the price would be worth it if they lasted for years.  Those stainless heated bowls are a LOT SHALLOWER than the big plastic ones which is an advantage for keeping the wattles out.

Also...
I haven't ever purchased the pie pans or pyrex cake pans from the store new.  I find them in resale and garage sales all the time and would pick them up when I saw them.  Even so, they aren't that expensive new.

I've been slowly picking up old Pyrex bowls and pans to use in the house, so I def have a variety to chose from I have to say the glass bowls cook better than metal ones and I don't worry about any chemicals leaching in. And my old Pyrex mixing bowls are my favorite. I snag them at sales when they are cheap. Some people collect them.....I use them !!! I snagged 4 dozen of canning jars at an estate sale Friday. 2 dozen quart ones were in sealed boxes from 40+ years ago

lady next to me was complaining since I claimed them all. I even found old jelly jars you use wax to seal. I pointed out to the lady I didn't buy them all........the guy next to me got the old glass ones with glass tops......only because he was in the basement first

. And my mom found me an old cast iron pot, a couple porcelain bowls and pots and a giant sieve. I love estate sales of old people. They have the best treasures & the stuff doesn't break like the cheap stuff you find now.

I like the fact the SS heated bowls are shallower. They will be on the coop wish list along with a way to power them with solar power.

 

[Leahs Mom]

One more thing I need to add about that ss bowl...

I only used it for a short time near the end of winter last year and it was outside in an area only the smaller birds could get into. If I remember correctly, I had to still put some grit in the bottom of the ss pan to raise up the pie pan to the top level on that. I only used the kind of pie pan in it that doesn't have handles on each side but if it's setting on a bed of grit I could use the ones with handles.


When I put grit in the bowls, I'd just use the grit for a base for the pyrex to sit on and raise up the pan high enough that they weren't dipping wattles in it. In some of my bowls, I put water in the grit to transmit the heat to the bowl.

By the end of the winter, the grit and water was pretty nasty as some of the feed will invariably get dropped in there. At end of winter I took the grit and washed it and laid it out in the sun to dry and then I was able to continue to feed that grit after winter.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Deleting because somehow it posted 2x.

 

[lalaland]

a variation of the cookie tin heater, kind of cool: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/watering-the-small-flock-in-winter

 

[Leahs Mom]

a variation of the cookie tin heater, kind of cool: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/watering-the-small-flock-in-winter

Very intersting. Thanks for posting that.

At first I thought they were going to use that electric unit and I was thinking "fire in the making". Then I saw how they redid it.

I like the ceramic and metal. What concerns me is the wiring. Which is always what concerns me in those cookie tin heaters. I imagine you could get a heavier wiring that is really made for outdoor use...

 

[hennible]

There's also a version of the cookie tin heater that uses a concrete block...crud what are those called... You know the concrete bricks with the holes in them? You put the lightbulb inside The hole and you put a paving stone on top... clever because it has thermal mass.

 

[hennible]

Cinder block

 

[Leahs Mom]

Yes....I'm just very cautious about "rigging" wiring like folks use in those. Plus the fact that the cords being used aren't rated for outdoor makes me nervous about fire hazard. That's why I liked using the heaters from the dog bowls. They are already wired for that use and "should" be more safe in the environment in which I'm using them.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Okay. Finally the kennel pens in the barn photos. I also put this on the Indiana thread so @hoosiercheetah and @SallyinIndiana (and anyone else from Indiana) are getting reruns. Sorry...


I've been really unmotivated to do anything lately. Thankfully my husband was ready to work and had some ideas of his own or I'd still be sitting around wondering if this was going to get done. Really glad he took the initiative because I'm hoping to move everyone in tomorrow before the snow starts next week.


Kennel panels in the barn. This side is 16' long using two 6 ft panels and one 4 ft. gate; the opposite side has a 10 and a 6 ft. panel; the 6 ft has a gate opening toward the outside sliding door. This is what things looked like this morning. The whole thing has three 12 x 6 panels over the top. The sides are 12 ft. long. (Overall 12 x 16 perimeter).

In the left 6 ft. area, we made a separation pen that is 6x6...for the rooster boys or just in case someone needs to be separated off otherwise.






Husband wanted to make an area for roosts that was surrounded by plywood so that they might be able to utilize body heat at night to keep an area "warmer" rather than just having it open all the way to the roof.

All of the wood was stuff that he's collected over the years for free. He's a saver...all of these wood pieces were here just waiting to be used.






Here you can really see the rooster/isolation pen to the left.



Decided to try having two roosts parallel to each other. I've seen others use that successfully but we'll see. Just an experiment and the second one toward the front can just be lifted right up and removed if we don't like it.



I've been worried about cold cement floors. He 'just happened" to have some styrofoam insulation in his storeroom...this is the dense stuff about 3" that I can stand right on top of.


He put that in a couple corners under some plywood that will be a warmer place to stand or lay. I'll probably put the feed and water in this corner. The styrofoam will be unreachable for the birds since they LOVE eating styrofoam...




This piece of some kind of vinyl type flooring was at habitat for humanity restore for $8 so he got it when he saw it. Again...a little easier on the feet in the cold.




View looking across from the rooster corner.




Outside looking into where they will enter and exit when I let them go out. The inside gate can open right up against the slider which makes a divider so they can't get into the rest of the barn.



Looking inside from outside.


Looking outside from inside.




What's just outside the door. See way back there in the background...the current hen shed location which allows them access to this little wooded area from that side. This is where they will move from to be inside during the winter.


3 Swedes outside in the cold today...24 week old girls.




Edited to correct age of SFH.

 

[mlowen]

Great photos, LM. I think it will be nice for their winter digs.