The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[JanetMarie]

@Elemes In my experience it is best to keep the lone chick lone until it is almost grown. I have then been able to put the grown up loner in with the group, and the rooster was happy to have another girl around and protected her from the other hens. Until then, I kept the lone chick in the house, and occasionally outside when I could supervise.

A good rooster may be difficult to find. He must put the welfare of the hens first. I'll post more on that later.

 

[armorfirelady]

Quote: I have one in a pot this year also. I have dehydrated it the last 2 years. I was thinking of adding some to coconut oil for a bug cream? But I can certainly add some to the nesting box also. I added some dried sage to the coop and fresh lemon grass & marigolds to the nesting box.

I have been planting mint around the coop since last year. This year was the best crop yet!!! It was easily 3 ft tall & made a natural barrier to the weather. I had the sides of the hoop coop up higher which made for more ventilation. Its spreading of course but just around the perimeter of the coop. I planted some more on the weather side of the coop this year. I also planted lilys since they also grow so well. Even with our severe drought this year the mint & lily's grew well. The mint also seemed to cut down on the bugs round the coop. It sure does smell nice when it gets mowed also

MY ff has been outside this summer for ease of feeding.........................I have started over several times its got so raunchy smelling.......like there was something dying in there. The only thing I can come up with is the high temps we had this year didnt bode well for it.

 

[lazy gardener]

Hey @lalaland and @armorfirelady ... I did plant a citronella in a big pot by the door to the barn where the chickens go in and out. It got HUGE! Just before it rains, I can smell it very strongly. Not sure if that has something to do with atmospheric pressure or what. But it smells great.

It's so nice I'm thinking I might try bringing it in for the winter.

Has anyone tried dehydrating it?

I've been raising the same plant for at least 2 years. Every fall, I give it a good clipping. I then dry some of them, and root a few more to keep for myself or gift to my chicken keeping friends. It air dries very well. I keep a bag handy for the nest boxes. Time to replace the hay in the boxes, and add some citronella. You can also tuck a couple of fresh leaves under the nest box bedding.

I keep my citronella plants right in front of the chicken run. When I refresh their water, I just dump it into the plant pot. Works great.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Good morning

I've been reading through this thread some in the wee hours, particularly about the selection of cockerels and flock members in addition to introducing new chicks into the group. Here's my current situation for your pro-feedback:
I have 2 cockerels, a BCM and an Ameraucana that were raised together. Both also were raised with a sister so they're all about 15 weeks now. I also just introduced 3 Java pullets last week, about 17 weeks now but the same size as everyone else.
I also have one lone chick hatched from a stressful August incubation that is an unsexed, mixed breed.

My current concerns: picking a cockerel, flock dynamics in young chickens and the process of introducing a lone chick.
I'm observing them each day, watching for behavior I don't want; aggression, in particular. I have no issues at this time with human aggression but my BCM cockerel chased and topped a Java pullet once, and now doesn't seem to mind them that much. The Ameraucana pullet, however likes to peck at them and give them an absolute-no to getting food/treats in her area of interest. The BCM pullet is more tolerant of their presence but doesn't hesitate to chase them away if she wants something, like food, as well. She has been the more docile of the 2.

The BCMs and Ameraucanas forage together, roost together, etc. The Javas stay in their own coop and forage in their group, sometimes very near the others but safely removed- I did not move anyone this way, it's just where they go at night. I would like to have all my hens in one location, eventually, but I'm curious about the dynamic changing if removed from the presence of one or both cockerels. I have room, obviously, for separate pens.
I also have the little chick, who, when getting his penned outside time, was pecked through the crate by the BCM cockerel and even his sister, today. I don't have experience introducing young ones to youngish ones so any foreshadowing here?

My goal is to get a docile flock capable of protecting and alerting one another with a caretaker mentality toward the young. This may seem obvious, but with that in mind, I expect to only keep one of these cockerels. I've been holding out to see who reveals them self. The BCM is obviously first to arrive, most curious, and does a raised wing/back display occasionally at anything new, and sometimes has done it to me though I believe we have an understanding now that it won't be tolerated.
He's going through some stuff, today starting clucking and is the more crow-y cockerel.

So all that being out there (and thank you for reading) what questions do you have or wisdom to impart while I structure my dream flock?

Your boys are still quite young and their final personality can't be judged until they mature fully and get past the hormonal teenage stage. If they make trouble I would separate them out to allow the hens to have some peace and for the boys to mature without causing problems and developing bad habits. You still have a few months before they really become trouble.

I personally would remove the boys and work on integrating all the young ones together by penning them next to each other than allowing them to range in the same area. I would keep the roosters separately probably until winter before trying each one out to see how he reacts.

I don't usually make any final judgements on my roosters until they are about a year old unless I see behaviors that I won't tolerate and I have too many to choose from, than some decisions will be made earlier.

 

[Turk Raphael]

I have one in a pot this year also. I have dehydrated it the last 2 years. I was thinking of adding some to coconut oil for a bug cream? But I can certainly add some to the nesting box also. I added some dried sage to the coop and fresh lemon grass & marigolds to the nesting box.

I have been planting mint around the coop since last year. This year was the best crop yet!!! It was easily 3 ft tall & made a natural barrier to the weather. I had the sides of the hoop coop up higher which made for more ventilation. Its spreading of course but just around the perimeter of the coop. I planted some more on the weather side of the coop this year. I also planted lilys since they also grow so well. Even with our severe drought this year the mint & lily's grew well. The mint also seemed to cut down on the bugs round the coop. It sure does smell nice when it gets mowed also

MY ff has been outside this summer for ease of feeding.........................I have started over several times its got so raunchy smelling.......like there was something dying in there. The only thing I can come up with is the high temps we had this year didnt bode well for it.

I feel lucky that great swaths of mint grows around my chicken house. When I mow the yard, I cut about two or four inches into it and the air hangs thick with the delicious scent for hours, plus, the mint seems to thicken and re-doubles itself in the areas where I've cut. I believe I will take a bushel or so of the mint into the house and dehydrate it for the nest boxes this fall.

I'll be gone for a few months but very experienced lady who is going to live at my place will take care of the application of all chores. Having her here will let me go away for this extended vacation with no fear of any problems being above her level of experience and I won't fear or even be expecting a daily phone call asking for clarification. She lives in West Virginia but spent her younger years (before marrying a soldier) in Frankfort KY and still lots of family she will be able to visit with during my extended sabbatical. WIN_WIN plus she will be well paid for her work

 

[JanetMarie]

Your boys are still quite young and their final personality can't be judged until they mature fully and get past the hormonal teenage stage. If they make trouble I would separate them out to allow the hens to have some peace and for the boys to mature without causing problems and developing bad habits. You still have a few months before they really become trouble.

I personally would remove the boys and work on integrating all the young ones together by penning them next to each other than allowing them to range in the same area. I would keep the roosters separately probably until winter before trying each one out to see how he reacts.

I don't usually make any final judgements on my roosters until they are about a year old unless I see behaviors that I won't tolerate and I have too many to choose from, than some decisions will be made earlier.

This is good advice. I also like to judge a rooster on how he treats a hen mom with her chicks. Most roosters shouldn't have a flock of hens until he is at least a year old.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote:
I think that's what I'm going to try. Bring it in, clip it down and dry what I've clipped.

Sounds like you just hang to dry rather than using a dehydrator?

 

[lazy gardener]

Yes. I bought a dehydrator this summer, so if you had one, it would be an option. But, really, it's so aromatic, and the leaves are fairly dry anyways, so if you hang it it will dry well, not to mention, you can rub it every time you walk by it!!!

If you give it a good trim, save a few cuttings to root. I always like to start a cutting of any plant I buy if possible. that way if the parent dies, I have a spare.

 

[slordaz]

after taking care of this hen for 6 weeks gotta rehome her, that's gonna be hard, but she's not living in my house lol. she's smaller than the others that hatched with her and super docile

 

[Elemes]

Well I tried putting the boys up and they about had a heart attack. They don't fight at all, as they were literally raised together. I don't have any runs for separating them at the moment - my chick does stay inside and only goes outside when I supervise, but the BCM came over earlier in the week to give him "whatfer", as did his sister. I didn't let them peck the little one, shooed them off after that.
I reckon I'll wait it out and see how things progress. They won't be a year until April 2017. I really only want to keep one because it seems to balance the flock, but I could do without the egg-lessness and the crowing.