UK Member Please Say HI

[504707]

Hi from East Anglia, UK.

I own Call ducks and Muscovies!​

Hi from East Anglia too!

 

[504707]

When I hatched a load last year the males turned in a nightmare. I had to separate into groups that worked ie 1 male 5 females and everything that was left had to go. I had a hutch in the garage full off males that were just fighting. I ran out off space. That said I had a couple of females chasing each other and one kept jumping and split her head open on the top of the run. Not nice but I managed to fix her up with blue spray and calm. I had to move them about several times until I found the groups that worked! I didn't cull any I managed to sell them at auction. Such sweet birds but they can hard work and mean to each other when they want.

I have 10 youngs and I am just waiting for the 6 week mark to hit and then see how many males I have. The one I culled just wouldn't stop attacking anything in her way, running around the cage and looking for targets. Since I culled her I have zero problems with the rest.

 

[CCUK]

I have 10 youngs and I am just waiting for the 6 week mark to hit and then see how many males I have. The one I culled just wouldn't stop attacking anything in her way, running around the cage and looking for targets. Since I culled her I have zero problems with the rest.

If you have normal brown coturnix quail you can sex them now. The females have a speckled breast and the males have a light tan colour breast with no speckles. You can also vent sex them. If you gently squeeze the vent the males will secrete a foamy substance. If you have any cinnamon colours both males and females are identical. If all else fails the males will start calling anywhere from five weeks!

 

[504707]

If you have normal brown coturnix quail you can sex them now. The females have a speckled breast and the males have a light tan colour breast with no speckles. You can also vent sex them. If you gently squeeze the vent the males will secrete a foamy substance. If you have any cinnamon colours both males and females are identical. If all else fails the males will start calling anywhere from five weeks!

Two are the regular pharaoh, one is white and the rest are unidentifiable light beige colour

 

[JemimaP]

I think your run looks OK. If you have a six foot fence around the outside of the garden and it is completely enclosed with no gaps you should be OK. Im guessing the six foot fence is sat on concrete plinths? All you've got to do is think ahead like what could get through. We don't get raccoons and possums and coyotes here but we do get foxes cats dogs and hawks. I only have chicken wire around most of my coop and run because my garden is also fully enclosed. I only use the welded mesh (hardware cloth) on my quails and pigeons because I've had magpies try and attack. One thing to think about is that your chickens at some point will start digging! They like to make dustbowls! I have had to put bricks around some parts of my fence as they are nearly under it!

Thank you Chickencountryuk I’ll keep a look out for digging!
I did find some unusual poo behind the chicken coop from last night I think. I’m going to google and see what it is. I don’t think it was cat poo. We do get cats in the garden at night but the girls will be safe in their coop then.
I’m hoping the foxes wouldn’t try to get in the garden during the day there are literally thousands of rabbits in the fields around us so they have rich pickings without having to climb in our garden.
We do have a sparrow hawk but that won’t be able to get in the run.
Scary tho!

 

[JemimaP]

I think it was hedgehog poop behind the coop!!
Better than having a fox!

 

[PouleChick]

A sad first for our chicken keeping journey today. Our dear little 5 week old Araucana Edward Scissor beak went sharply downhill and I had to make the call to put him down. Thankfully I found out from my neighbour that you can buy ether at the pharmacy here so it was very peaceful. My 12 year old son held him (totally totally his choice) and I just did it with a cotton ball with a cotton ball square thing over his beak and he just fell asleep

I'm going to update with the new chicks when I get a minute (later in the week??) but this is my thread of my chickens if you want to see some pics:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/poulechicks-chooks.1242608/

 

[Warriorgal]

Hello, no I haven’t. I did think about this but I’ve designed the run more to keep the chickens in for now rather than keeping anything out as their coop is predator proof and I have an automatic door closure. So I’m thinking of it more as a temporary pen. I’ll post a photo. I’m hoping they’ll freerange a lot when they’re older.
Do you think that’s a mistake? I’m bringing their food and water in at night to deter rats. We have wild foxes (as opposed to bolder city foxes) nearby but we have 6 foot fences around the garden, a dog that wees everywhere and my husband is home a lot pottering in the garden.
I can buy some thick mesh to go around the edge if they might get attacked during the day? Though I’ve only used chicken wire around the run so they’d be able to chew through that anyway?

I think the door closure is brilliant as the coop is predator proof. You mentioned that there were foxes around your way. Foxes tend to come out at night. So it should be fine especially as you have a fence around the garden. One of your pics showed the run fence and I was concerned if it was accessible for predators and thought it best in mention it in case. The second pics of the run and coop looks so cosy and a lovely size. Hope they are all still settling in fine

 

[Warriorgal]

I think I popped my head in a while ago to say hi but life has been crazy so I thought I'd say hi again. I'm in France but funnily enough not alot of Frenchies on here to chat to . I'm also hoping that you guys will be able to help me sometimes with the name of stuff here in Europe as sometimes I wonder if we can even get the same products at all as what the Americans are talking about (and then I have to translate them into French too ).

I've been very busy with my chickens - I also started 6 months ago with 3 x 5-7 week old laying girls who started laying early April. In late Feb I got 2 1-2 year old Silkies to start my build your own flock program which is working (too) well! The first went broody 3 weeks after I got her and I have 4 chicks from her (one I think I'll need to cull as it has really bad scissor beak and i'm thinking 2 are roosters which leaves me 1 Araucana hen hopefully!). The 2nd went broody 3 weeks later and I have 5 gorgeous 5 day old chicks (Orps, Australorps and 1 Faverolles). 3 weeks after that my young Sussex laying hen went broody as well and is now sat on 12 egs (BCM, Blue CM, Splash CM, 1 precious Cream Legbar, 4 Vorwerks and one little bantam Pekin) so my garden is sprouting new little broody coops faster than I can keep up and life is all fun! Can't believe it took me so long to have chickens in my life I love them!

Look forward to chatting!

Hi Poulechick. Seems eveyrone seems to have started about 6 months ago lol and everyone is expanding... its a brilliant hobby. I used to live in Clermont Ferrand many years ago, what part of France are you from. With regards to american stuff, they have all these differnt names etc.. but europes got the best lol

 

[Warriorgal]

A sad first for our chicken keeping journey today. Our dear little 5 week old Araucana Edward Scissor beak went sharply downhill and I had to make the call to put him down. Thankfully I found out from my neighbour that you can buy ether at the pharmacy here so it was very peaceful. My 12 year old son held him (totally totally his choice) and I just did it with a cotton ball with a cotton ball square thing over his beak and he just fell asleep

I'm going to update with the new chicks when I get a minute (later in the week??) but this is my thread of my chickens if you want to see some pics:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/poulechicks-chooks.1242608/

Sorry to hear about the loss of Edward Scissor beak. Sometimes I guess we have no other choice ... and he went quietly which is the best way I guess. All of your chickens are gorgeous PouleChick a lovely mixture you have there too. I can understand why you enjoy this so much