Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[FlyRobinFly]

Quote: He's cattle working lines, straight from Texas. He's about 40 pounds of pure dynamite. My other Aussie is a rescue dog and 50ish pounds but much bigger.

 

[FlyRobinFly]

Well, she has now spent 7 hours in the nest box today, arranging and rearranging the nest, trilling, puffed up, sweet as can be (I know that's not actually normal, but it is for her, she's super sweet!), with only one break. She's broody. So here's my APB for eggs:

I need fertile eggs! They don't have to be purebred although that's ideal. I really really want some Barred Rocks and a sex link type bird; anything that lays well will be considered. No bantams or silkies thanks. I will drive to get them Monday or Tuesday, would like not to drive further than an hour if it can be helped.

Jess. she sure sounds broody! I hope you successfully hatch chicks with her.

 

[Sweetlilbaby]

The last one I took in was a very old Belgian (tiny bantam). The charge was somewhere around $100. It is not a financially-wise choice. I just can't kill a chicken myself. I don't want the last thing it experiences to be a knife to the neck or whatever the process is. Just a small needle prick, and drifting off to sleep. To me personally, that is worth the money. But you're right, they do need to make kits with chloroform or something.

I would never slit a chickens neck and let it bleed out to die. I find it to be slightly cruel. I however have snapped a chickens neck before because it was suffering, as well as taking a small knife and popping it threw the roof of the chickens mouth to puncture the brain killing it instantly.
I wouldn't be able to afford to have a chicken put down at a vets office, and I also feed injured chickens once butchered to my dogs. So that would make it useless for that.

 

[BantyChickenLuv]

Does everyone think Modern Game for him? His legs are super long. I did post pics of him in the Modern Game Bantam thread but they have no clue if he is one or not. If he isn't I have no clue what he could be. And those rocks in the waterer? Yes, I took them from outside and boiled them to kill any bacteria before putting them in the waterer. I will be showing the Cochins and him at the Clackamas Co. Fair this August, for those Oregonians who go to it.

 

[mikeyb]

Just out my back door/basement to the left is the front of the coop; the door has plenty of ventilation, and no it's not done with the trim. There's also a vent up high on the front and back of the coop under the eves, which you can see in this pic:

Here's the inside left of the coop. Nest boxes straight back; they only use the one on the right. Roost about my waist high, about 1' above the pop door which is open full time; yes, I hung that bag of shavings on a nail in the rafters to spare my DH having to store it in the basement.

Ok here's the inside right of the coop; there IS another "pop door" on that side which we covered with hardware cloth to keep as a floor level window for more ventilation; for the winter, it's closed with a piece of wood as there was quite a drafty breeze blowing underneath the roosts when it was open. The light plus is in the ceiling

Here are the nest boxes from the outside. I raised the flat lid up and that encouraged them to actually use the boxes; now they love it in there, but I don't feel it's dark enough. Also, the corner piece on each side needs to be made more secure, right now any predator could squeeze in there.

Here's the run and coop next to each other; notice DH put a rain gutter on the run side of the coop so that rain didn't run off into the run, woohoo! There's sand in the run and I need to find a good way to remove poop from there about once a week. Thinking a wide tang rake with hardware cloth over it, to use like a huge cat litter scoop?

And this is the inside of the run from the door on the end; there's a roost on the front of the run that they all use, 40lb feeder hanging towards the coop, a waterer on a block, and a rabbit hutch that they also all use to lay eggs in; that will turn into our broody house if Lucy, who is STILL in the nest box since this morning all huddled and ruffled up feathers and purring at me when I open it since this morning, goes broody

So everyone...what do you think? What can I do better? How can this all improve?

Tear it all down, pack it up and bring it over to my place and erect it out near my pole barn. I need another coop!

 

[mikeyb]

BTW, that is a very nice looking coop.

 

[WhiskiRanch]

I will be doing some coop cleaning soon. Had two more teeth pulled this morning so I'm a little down right now. Still need to go out and feed the horses and check the nest buckets in the coop. Im trying to find homes for 3 cockrals and eventually some pullets. Turns out, lots of my babies are looking to be pullets... which isn't a bad thing but I'm gonna be taken over by pullets and hens before too long...lol.

 

[FirewifeJess]

Hooray! Lucy is still in the nest box tonight and everyone else is roosting above her. I'm so happy!!

If she stays that way all day tomorrow I'll move her while she sleeps Sunday night. Then go get eggs for her Monday.

Does that sound like a good plan? I don't want her to have to sit too long since it's not good for her health to be broody too long, but I also want to be SURE she's gonna stay on her nest if I get some fertile eggs!

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

Hooray! Lucy is still in the nest box tonight and everyone else is roosting above her. I'm so happy!!

If she stays that way all day tomorrow I'll move her while she sleeps Sunday night. Then go get eggs for her Monday.

Does that sound like a good plan? I don't want her to have to sit too long since it's not good for her health to be broody too long, but I also want to be SURE she's gonna stay on her nest if I get some fertile eggs!

Well, it sounds like you have your plan in place. Good luck. I would offer you eggs from my flock, but I am only getting one every other day from my Orps(they would be the only Pure bred ones), and I would have very short/late windows for you to pick up in Lakewood.

 

[FirewifeJess]

Thanks Travis, yeah I'm hoping someone here will chime in. I posted a CL add looking for hatching eggs. I don't care all that much what they are honestly, but I'd like them to be pretty good layers.