Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[KMHunter]

Quote: Really? How does that work? I thought BBS color genes work the same in all breeds. Does a black copper boy have the blue gene too? Maybe recessive? Just curious.

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

Quote:
I know. I need to put the wheels on the grow-out tractor my 3 chicks are in. But it is so wet and nasty out, I don't wanna. I may have to put my "easy-up" over it so I can work in rain free conditions. 10 day forecast shows rain. I was hoping to get it done this last Thursday, but I got home so late in the morning I didn't get up with enough daylight to do it. UGH. But I will take the rain over 80+ degree days anyday.

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

One more question: has anyone just had a pullet lay great for 2 months and then up and quit for the winter? Princess, my EE/Marans mix from WA4HPoultryMom did that. She hasn't laid an egg in weeks! Everyone else is laying fine. I'm a bit peeved.

We need the eggs badly and if she's not gonna pull her weight all winter I don't know what I'll do.

Do you give them artificial daylight? I have a flood light on a timer so I am giving them about 2 hours plus normal daylight. Mine are still laying regular. I have 6 laying and average 4 eggs per day.

 

[FirewifeJess]

Quote:
Oh yeah, it comes on at 3:30am and stays on until daylight. Everyone else is laying well.

 

[FirewifeJess]

 

[Shyla-C]

Those traps work everytime on my cat too!!

 

[Ogress]

I have a question for those of you with covered runs. So far, I've never cleaned poop out of the run. It doesn't seem to need it, I just add some straw when it gets to looking dirty. I've been thinking of doing a full cleanout though, because whatever rodent is still living under my coop has been pulling all the straw under the coop as bedding and protection; I can no longer see under the coop it's packed so tight with straw. Been thinking about using all those fall leaves in there instead. So should I just rake out all the old straw and stick it in the composter? Will it start to break down on its' own? It's obviously full of poop, and I'll keep adding the poop I scoop off the shelf each day as well. I guess I'm just wondering how often y'all maintain your covered chicken runs (not the coop, our coop is very clean). In the summer it was totally covered in flies but I think that's just the nature of having animals?? Now that it's winter the flies are gone and the smell is gone too. Will it all just break down over winter or should I compost it and start fresh every once in a while?

I have a large covered run that is filled with wood chip (used to be the kids playground). I have hardware cloth that prevents rodents from getting under the coop (as it can be seen behind the blue Jersey Giant pullet in CL's 3rd photo). The cloth bends out at a right angle under the wood chip to form a skirt. My coop is 10"x12" and the run is twice that size. I scoop the poop from the coop and put it in the compost pile; I don't put it in the run. My run does not get too messy except for molted feathers because my chickens free-range all day. They were stuck in the run for 2 weeks this summer while we were in Hawaii, but therun did not get very bad. I occasionally do take a wheelbarrow in there and scoop out the worst of it, but I do this at most once a year. They do hang out there for a month or so at a time when the yard is filled with snow. I hardly had a problem with flies at all this summer. I think it is because the HS kid I hired to care for the birds while I was in Hawaii confused the permethrin dust with the DE, and had quite a heavy layer of permethrin throughout the coop and run. I also hve dust baths in the run with permethrin and DE in them. The other summer I put out Rid-Max Fly Traps. They are non-chemical, reusable traps I hang them with piece of cardboard about an inch underneath. I slide a plastic lid with some stinky food or animal poop onto the cardboard directly under the trap. Flies fly in but can't get out. The trap fills, flies die and dry out. I throw the dessicated flies into the yard and the chickens all come running over to eat them.
http://www.ridmax.com/

 

[JennS]

Quote:

I've been sitting inside all morning, looking out the window and finding something better to do inside rather than planting my garlic. I'm going to run out of time soon and I'll have to just suck it up and get wet.

Jennifer

 

[Slinglings]

Quote:
I think it was being avoided. I know I was. I don't know if I would get slapped for it but didn't want to go there. Pretty funny though. I wonder what would happen to the chickens? Lol!

I'll go there (I also had been avoiding the subject - call me a chicken) -- basically, there would be no effect on any animal who eats 'grass' clippings. The 'grass' needs to be broken down by oils or fats in order to 'work' prior to being ingested.

Please don't ask me how I know this - unless you really want to know
Must be why people put it in brownies!
Yeah, you have to cook it in butter/oil before even putting it in the brownies. Once you have the infused oil/butter you can put it in any recipe calling for oil.

 

[hallerlake]

I have a question for those of you with covered runs. So far, I've never cleaned poop out of the run. It doesn't seem to need it, I just add some straw when it gets to looking dirty. I've been thinking of doing a full cleanout though, because whatever rodent is still living under my coop has been pulling all the straw under the coop as bedding and protection; I can no longer see under the coop it's packed so tight with straw. Been thinking about using all those fall leaves in there instead. So should I just rake out all the old straw and stick it in the composter? Will it start to break down on its' own? It's obviously full of poop, and I'll keep adding the poop I scoop off the shelf each day as well. I guess I'm just wondering how often y'all maintain your covered chicken runs (not the coop, our coop is very clean). In the summer it was totally covered in flies but I think that's just the nature of having animals?? Now that it's winter the flies are gone and the smell is gone too. Will it all just break down over winter or should I compost it and start fresh every once in a while?

I never clean my covered runs. I only use leaves or whatever in the rainy season. About once a week in the summer, after the chickens have gone to bed, I run the sprinkler in the runs. It helps melt the poop into the soil and off the coop roof. That goes a long way toward keeping down the flies and smell. I hose off the roof from time to time in the winter.