Washingtonians

[itsren]

My question for other PNWers is, what sort of substrate do you use in your pens? I have seen sand, dirt and bark mulch in your pictures. My pen will be in the lee of our house and the soil drains pretty well, but it rarely dries out for 9 months out of the year. We live in that wonderful "Convergence Zone" the weather guys talk about. I don't want my pen floor to become chicken poop soup.

First off Jennifer, welcome!

I only have 3 birds, and it sounds like you will have just a few, too. I'm in Auburn. It looks like you are near Seattle, so we have similar weather patterns. Good news... a few birds is very easy to care for. You probably will not get over-run with poop, unless you let it go for days and days without scooping. I have not gone through a very rainy season yet, so I know I will have to figure out if what I am doing continues to work for me through the fall/winter.

My birds live on bare earth. I sprinkle oyster shell and grit on the floor, plus I provide grit in a separate bowl. I scoop poop in the run every single day and throw it in my compost bin to keep the fly problem down. Since my birds are on bare earth, it is easy to scoop up the poop with a cat litter scoop. Those with large/numerous coop(s) and birds can't really do that unless they want to spend their day being a super pooper scooper. With only 3, it is very easy to do so. It takes me about 5 minutes, and I do it while I'm checking on food/water and visiting with the girls. Before fall, we will install a translucent plastic roof over the run to help keep the run dry for the birds (since chickens don't like to get wet).

Here's my coop (without roofing over the run). Right now, if it rains, the ground gets wet and the chickens just sit around beneath the coop.

 

[Chicken Rustler]

OK here is how my day went ! ! ! !





About 3:00 the boss came down and said I had to quit working for the day because it is too hot !

 

[itsren]

My coop has to be in my front yard thanks to our local ordinances, so it'll have to look nice. I have seen lots of references to "chicken math" and I hope I can avoid it, as we don't have the space for a giant chicken coop. I also have most of my .25 acre lot landscaped with ornamentals and edibles, so I will be careful about when and where the girls will get to roam.

If you are putting your coop in your front yard, double-check your set-back ordinances. In Auburn, the set-back for a coop in the front yard is much, much longer than it is for the back yard (I can't remember the numbers, but it is significant).

I'm addressing chicken math by building a 2nd coop and tucking it into cove in our back yard. We'll be getting 3 more (limit is 6) next spring.

We're on a .25 acre (10,000 sq. foot) lot, too. I'm trying to merge my landscaping over to mostly edibles... it's a big job.

 

[lovinchickypoos]

Anyone else having fly troubles with all this heat? They're super thick around the run and back patio. Hosed down the patio and hung a fly trap which already has a lot in it! What else can I do? Is this just what happens when you turn up the heat with lots of chickens around? Kind of a bummer Maybe I'll hang the last of the vanilla scented tree scents I have LOL

YES, they are terrible this year!!! I have gone thru 2 of the stinky fly traps and they had probably had thousands of the creeps in them! They certainly work but smell awful! We still have tons of survivors. I may try the ziploc/water/penny trick people are talking about!

Give 1 teaspoon per 10 pounds of body weight. Give the first dose and run the dog. It should vomit within 10 minutes, if not give another 1/2 dose of hydrogen peroxide and run the dog. You should always contact your vet before any at home treatment like this...Some poisons you DON'T want to have them vomit. But this is good info to have on hand.

WONDERFUL POST!!!!!!!!

I love all these pictures of chicks, there just so cute! I would put pictures of mine on, but I don't know how...
I never posted on this thread so I am from Grandview .

YAY! ANOTHER FROM THE DRY SIDE!!

I have some cool polish chickens and a turkin

Polish are super cute!

 

[cmsdvm]

Tomorrow is the last day to send in entries for the SW WA Fair in Chehalis, WA. Birds check in Tues am Aug 14 and are picked up Sun pm Aug 19. I'm taking some Polish and araucanas.

 

[Chubby Chicken]

Hello all,

I've been lurking for a few months and finally joined BYC. I am in the process of clearing the ground to build my coop and pen. If all goes well, I will have it built by fall and buy chicks in the spring. I bought plans for a 10X4 pen with 4X4 raised coop inside (I will make some changes for our climate), and would like to keep 3 good layers plus a silkie and a Polish for fun.

My question for other PNWers is, what sort of substrate do you use in your pens? I have seen sand, dirt and bark mulch in your pictures. My pen will be in the lee of our house and the soil drains pretty well, but it rarely dries out for 9 months out of the year. We live in that wonderful "Convergence Zone" the weather guys talk about. I don't want my pen floor to become chicken poop soup.

Any other things I need to consider for my coop that are peculiar to the PNW? I went on the recent Seattle Tilth coop tour and got to talk to a few people about their coops, but I wasn't able to see as many as I'd liked to have, since I had my toddler with me. I will be using hardware cloth (a friend who used chicken wire just had her chickens all killed by dogs) and building a sturdy structure. My coop has to be in my front yard thanks to our local ordinances, so it'll have to look nice. I have seen lots of references to "chicken math" and I hope I can avoid it, as we don't have the space for a giant chicken coop. I also have most of my .25 acre lot landscaped with ornamentals and edibles, so I will be careful about when and where the girls will get to roam.

I would appreciate any advice you can give me! It's nice to meet all of you.

Jennifer

Hi

 

[JennS]

First off Jennifer, welcome!

I only have 3 birds, and it sounds like you will have just a few, too. I'm in Auburn. It looks like you are near Seattle, so we have similar weather patterns. Good news... a few birds is very easy to care for. You probably will not get over-run with poop, unless you let it go for days and days without scooping. I have not gone through a very rainy season yet, so I know I will have to figure out if what I am doing continues to work for me through the fall/winter.

My birds live on bare earth. I sprinkle oyster shell and grit on the floor, plus I provide grit in a separate bowl. I scoop poop in the run every single day and throw it in my compost bin to keep the fly problem down. Since my birds are on bare earth, it is easy to scoop up the poop with a cat litter scoop. Those with large/numerous coop(s) and birds can't really do that unless they want to spend their day being a super pooper scooper. With only 3, it is very easy to do so. It takes me about 5 minutes, and I do it while I'm checking on food/water and visiting with the girls. Before fall, we will install a translucent plastic roof over the run to help keep the run dry for the birds (since chickens don't like to get wet).

Here's my coop (without roofing over the run). Right now, if it rains, the ground gets wet and the chickens just sit around beneath the coop.

Thank you! I'm on the north side. I only want a small number of chickens for pets, a few eggs, and teaching my son about animals. (We already have assorted other pets, these will be our only birds.) I plan to train him as a helper as he grows.

Bare earth would certainly be convenient and cheap! My whole pen will be roofed, and I plan on putting in a small brick patio around it so I'm not standing in mud.

That's a great coop!

Jennifer

 

[JennS]

If you are putting your coop in your front yard, double-check your set-back ordinances. In Auburn, the set-back for a coop in the front yard is much, much longer than it is for the back yard (I can't remember the numbers, but it is significant).

I'm addressing chicken math by building a 2nd coop and tucking it into cove in our back yard. We'll be getting 3 more (limit is 6) next spring.

We're on a .25 acre (10,000 sq. foot) lot, too. I'm trying to merge my landscaping over to mostly edibles... it's a big job.

Hmm, I think I will go by the permitting office and double check. I searched through our ordinances for livestock and poultry and all I came up with was the maximum coop size for poultry (much, much bigger than I intend) and a requirement for everything to be at least 25 feet from any property line. So, my coop will be right smack in front of my guest bedroom....

I am thinking of also building a light tractor out of pvc, so I can quarantine birds or keep them contained while I clean the coop. There is a not zero chance it could lead to a second flock someday. But I'm trying not to go there!

I wish I could do more edibles! But I can't give up my beautiful flowers. This year I added trellises in every imaginable spot and covered my patios with pots of veggies. If my son didn't need a place to play, the front yard would be full of raised beds. I just harvested my first ever crop of garlic, and it has me itching to plant a bigger crop next year.

Jennifer

 

[itsren]

I am thinking of also building a light tractor out of pvc, so I can quarantine birds or keep them contained while I clean the coop. There is a not zero chance it could lead to a second flock someday. But I'm trying not to go there!

We got chickens before building a coop. A PVC chicken tractor is where our birds spent their days for quite a long time (poor girls!). Now it is out in the front yard, in a bed that I'm prepping to convert to a veggie bed. They are very easy to build, not cheap though. I believe this one cost us about $60. I love it. It is very lightweight and fits through our gates easy. It is 2' wide x 8' long.



When I get finished with coop/run #2, I'll have 2 coops/runs and 1 chicken tractor on a .25 acre lot. I'm living up to that "crazy chicken lady" nickname.

 

[SadieSue]

Hey Sadie Sue!!! How are you? Any good productions coming up?


Hey CR!!! I see that your in trouble as usual! Good to know that some things never change!

I think the first show of the season at Tacoma Little Theater is going to be a hoot! I'm not in it but it's being directed by my friend Elliot who was my stage husband in California Suite so I got to read scenes with actors who were auditioning.


The show is SYLVIA about a man who finds a dog (played by an adorable young woman) and brings her home. He is crazy about the dog but his wife doesn't want her and it creates kind of a love triangle between the three of them.


Besides being a funny, sweet and somewhat naughty show, one of the evenings will be a fundraisers for Coalition Humane for affordable spay and neuter since Elliot is a board member and the audience is invited to bring their dogs to the show!


I'll be auditioning later in the season so don't know if I'll be onstage this year or not but have been asked to be the stage manager for LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS this spring. That should be an interesting experience and a fun show to see!

Do you know when the fund raiser show will be yet? I would love to bring my dog(s) to the show. Jet would absolutely love going to the theater. He loves to go just about anywhere. 

I believe the benefit for Coalition Humane will be Sunday, September 9th. I'll check on the details and let you know or you can check the Tacoma Little Theatre website.