What do you wish you had known before you got your chickens

[DaddyBird]

I wish I had known about the warning signs of Cocci. By the time we realized we had a problem we had lost one, but were able to save the other 5 with help from BYC and a quick daybreak run to the Co-op.

 

[jonalisa]

Diatomaceous earth - a powder ground from the exoskeletons of tiny creatures called diatoms. There's food grade (safe) and pool grade(unsafe). The pool grade is used in swimming pool filters and is the more finely ground of the two (although you can't really tell just by looking at it). The pool grade is dangerous because the particles are so small they can lodge and collect in your lungs very easily and cause lung disease. It should be handled carefully and never dumped on the ground or used on animals.. The food grade is safe to use in the garden, on and around the chickens, even on other pets. It works because the tiny pieces are very sharp and cut up the small insects, mites, ticks, fleas etc.

Just an FYI when using DE near the garden: I do believe it kills honeybees. (This is what I have read.) If it's on flowers they visit, it can be collected along with pollen and carried into the hive where it can kill an entire hive in days.

 

[nikkers390]

I learned that day old chicks grow incredibly fast. Do not put off building a coop. Having 12 8 week old chicks living in a large cage on your screened porch is NOT a pleasant experience.

I also learned that ducks, geese and chickens do not always play nice. Better to keep them separate, for more than one reason.
I did have a nice big pen built, but now am building a bigger stronger one for chickens only.
I learned that a poorly built coop is worse than no coop at all.
I learned that adding new chick to an established flock is NOT a good idea.
As much as I try not to get emotionally attached, I find that I do have favorites.

 

[rmurrayslcut]

I would get a different coop. I love mine, but my next one will have:
-room enough to stand in, and an entry way that I can walk through.
-high roosts, well above the nesting boxes.
-...and it would be bigger...I started with eight, which sounds like a lot. I want more and understand how people end up with 30+ flocks.

 

[Richleeblessed]

He attacked a German shepherd that was trying to run me down.... he was a great bird.... My dogs played with him when he was in the house.... they would chase him from one end of the house to the other and then he would chase them back to the other end. My neighbors thought that the dogs were going to hurt the chicken, but laughed when he chased them through the house... he was a great friend.

 

[pastryman]

How to make gin and tonic from manure and dirty water.

 

[Faith67]

We lost our first yesterday. Gladys got trapped under a gate that we'd made but thought we could finish later. It fell on her and crushed her. I feel like a monster!

I know losing a chicken is heartbreaking exspcially if you name them and they become pets like I did it is so sad I lost five to a fox including my favorite. many people think you cant love a chicken until they get some.

 

[aart]

Just an FYI when using DE near the garden: I do believe it kills honeybees. (This is what I have read.) If it's on flowers they visit, it can be collected along with pollen and carried into the hive where it can kill an entire hive in days.

Ditto! DE kills a lot of bugs that are beneficial, not just the pests that bother chickens. Copper Sulfate* and hard wood ash are better 'natural' pest deterrents than DE.

*Organic copper sulfate, usually used to spray on fruit trees or tomato vines etc.. for fungus diseases.
It is a completely harmless substance.
Copper sulfate is blue crystals. In very, very old farming books it is what they called 'blue stone'.
But you can buy it called 'acified copper sulfate' from Jeffers, Murray McMurray and other folks that deal in poultry products.

 

[Allieharmon]

1. Most of the time you will have to be your own vet. Research before you have problems.
2. Buy birds of the same size. If you put a three lb. bird in with a 6 or an 8 pounder, the little one will get picked on.
3. If you have more than 10 birds, have a water hook-up near the coop. You don't want to be hauling waterers across the yard.
4. Have a backup chicken sitter. Mine just went off to college and now I have to train someone new. I'm so sad he left. :-(
5. Mother Nature is cruel an you will cry when you lose a bird, but the good and fun things far outweigh the bad.
6. A funny and helpful tip: buy some White-Faced Black Spanish. They are crazy fun. Here is one of mine named Bologna.

 

[Calomel]

To echo a lot of people on here, I would have redesigned my coop to be more easily accessible. The henhouse floor is much too high off the ground to easily clean. I manage, but it could be better. I also would have made the whole thing bigger. Much bigger.