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

[ChickenCanoe]

If they want to get over the fence they will. My Aunt keeps her one EE Rooster and a couple of 5+yr old Red Sex Links in the kennel with the goat. The kennel is 12X12 and 8ft high chain link fence. They all sit on top of it all the time. As for the orpington not being able to make it that high, you'd be surprised how well those very heavy chickens can get themselves off the ground when the mood strikes them. I would definitely look into a covered run for where they are going to spend their unsupervised time. Just for their own safety.

X2. I've had over 30 different breeds and once they know how tomatoes, strawberries and lettuce seedlings taste or how much fun it is to dig up all the newly planted asparagus roots they fly over. When even Jersey Giants discover the garden, once they finish their morning scratch, it's over the fence they go.

I now raise a breed that can fly vertically at least 8 feet when startled and pressed, but otherwise they are content to stay inside a 2' fence. Short fences are SOO much cheaper.

 

[PrimroseMom1]

Things I wish I had known beforehand....

1)  That rats can chew through coop floors to get at feed.  My next coop will have a sheet of tin or something nailed to the bottom

2)  That caponizing is neither fun nor easy (unlike what the books and brochures say);  Written instructions lose quite a bit into 3-D surgical translation

3)   Meat birds make a tremendous amount of poop, more so than other chickens.   Food in = poop out and they are non-stop eating machines

4)   Coop doors must be fastened every night, no ands ifs or buts.  Just one slip and lots of work down the drain.

5)   One day of  hot weather can decimate a flock of meat birds, so plan grow times accordingly.

6)   There's nothing more fun that watching a flock of chickens with one tomato worm or tomato....  Scrimmage!

7)   If you may have to eat it, don't name it. 

8)   If you're going to eat the chickens, get lots of the same breed and color.  A mass of birds is less personal.

You just summed up 2 years of learn as you go. Lol. Thanks.

 

[chick2flick]

....how much extra laundry I'd be doing because I'd go to collect any eggs and put them in my pockets while finishing up other chores. Next thing I knew I'd have scrambled pockets. eeewwww

 

[dwgov]

I had wish I'd known that certain things (in my case colors) drive chickens crazy! I first found out when I tried to put a Halloween pumpkin in my run. They went absolutely crazy. I couldn't figure out why. They had never ever acted like that before. I of course removed it, but my flock wouldn't come near me for 2 days... Then the next week I wore a pair of red sweat pants into the run. It was worse than the pumpkin episode. They flew around banging into the wire fencing doing anything to get out. Then it hit me... My flock does not like certain colors. For me it's red or orange. It was a crazy lesson and I've learned that certain flocks hate certain things. Mine are colors. Now I'm careful what I wear around my flock, haha.

 

[sharol]

....how much extra laundry I'd be doing because I'd go to collect any eggs and put them in my pockets while finishing up other chores. Next thing I knew I'd have scrambled pockets. eeewwww

Yeah, I've had some of those "pocket omelettes" too.

 

[Chicks Galore3]

I wish I'd have known chickens do not need a heat lamp! Almost lost a couple chickens last winter because of a power outage. They were used to warmth then BAM no heat. This winter, my chickens are doing way better without a heat lamp, and mind you it felt like -9 last night.

 

[hosspak]

I wish I'd have known chickens do not need a heat lamp! Almost lost a couple chickens last winter because of a power outage. They were used to warmth then BAM no heat. This winter, my chickens are doing way better without a heat lamp, and mind you it felt like -9 last night.

When in doubt, go out on a cold night and hold a chicken. Then slide your finger tips into their feathers... If it's warm, they're ok.... It should be warm..

 

[PrimroseMom1]

I wish I'd have known chickens do not need a heat lamp! Almost lost a couple chickens last winter because of a power outage. They were used to warmth then BAM no heat. This winter, my chickens are doing way better without a heat lamp, and mind you it felt like -9 last night. 

One of the very experienced chicken farmers I get advice from said the same thing. I was using a lamp and he said if something happened to my heat source some would die. Their coops are in a shelter with a big tarp tied down on 3 sides for the wind and I put a blanket on the sides if it's really cold but leave the entire front open for ventilation and mine have done fine. The fronts of their coops are sheltered from the wind. I do the rabbits the same way but add a heavy layer of hay in their little houses bec the bottom is hardware cloth. I think the main thing is to be sure they are not in the wind.

 

[RedneckGurl]

I had wish I'd known that certain things (in my case colors) drive chickens crazy! I first found out when I tried to put a Halloween pumpkin in my run. They went absolutely crazy. I couldn't figure out why. They had never ever acted like that before. I of course removed it, but my flock wouldn't come near me for 2 days... Then the next week I wore a pair of red sweat pants into the run. It was worse than the pumpkin episode. They flew around banging into the wire fencing doing anything to get out. Then it hit me... My flock does not like certain colors. For me it's red or orange. It was a crazy lesson and I've learned that certain flocks hate certain things. Mine are colors. Now I'm careful what I wear around my flock, haha.

Now, see, mine do not have this reaction to red...in fact, quite the opposite. They are attracted to red. I found this out when I wore a pair of red jeans into the run one day and they mobbed me, some even pecking at the cuffs of my pants. After reading this site for a while, I knew better than to EVER go into the run wearing open toed shoes and painted toe nails, no matter what the color, but most especially red. So far, the only thing I've found that my chickens are afraid of is dogs. A dog running around the perimeter of the run will send them all scurrying under the coop. They don't even run from the lawn mower. They run TO the fence and all line up in hopes of getting something tasty thrown into the run from the grass chute. Whoever said chickens were dumb had never owned them, that's for sure.

 

[Wednesday]

I never thought the highlight of my morning would be to have a 7 week old chick climb my pajamas to be held and petted or that I would lie awake at nights trying to figure out if I would be brave enough to process the roosters when the time comes.