What were your worst mistakes when you first started?

[TropicalBabies]

Getting chickens before the coop was built. Spent every spare minute for 6 weeks in the cold and rainy Pacific NW winter building a coop. And then after a few months wished it were bigger so spent another month in the hot blazing sun doubling the size.

lol!!!!

 

[Mosey2003]

Be a shame if something happened to that coop... You might be able to reuse some of the materials for the replacement so it would be almost like you still had the original for sentiments sake.

I've thought about hoping for a catastrophe My luck, the poor birds would be demolished with it. It wouldn't be a bad coop if absolutely everything were different about it

 

[Oakhammockchick]

That's similar to how my motion lights were. The chickens would set off the light at dusk, and continue to just hang out under the light until it got dark... then they were stuck on the ground because the coop was dark. So I think that's when they just flew to fence to get up off the ground, but sometimes I would hear them making a ruckus first, so I would guide them into the coop with a flashlight. It just made things run smoother after I moved the lights out of the chicken yard.

Oh, do you have a regular thermometer, or is it a hygrometer? It's more helpful to know the humidity level than the temperature. Chicken Wire... I know right?! It's good for holding IN chickens, but not necessarily keeping OUT predators. It'll probably forever be a source of confusion.


Yes, ventilation is just as important (if not more) in the winter as any other time. Trapping heat inside actually creates moisture. Just body heat and breathing makes a very moist environment which can bring on respiratory problems and even frostbite. No coop should ever be air tight. Using Sweet PDZ can alleviate ammonia and smelly issues. Lots of vents placed above the roosts will keep chickens out of drafts and let all that moisture escape. A dry coop makes for happy healthy chickens!

The unit I have shows my inside house temperature (where the base is) and also the temperature and humidity in the coop. On these cold nights, I can check on them in my jammies.

 

[TropicalBabies]

Hi peoples!

May I ask about when you began keeping chickens? What were the worst mistakes (or any mistakes worth noting, for that matter) you made? What you either wouldn't do again, wouldn't do in THAT way, or so on? Or even "I don't consider it a MISTAKE, per se - but I'd do this in a different way now that I'm more experienced."
Thanks much!

Great thread... but where to start?!!! Soooo many ...
Well first is flock integration. I hate it. All went well healthwise but original just cant be nice to the newbies. I wish I had over purchased to begin with so everyone got along MUCH better. My 3 big biddies are the cause of lots of chicken drama, drama, drama!!! I had to build another coop for my latest addons (3-4mo) and my second intros (2-6mo) cower in the back of original coop while the 3 biddies enjoy 12' of roost and 3x8x7 coop plus nesting box.
I wish my 2 stack nesting box was lower. I fixed it at 24" to have plenty room below, but would like to see the biddies have an easier time of hopping in. They wont use the ramp. Plus that makes roosts even higher.

Thinking any plant matter could survive a domestic flock. Everything is fenced and gated but if anyone (thank you son) leaves the gate open it takes about 2 minutes to destroy what has taken months to grow. I no longer get the pleasure of my lovely garden.
Picking up meds, electrolytes, antibiotics first. Lost two of these fragile beauties by not having meds on hand.
Thinking they would be easy or I would get a handle on it, if I just did.......

 

[Sparcleus]

Mistakes

Believing I could always heal the sick.
Believing I could keep them safe.
Using an incubator and broody coop.
Trying to integrate chicks instead of letting the mother do it.
Feeding layer pellets to a mixed sex and age flock.
Not understanding more about why they behave the way they do.
Not learning quickly enough that how you keep chickens influences their behavior.
Thinking that the advice given on forums was always from experience.
Using cheap plywood for coop builds rather than getting Marine ply.
Leaving food in a coop.
Not carrying my cutthroat razor when investigating a general alarm call.

Probably lots more and I’m still making mistakes.

I am still a fairly new chicken keeper (1 1/2 years) and I have a mixed flock. Are the layer pellets only for a specific age range? I have seven hens, 6 months to 1.5 years, so not really giving any more chick feed. We also supplement with a cracked corn mix.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I am still a fairly new chicken keeper (1 1/2 years) and I have a mixed flock. Are the layer pellets only for a specific age range? I have seven hens, 6 months to 1.5 years, so not really giving any more chick feed. We also supplement with a cracked corn mix.

Layer is meant for pullets/hens that are already laying or very close to starting. So in your case if you prefer layer feed, I'd go ahead and use it.

I'm on grower/all-flock/finisher for everyone now as it usually has slightly higher protein levels, and I have half the flock not yet laying and the other half molting, so they don't need extra calcium.

 

[LoveMyChickenBabies]

I would buy disease medications right off the bat. Chickens can be so fragile sometimes....

 

[BReeder!]

Worst mistakes... I'm just getting into the first winter with chickens. We purchased 5 chicks in the Spring and 2 more in the summer. Worst mistake initially was not buying them all at once. I have a limit of 8 hens by local ordinance. I wish I bought 8 chicks right out the gate. Now I have a flock of 2 and a flock of 5 that are forced to coexist in 1 coop and run. It took some effort just to introduce the 2 younger ones to the rest, over a few weeks they two younger hens were in a dog kennel with a box for a coop - the whole kennel was placed in the run. Then we would let them out under supervision and then back in the kennel protected from the older hens when we were not present. And then they eventually established a pecking order and were able to go into the coop and run with the other hens permanently - which ended up being a process to introduce them to the coop and wean them from the kennel and box that they called home.

The second mistake I made was getting lazy with the coop construction. I delayed installing insulation, sealing the roof from water that would leak in during rain, and adding a pop door - it wasn't until late November that I got these actions done. It wasn't too cold for the chickens yet, but it sure was too cold for me.

 

[Petra Pancake]

My worst mistakes:
- Self built far too low ramshackle coop that was impossible to get into, impossible to clean properly and even collecting eggs gave me lumbago.

- It wasn't rain proof, either, as I found out later

- Not taking into account that chickens are jail break artists - had lots of escapes from my run. Just because you can't see the gap in the fence, doesn't mean that the chickens can't.

- Not taking into account that chickens can and do fly 2 meters high (see jail break artists)

- Not taking into account that chicken food attracts rats an that rats kill baby chicks

 

[Chica'sChickens]

My son has autism and other health problems. He has a Pomeranian but wanted a new pet! We went to TSC and found $.25 chicks....buy 3 get 1 free! 8 chicks later...3 are cockerel . He picked them all and home we go... adorable peeps and lovely names...prefab coop...out to the yard ... bye bye greedy roos...make a huge pen...eggs daily since July 23rd... WINTER...I hate this cold, rainy, muddy and ... COLD! Next Spring I'm building a coop for my 5 ladies that I can hang out in with them. My son tells the girls every night at "bed time" when we lock up that he loves them and good night. So... Moral to my 9 months saga... make the best of what you have. If the girls are laying, they are happy. I love my lil farm life and watching my son be happy is the BEST thing ever. Mistakes are made but all are happy.