who gets chickens for christmas lol

Pics
Date sort Score sort
DobieLover said:
Hello Sarah, and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.
That was quite the introduction to poultry you had as a child.
I would work hard towards getting your girls outside ASAP. If you want to know their breeds feel free to post pictures here and we'll give you our opinions.
Happy New Year and congratulations on your new flock.
Click to expand...
i have them outside in the garage as of right now and i am working on getting them a coop built but with the lovely bitter winter weather here in iowa its been a bit too cold to be outside so i have them in the garage with heat lamp and a small garage heater to keep it comfortable to be out there without them or me getting frostbite
 
AntiqueB said:
Welcome! There's a whole forum devoted to coops:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/coop-run-design-construction-maintenance.9/

In the meantime, if you have any kind of moveable fencing, or a fenced backyard, your chickens would probably love to get out of the garage for a bit and scratch around. Make sure they have some sort of chicken feed, with grit and maybe some oyster shell on the side.

A dog's instinct is to chase prey, and a chicken's instinct is to run. Expect your dogs to more want to kill the chickens before they are trained to protect them. And some dogs never quite get that training.
Click to expand...
Yes i have feed 2 55lb bags and grit with oyster shell and mealworms for treats and as far as my dogs i plan on putting each one on there leashes and introducing them one at a time to the flock but both of my girls are goin to have some adjusting to do and they both wear training shock collars and know that when mom hits that vibrate worning button i mean business and if they dont do as told they will get the NAUGHTY button shock and them they know that they are in deep shit when that happens because with there breed being pitbulls they have to know that i am the boss and thats is why there breed gets they get the negative attention and the majority of soiciety assume they are a viscious breed but if trained correctly they are a very lovely and very needy breed
 
shesthefonz0 said:
i have them outside in the garage as of right now and i am working on getting them a coop built but with the lovely bitter winter weather here in iowa its been a bit too cold to be outside so i have them in the garage with heat lamp and a small garage heater to keep it comfortable to be out there without them or me getting frostbite
Click to expand...
i will get some pictures taken of them here later on this morning when i got out to open up the garage and take fresh water and feed out for them as far as them goin outside today i dont know that it is a good idea to turn them out today its like negitive 2 degrees outside and starting to snow and the wind chill is like sub zero bitter cold it takes a persons breath away just opening the door to let dogs in or out and even the dogs go out and turn right back around and give me a look like fu mom we are not goin out there
 
shesthefonz0 said:
i have them outside in the garage as of right now and i am working on getting them a coop built but with the lovely bitter winter weather here in iowa its been a bit too cold to be outside so i have them in the garage with heat lamp and a small garage heater to keep it comfortable to be out there without them or me getting frostbite
Click to expand...
Being adult hens they should not need supplemental heat. Just protecting them from the winter winds with copious amounts of ventilation is all they need. If you keep them on heat, you're doing them a disservice. If the garage has ample ventilation I would remove at least one heat source and turn the temperature down gradually until the garage is no longer heated.
You need to remember that they are birds and not mammals. They are very well equipped to deal with the cold weather by fluffing up their guard feathers and trapping their body heat. Look around at all the tiny birds that survive winter without benefit of a coop to roost in that blocks the wind from them. And they don't always find something to eat but your chickens should always go to roost with a full crop.
 
Good morning, Sarah, and welcome to BYC. It was sweet of your friend to gift you the hens but a live animal is not a gift I'd recommend. I myself would find it very stressful. I commend you for doing your best to make them comfortable.
Fyi, the hens are stressed so they may not lay any eggs for a few weeks. Just feed them a good quality feed, and make sure they have oyster shell and grit available, and you will begin to get eggs soon.
I would not try to introduce the dogs. That will make them more stressed. They can meet the dogs once they are in a protected run. Good luck!
 
IMG_0574.jpeg
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom