Windy hill chickens - first flock(s) of my own

[kattabelly]

A friend of mine adds a little sirup to the water on the coldest nights. It brings down the freezing point a few degrees C.

Do you mean sugar syrup?

 

[BDutch]

Yes

Do you mean sugar syrup?

Yes, with sugar. I think she uses apple syrup to make a lemonade.

 

[BDutch]

Yes

Do you mean sugar syrup?

Yes, with sugar. I think she uses apple syrup. What else did you have in mind.

I advise you to this thread. Snow seems a bad alternative for water.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...-going-to-do-about-it-”-said-my-hens.1680721/

 

[kattabelly]

Yes

Yes, with sugar. I think she uses apple syrup. What else did you have in mind.

I guessed sugar, think the spelling you used just threw me off for a minute so I wasn't completely sure.

I advise you to this thread. Snow seems a bad alternative for water.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/“what-the-eff-is-this-white-stuff-on-the-ground-and-what-are-you-going-to-do-about-it-”-said-my-hens.1680721/

They already choose to eat snow when there's water available and it's not like I can stop them. I'm not planning on snow ever being their main source of drinking water, but it should keep them from getting too thirsty if we get a sudden cold snap and all their waterers and other water sources are frozen and they have to wait a few hours for me to bring warm water up.

 

[kattabelly]

There's bits of chick crumb in the soil they're dust bathing in, so every time the poor chicks try to have a dust bath they get brutally pecked by their mum trying to eat all the bits of food off them

They went out on the field yesterday, and today I let them loose with all the others for a little while.

 

[kattabelly]

Today we learnt about climbing and flying and digging holes

Conversation on another thread just made me do some maths out of interest. The two small runs here (which are pretty much always open) add up to just over 207 square foot. According to the numbers commonly quoted on here that's enough for up to 20 chickens with the minimum space they should have, or 10 to go with the more generous figure. I have around 20 chickens and there's absolutely no way I could keep them all locked in there all the time. Just the Shetlands, Rocks and Hyline adds up to ten and at best they might tolerate being that confined, if I added lots more vertical clutter and perches and other enrichment. I'm not sure how big the whole chicken plot is but say 1500 sq ft as a conservative estimate - it's definitely not less, based on the measurements I do have - that's 75 sq ft per bird, not counting whichever small strip of the back field they currently have unlimited access to (plus supervised trips to other areas and the odd guerilla mission to raid a neighbour's brassicas). I'm already having to do a lot of careful planning about how to make that much space work for them (what to plant and how to protect it, rotational grazing) and where to find more space if I want to add more birds in future or have separate groups. 100 sq ft per bird feels like it would be a better minimum to aim for.

 

[kattabelly]

She didn't want me photographing the babies today

They were too busy running and flying around anyway. Apparently I'm not completely useless though because the nest I built tonight, after cleaning out the cage they sleep in, was accepted without any alterations needing to be made. Dry bracken seems to be a winner.

They're both doing well but the black one is still slightly smaller and quicker to feel the cold, so it's turned into a thing that I'll scoop him up and stick him under my chin for a minute when he starts trying to get under mum but she's not interested in stopping yet. He's totally fine with it and shuts up straight away, and she doesn't seem bothered either.

Not as much rain as expected today and it was good to see them all out on the back field when I got there this afternoon, instead of waiting at the gate for their tea.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

…Not as much rain as expected today and it was good to see them all out on the back field when I got there this afternoon, instead of waiting at the gate for their tea.

I realize “tea” is used to mean their afternoon snack or maybe early supper, but I’m still charmed at the notion of chickens in a circle, sipping cups of tea

 

[kattabelly]

I realize “tea” is used to mean their afternoon snack or maybe early supper, but I’m still charmed at the notion of chickens in a circle, sipping cups of tea

Some of the wild water they drink is more like compost tea...

Afternoon snack and early supper are basically the same thing this time of year. Sunset today was at 15:19 (it actually disappears behind the hill a while before that), although they don't go to roost until almost an hour later.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Some of the wild water they drink is more like compost tea...

Afternoon snack and early supper are basically the same thing this time of year. Sunset today was at 15:19 (it actually disappears behind the hill a while before that), although they don't go to roost until almost an hour later.

I remember reading in one of Miss Manners’ books that afternoon tea left one starving, while high tea was greeted with cries of “high time we get to eat” and was much more substantial.

Miss Manners was a US etiquette expert whose father was in the diplomatic corps (back when we had such things, before the yahoos took over). She knew the ins and outs of old-school etiquette and adapted it for modern times with a delightful dose of snark. (Her family now carries on the advice columns, etc., but isn’t nearly as much fun to read.)