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Pay no attention to that. I had a black copper maran that was killed by a hawk. Believe me, hawks can tell the diffrence.

With 11 birds in a gated HOA neighborhood, I have to keep a low profile to avoid complaints. No roosters is easy, a privacy fence is indispensable and woods in the rear help, but the odor control takes more . I clean the roost and litter areas of the house twice daily with spritzered bleach...

Keeping the house dry and Ventilated are essential. Those are met by my house design. Twice daily I clean the litter bin under the roost and removed material goes to a leaf/litter compost pile. I then spritz the bin and soiled areas with bleach, toss in a small amount of fragrant cat litter and...

Hard to say since birds of all breeds have unique personalities. My most friendly are the BRs, RIR (I know hard to believe), CWs, Welsumer, & BO. Least-friendly are the SLW, australorp, and BLRW. My Most enjoyable chicken was a light brahma standard, who was friendly but not best layer. I have...

Mine also are pets so I bury them side by side at least 2 feet deep in the chicken yard where they spent most of their time. Since I have a lot of trees and roots I bought an electric auger which is perfect for drilling the holes and use a set of snips for roots. Always wrap mine in a paper bag...

Good, very obvious suggestions. Some others - Built my own coop from wood 8 yeas ago and just re-roofed it with shingles at a higher cost than if I had done that in the first place. 1. A good, leak-proof roof is a must as roofs will leak over time 2. Agree with modular components to make...

I have 10 older birds of which 7 compete for my attention. It takes a lot of spending time with them, gaining their trust, handling them (not a lot, and on their terms) and hand-feeding. Mine love the hand feeding. Most of want to be individually taken from the roost in the morning ( to be...

I have a 5x8 house occupied by 10 chickens who use it only to roost & lay. Twice daily I clean the litter bin and spray the bin and bin area with bleach. In the south and with excess ventilation there is no lingering bleach odor. Neighbors are close but in 8 years have never complained. Once or...

Roosters will discourage squatting . Living in the city I don' t have a rooster, I've read familiar people may be considered a "de facto" rooster, so guess I fill that role, but its also a good time to pick them up for a quick health check and show them attention. Some like the attention...

Do you handle them much ?I handle & talk to mine daily and I get 2 or 3 at a time squatting. In some cases older birds tend to squat less. On the comb color & laying, it is possible not to have a red comb & lay , again in older birds. My australorp just came off a broody period & immediately...

Squatting, red healthy combs, and a lot of vocalization are usually enough. I know my birds well enough I can also tell by the shape, size & color of the eggs. Another way is" roost seniority". Top layers will quickly challenge older birds for the higher roost point. Hard to tell this way when...

I also use 2x4 narrow side up, sanded smooth. I have a wide section I added for a bird with a foot problem and there seems to be no real preference. My roosts are 3 levels high, all above nest boxes, diagonal to a 5-foot wall. The only strong preference is for the roost nearest the house...

Like several posts I have a 5ftx8ft walk-in house (mostly for ease of cleaning) that I line 3 walls with plastic, & the front with plastic that can opened & closed each day since I clean twice a day (due to living in the city). Small air vents are left open for fresh air. I like to line the...

Believe me Red Tails will attack chickens - I've lost two and had another badly injured before I smartened up & spider-webbed my pen (about 900 sq ft) with fish line. I actually saw all 3 events - they sneak in to the trees and the birds never see what hit them. A gory mess to clean up and sad...

Sounds if you have about the same space as I do, so my suggestions: 1. Don't worry about the start number - you could go with whatever number you are comfortable with at 10 or under. What I ran into was I could not find the breeds I wanted at once so I added 2 at a time. 2.. Adding one at a time...

I would never do it - salmonella and other bacteria are not for people. My 9 birds get close enough by letting themselves out of a large run area and coming onto the porch to lay in pet carriers we have for cats. Sort of like delivering the eggs to us I suppose. They know our voices, the sounds...

Likely a possum. I had one pulling the vent feathers from one of my birds on the roost, but heard her carrying on & went out & dispatched the problem. It was a baby possum who got through 2x4-inch hog wire (believe me it happened) . The bird was saved & is now in her retirement years. On the...

I'm pretty sure they remember short-term. Long-term I don't know when it comes to people. When its danger, or past unpleasant experiences they do remember. My birds know my voice , my truck and when I'm displeased with something they did. On cold days I wrap their house in plastic and do all of...