Thanks for post and all the replies. Our junior rooster (we are fostering 14 hens and4 roosters for a family member) was the target of attacks. All this information was super helpful.
Thanks! The boxes we “inherited” were a mess, as they had carpet on base. Yuck. We clean them out, got rid of the disgusting carpet, and are using woven, fake straw mats. They work well, but it also helped that we improved their feed, and put a hinged cover on the rollout tray. Everyone...
Hi, the three worked well. The bedding that the other owner seemed to be the problem. We switched out to some woven nesting pads, and put a hinged cover on the roll out tray. Things seem better!
Beautiful rooster! Are you not allowed to keep roosters in your neighborhood? My daughter ran into that in Decatur. You might Google rooster refugees in your area? In my daughter’s case, I think they found a nearby farmer at the local farmers markets. In the meantime, you have probably already...
Wise ones, How many nesting boxes do we need for our 15 hens (lavender and buff Orpingtons and Araucanas) which came to us full grown (fostering indefinitely). We are using our old hen house, 8x10 tuff shed, and built a 10x20 run for the girls and the roosters. There is one large nesting box...
Hi, she’s eating and drinking, it’s hard to say whether it’s normal, because previously all four of them eight to the same feeder. But I do see her eating and drinking. She’s about a year and a half old, her walking problem, dated everything, and I think was the reason she was getting picked on...
Thanks. I will try both. We just have a small number, only four right now. They are all 1.5 years old. Only one is laying but we found some higher protein feed and are hoping for more. Our days are short right now, so the lack of eggs was not a huge surprise from what I understand.
Forgot to mention, there’s nothing unusual about her poops, and she fluffs her feathers up in the evening for warmth. I don’t think she’s lost any weight, although looking at the pictures, I think maybe she has.
Wondering if there’s anything I can do for this poor girl. She was being targeted by the other hens, pretty badly hen pecked. I tried isolating my alpha hen, but then the other hens just went after her, so I isolated her in my large dog kennel inside our chicken run in early December. Now that...
Question, is it safe and effective to add a little molasses to the water to keep in from freezing? We’re in SW Colorado at 7000 feet with six chickens, it can get very cold at night.
So, my handsome Rooster crowed “for real” for the first time yesterday. I’ve learned a lot about the terrible doom these little guys face at birth and then later in life. I never intended to feel strongly about poultry, of either sex (I’m a lifetime dog lover) but, dang. Since we have a...