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Free range is great in theory but not practical for most of us. Plus it brings the risk of loss due to predators, which is a tough trade-off. We opted for building the biggest run we could (15’ x 30’) and giving the girls a lot of places to roost or hide. I think crowding is key. The space per...

I have a couple of observations for you. Your coop and run are beautiful! Lots of room and lovely. But there aren’t many places for girls lower in the pecking order to get away from bullies. You might try creating elevations and obstacles - think jungle gyms and playsets for chickens. Enough to...

Thanks to all of you! I will find time this weekend to let them mingle under supervision and see how it goes. All fingers and toes crossed . .

They’ve been in a large dog crate, in the run where everyone can see each other. I’ve just added an enclosure to the front of the kennel so they have an enclosed patio now. I’ll try letting them out more next week.

Howdy all. One of my 21 hens went broody months ago, so I got her some babies two weeks ago. She’s at a point now where she wants to come out of the dog kennel she’s been brooding in, and wants her babies with her. I’m not sure they’re big enough to be safe from the other hens. When is it ok to...

This is very interesting. Thanks for the link especially. I’m going to look at that in my case too, just to be safe.

They’ve had no trouble at all. I also run mine off an extension cord from the house. The waterer is a Little Giant which is my favorite - I have two so I can rotate them out. The lid will freeze to the base if it’s cold enough so swapping makes life easier. But it’s not necessary - just beware...

I’ll take another look but nothing like that so far . . .

Well, well . . . the roosts ARE spaced 14” center to center, horizontally. This weekend I’ll spread them further and cross my fingers till the next molt. As for poor feathering, they all looked great a couple of months ago (except for Lacy, who so far has never molted). Thanks for the input...

I suspect if it was really nasty weather outside they would go in with less drama? But it sounds like you have it sorted. Leave that other roost out for a few weeks 24/7 and it won’t take them long to get into the new habit. Then you may be able to put the other roost back without having to...

My best guess is someone is sitting on a roost at dusk, picking at whoever is in front of her that evening? My concern is they might have trouble negotiating ghe roost levels if the bars are further apart, but maybe I’m overthinking that . . ?

And here’s the run where they have lots of room plus shade/play structures.

The last one is poor Lacy. She gets the worst of it from whoever does this. Here are some of the other victims . .

The coop is 8’X8’. I didn’t measure the roost bars but I think they’re about 14” apart. Here are some photos . . .

I’m not clear from your description - are they in an enclosed run, or it it just the coop in your yard so they have total access? If they’re in an enclosed run, I would try some tough love (as long as they’re safe from predators overnight). Instead of putting them to bed, leave them to their own...

My new flock is just going on two years old. There are 21 hens (EE’s, olive eggers, delawares, silver laced wyandottes and blue barnevelders) in a run that measures 15’x35’, and a coop that is 8x8. Starting early last year many were showing signs of picking on their backs above their tails. By...

Any results from your experiment?

Get a few golf balls and put them in the nest boxes. When the urge to lay comes on the girls will look for somewhere private and quiet. Seeing a golf ball will let them know someone else has already decided this is a good, safe place to put an egg. They’ll figure it out. And try to eliminate or...

Me too! Thanks for all the help. And I’ll look into sesame seeds too - treats are always welcome 🙂