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Does anyone live in areas where there are poisonous snakes, scorpions, tarantulas, spiders, etc and if so, do your ladies eat them?

Just opened my plastic shoe box which houses my small bunch of mealworms, only to find lots and LOTS of beetles. I'm so thrilled I didn't kill 'em all !!! So fun to see the different stages - I wondered if I would have enough beetles for breeding, as my starter mealworms were from a bait store...

I acquired an old brooder and I'd like to try and restore it. The label says The National Ideal Company out of Toledo, which apparently is no longer in business. Does anyone out there have suggestions about this? The brooder is quite large, probably 40+" square. Wondering if I could use the...

I am considering trying meat birds this year and am interested in comments about how this might be different. I currently have 8 ladies and hopefully will sell 4 of them soon. Some of the ladies are starting to act like they'd like to commence to begin to think about possibly being broody -...

Here are pics of 2 ladies whose feathers have changed, and I'm wondering if anyone knows if this is "normal". It's the feathers at the base of the tail, and on the black one also underneath at the top of the legs. I have some whose feathers don't lay flat like they used to, but these 2 have...

I finally cleaned my pantry........ I have some grits left over from quite a few years ago, also some couscous of the same vintage. Do you advise either just soaking in warm water to soften, cook completely (no seasonings), or not offer this at all? there are no signs of spoilage, it's just...

I see this posted on the treat list, thank you very much to the person who created the list. Are the seeds shelled? I have a BUNCH of it and would sprinkle it around for the ladies, it's in the shell. Yes? No?

Supposedly a dual-purpose breed and good for cold climates. I cannot find anything online about them but a colleague has had them in the past. I haven't checked hatcheries yet.

I found these streaks on an egg yesterday and wondered if it might be blood. I was concerned because this egg was laid by my last lady to begin laying and I heard her caterwauling on the nest like she was being torn limb from limb and wondered if she was struggling to lay (eggbound?). She...

Hi All, Getting ready for winter - we've already had a couple of hard freezes !! I add ACV (apple cider vinegar) to the water for my girls and they seem to like it. I would also like to add electrolytes as a support for winter stress once it gets seriously cold. Is it advisable to combine...

Oh yes, it's true - Tuesday, the one day I don't check in the morning - I come home from my volunteer day and, oh, what the heck, I'll look in the nesting boxes, just for fun - and here's what I found Got another one yesterday. We'll put a trail camera up so we can determine which proud lady...

I think the only thing we have left is some touch-up painting (my job), but here's the coop !!! DH actually said it was sort of fun building this - but he only said it once......... The window slides up to let in breeze. You'll see vents on every wall except the north one where the shed is...

What great tips on this forum! I have a little different question, though. I let my chickens out pretty much first thing in the morning (like 7 or 8 AM or when it's light, whichever is later) and if they're not standing at the door waiting to go out they're still on the roosts, not quite awake...

Thanks to all who've written their experiences with ramp training. My chicken yard is pretty big and I have an elevated coop. Yesterday was their first day out. They had great fun outside and stayed in the shade, either under the coop or moved to the shady side, as it was near 90 and high...

OK folks, I've about decided that more pure-bred chickens are in my future, rather than the Heinz 57 I've got now. But in the meantime: My 7-wk old chickens are nearing the end of their grower feed. One poster here suggested feeding them one bag of starter, then when that's about empty...

The coop is now done enough to move the 7-wk old chickens to their permanent home. Per this groups' suggestions I separated the 4 cockerels from the pullets about a week ago. I will put the boys in a separate run next to the girls, hopefully this week. I can't believe how quickly they've all...

Hi Folks, I've determined that we have 3, maybe 4 cockerels in our flock of 12 chicks. We live in the country so when the crowing starts we will be the only ones affected, but they're already fighting at 6 weeks old. They're fighting with each other, chasing the hens (even the little one -...

Hi All, At what age can you or should you introduce things like grit, diatomaceous earth, snacks like apple cores, mealworms, etc? Thanks in advance !

OK, folks, I've had my 12 chicks for, oh, 3 hours now. They're 3 wks old, so they all have some feathers - maybe you'd call that the teenage period??? Necks are still downy but the rest of the body is trying to feather out. They're combo of Barred Rock, White Leghorn, Giant White, and some...

Does anyone raise worms (earthworms, not mealworms) to feed their chickens? I'm trying to think of chicken things to do whilst my dear husband is working on the coop. I'm thinking dual purpose here, red wigglers (generic term) for vermicomposting, plus extra feed for the chickens when I have...