Daily routine with your flock

[Kaesi2020]

I set my automatic chicken door to open from the coop into the run between 7:30 am to 8:30 am depending on the time of year. I keep dry chicken feed in a 5 gallon covered bucket with PVC pipe openings and water in a covered 5 gallon covered bucket with horizontal nipples (also one in the coop) - see photos, so the chickens can eat and drink when they want to. About 9-10 am I bring out a bowl of fermented food and greens and maybe some cut up fruit or veggies. In the warm weather I bring them a large bowl of ice cold water with a cool whip sized container frozen ice cube - I often freeze cut up grapes, peas, veggie peels, or berries in the water. I collect eggs inside the coop when I drop off the food.

The chickens spend most of the day in the run roosting on logs and a roost made from a long board and carpenter horses or dust bathing in a galvanized tub. A couple of times a week I hang a cabbage, cucumber or large dog treat ball stuffed with greens, fresh herbs and vegetable peels in the run. I let the chickens free range in the late afternoon/early evening until dusk. I collect eggs from the coop when I let the chickens out to free range. My back and side yards are surrounded by woods so free ranging is always supervised. There are fox and coyotes that live in the woods. I have raccoons, opossums, weasels, hawks and owls in my location. At dusk the chickens wander back to the run and enter the coop.

I use pine shavings in a deep litter method and no droppings board. The droppings mix into the pine shavings and breakdown. I deep clean my coop in the spring and fall. I have a removable roost, ramp and nesting boxes (see photo - a modified toy box) that are thoroughly cleaned outdoors. I clean, mostly dust, the inside of the coop as needed, 1-2 times a week. I clean the run ~once a week.

My walk-in coop is 7’ by 10’ and 8’ high, it has an attached shed that is the same size where I store feed (galzanized garbage can), pine shavings, ash, DE, PDZ, ladders, and garden tools.

I invested in a library of chicken keeping books and magazines and read numerous blogs before I hired a contractor to build my coop and run. No regrets or modifications required...and yes, my coop and run have electrical outlets which makes chicken keeping so much easier (fan in coop for extreme heat, electric for chicken door, heated disks for water buckets and large heated dog bowl in freezing weather - I do NOT heat my coop...it’s insulated).

Love my organic egg laying girls! Yep, I feed my girls organic feed and treats!

Also, is there a must have book you recommend?

 

[Kaesi2020]

Water in the coop can cause excess moisture which, in really cold weather, can cause frostbite. Chickens don't eat or drink after the sun goes down.

Thanks for that information, I really appreciate it. So it would be ok for them not to have access to water in the morning when they wake up?

 

[Kaesi2020]

Lots of fun stuff here. I really enjoyed hearing about everyone's routine with their chickens. I have four hens. The dogs wake me up between 5:00 and 5:30 so I take them out and while they are taking care of business the four cats get their breakfast and then I let the chickens out. I just let them out into the run and go back in with the dogs and go back to bed until 6:30. Then I have to make hubby's breakfast and lunch and send him on his way. I go out to see the chickens again about 10:30 or 11:00 and pick up poop in the run with a dog pooper scooper. I clean out the big poops in the coop and add wood chips if necessary. I collect the eggs. At 4:00 the chickens get a yummy snack of yogurt mixed with oatmeal and flax seed. Sometimes they get meal worms. I have yet to see an egg in the afternoon. I check water levels every time I go in the run and at dusk I change the water in the run and put a couple of scoops of feed in the feeder. I wait until the first chicken heads up the ramp and then I help the stragglers into the coop and lock them in. I lock the run on my way out. I have never free ranged them because we have lots of hawks and raptors. The run is 20 feet by 20 feet so they have enough room four the four of them. It has been a lot easier taking care of them than I thought it would be. They get extra company on the weekends when we work on chicken run projects. We've put in a swing which my daughter says is too high, a perch in another corner and hardening the roof system. Next will be a wind break in another corner then work will start on a solid roof over half the run for shade. Right now their only shade is under the raised coop.

Very nice! I give mine a little yogurt too, I may try adding the flaxseed. I too love hearing what everyone does with their chickens! You and I have a similar routine- and I use a little pooper scooper too! Sort of like you would for a kitty litter.

 

[aart]

Water in the coop can cause excess moisture which, in really cold weather, can cause frostbite.

The best waterer is the Premier 1 Electric waterer, https://www.premier1supplies.com/p/heated-poultry-waterer

But @Kellow1 this type of waterer won't create excess humidity.

Thanks for that information, I really appreciate it. So it would be ok for them not to have access to water in the morning when they wake up?

I use supplemental lighting, on early in the morning, so they need feed and water as soon as they wake with the light.
Plus power for a heated waterer needs protection from the elements.

 

[Kaesi2020]

But @Kellow1 this type of waterer won't create excess humidity.

I use supplemental lighting, on early in the morning, so they need feed and water as soon as they wake with the light.
Plus power for a heated waterer needs protection from the elements.

Thanks for the info. I know from my chicken camera that my hens get up pretty early (5 am off the roost) and drink water right away. That's why I would be worried about removing that from the coop.

 

[jspeese]

I have an 8 x 8 coop and a 320 sq ft run with a top, made of turkey wire. I added a layer of chicken wire to the sides to keep the mesh small, mainly to keep song birds out (and very small chicks in, if I have any). I check them in the morning, making sure they have plenty of water and feed. I keep the water and feed in the coop to protect it (esp. the feed) from the elements. I'll throw them a handful of scratch grain as a treat, also gets them all outside in the run so I can close the pop door to the coop and collect eggs, scrape off the roost, give them fresh water, etc. I have a dropping pit type roost so 99% of the manure falls through where I can easily scrape it out from the outside, but some does inevitably land on the roost bars (2 x 4s) themselves. Sometimes I'll throw a handful of scratch grain in the coop itself, the girls love to scratch and aerate the straw looking for it. I don't use the deep litter method; most of the poop in the coop ends up in the dropping pit anyway. Occasionally I'll shut them in the coop and give the run a raking. I don't let them out to forage much in the summer because they'll destroy the flowers, but I do let them out to forage in the spring, fall and winter when there aren't any flowers to destroy. I let them out for "supervised" foraging runs only because there are too many hawks around. Straw has always worked well for bedding. I wouldn't consider sand because it is too heavy for me. I currently have 13 hens. I'm thinking of building a small brooder coop and starting some new chicks - maybe this fall, probably not till next spring - because the present flock is ageing.

 

[31322]

Hi all, I am interested in hearing about the routines other people have with their chickens, like times and events for caring for them on a daily basis.

For example:

A typical day for me involves waking my 6 chickens up around 7:30. This involves opening the bottom coop door to let the hens out into the run. When I do this I pet them a bit and check them over quickly for any issues. I also use this time to freshen their water and food and put them down in the run with them.
During the week, I have work on and off throughout the day (I am a second grade teacher teaching remotely due to the virus so I have availability of and off until around 3) so depending on my schedule, I basically let them out to free range whenever I can supervise (may be 9 to 10, may be 12 to 2, etc). During their free range time, I do coop and run cleaning. I am using the deep litter method in the run so I may sprinkle some grass clippings or pine shavings over the larger poops. I basically just spend a few minutes freshening up the run for them. I am using the deep bedding method in the coop so I scoop out the poops in there and add a fresh layer of bedding in certain areas. This cleaning takes about 15 minutes. I like to do it each day since I have the time currently to do so. After that, I spend some time with the chickens in the yard and then they usually go back in the run for a few hours so I can do more chores and school work inside the house.
I let them free range again from about 5 to 7. They tend to sit with me at this time on my chair which is very cute (my two buff orpingtons sit in my lap like lap dogs and the others perch on the chair arms). Between 7 and 730 they know to go in the run, relax, and slowly move up to their coop. During that time, I am in the house, making dinner, etc.
I'll come back out at around 8 to make sure they are all in the coop, they have their waterer refreshed and back in the coop with them, and I lock everything down for the night. I am still leaving food for them in the coop at night but I'm thinking of stopping this to prevent pests.

What does a typical day look like for you???

At 6am I let my 4 RIR's out of the coop and into the run. At 8:30am I let them free range while I rake out the run which has a dirt floor and the coop (dirt over hardware cloth) using the flat side of the rake. I replenish food, water and crushed oyster shells and collect eggs. I lure them back into the run with mealyworm treats. At 3pm now that it's extremely hot here in GA, I bring them cut up watermelon or apples as a cool treat. At 8:15 pm I close the door to the coop as they will have mounted the roost in the coop by then. This is my favorite part of the day. I tell them in a soft voice that they are now safe and can sleep peacefully. I thank them for the eggs and wish them sweet dreams.

 

[mamascrazy]

Thanks! I have not heard of that zip tie technique before but that makes a lot of sense! I hope as time goes on (I'm a first time chicken owner and I have six 8 week old hens) I learn ways to streamline the cleaning process!

Zip ties are also really handy for keeping track of who you have and haven't dusted for mites and so on. My girls have recently become the "Charmed ones". I found some really cute zip tie charms on line and I use them as part of my chicken registry. There is a picture of each hen, a picture of her tie color and charm and a picture of her egg, along with info on what kind of bird,, when purchased or hatched and so on. If you have a bunch of the same kind of chicken, this helps you keep track of who's laying what, having symptoms or whatever.

Thanks! I have not heard of that zip tie technique before but that makes a lot of sense! I hope as time goes on (I'm a first time chicken owner and I have six 8 week old hens) I learn ways to streamline the cleaning process!

 

[Rosebud25]

Hi all, I am interested in hearing about the routines other people have with their chickens, like times and events for caring for them on a daily basis.

For example:

A typical day for me involves waking my 6 chickens up around 7:30. This involves opening the bottom coop door to let the hens out into the run. When I do this I pet them a bit and check them over quickly for any issues. I also use this time to freshen their water and food and put them down in the run with them.
During the week, I have work on and off throughout the day (I am a second grade teacher teaching remotely due to the virus so I have availability of and off until around 3) so depending on my schedule, I basically let them out to free range whenever I can supervise (may be 9 to 10, may be 12 to 2, etc). During their free range time, I do coop and run cleaning. I am using the deep litter method in the run so I may sprinkle some grass clippings or pine shavings over the larger poops. I basically just spend a few minutes freshening up the run for them. I am using the deep bedding method in the coop so I scoop out the poops in there and add a fresh layer of bedding in certain areas. This cleaning takes about 15 minutes. I like to do it each day since I have the time currently to do so. After that, I spend some time with the chickens in the yard and then they usually go back in the run for a few hours so I can do more chores and school work inside the house.
I let them free range again from about 5 to 7. They tend to sit with me at this time on my chair which is very cute (my two buff orpingtons sit in my lap like lap dogs and the others perch on the chair arms). Between 7 and 730 they know to go in the run, relax, and slowly move up to their coop. During that time, I am in the house, making dinner, etc.
I'll come back out at around 8 to make sure they are all in the coop, they have their waterer refreshed and back in the coop with them, and I lock everything down for the night. I am still leaving food for them in the coop at night but I'm thinking of stopping this to prevent pests.

What does a typical day look like for you???

I don't let my chickens out till noon. I have Nigerian Dwarf Goats that will sneak into the henhouse any chance they get and those little chicken doors are not small enough to keep the goats out. If I let the chickens out earlier they lay eggs everywhere. And an old chicken farmer told me years ago they usually lay between 7:00 - 10:00 am.

 

[Kaesi2020]

I don't let my chickens out till noon. I have Nigerian Dwarf Goats that will sneak into the henhouse any chance they get and those little chicken doors are not small enough to keep the goats out. If I let the chickens out earlier they lay eggs everywhere. And an old chicken farmer told me years ago they usually lay between 7:00 - 10:00 am.

Hi! Can you post a picture of your Nigerian dwarf goats? Thanks for sharing your routine!