We have chickens!!! [Archive] - The Tree Of Liberty

SheWoff

11-03-2009, 10:37 AM

Finally...after much ado, we have chickens!!!! Here's a few pics of the work....

First we started out with this to work with....
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i184/SheWoff/Chickens002.jpg

So hubby and his friends did a little thinking and decided to add a roof...
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i184/SheWoff/Chickens007.jpg

Almost done....
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i184/SheWoff/Chickens008.jpg

Nest boxes and roost put in...
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i184/SheWoff/Chickens011.jpg

My hubby HeWoff (right) and his friend Kool-Aide who helped and provided chickens (left) trying the nest boxes LOL.
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i184/SheWoff/Chickens010.jpg

next page.....

SheWoff

11-03-2009, 10:39 AM

And here they are!! Already laying for us and happy!
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i184/SheWoff/Chickens004.jpg

I feel like we took one GIANT step towards independancy yesterday!! It is so neat and even though we were woke up at 5:45 am....nothing has sounded more like music to me ever!!!

She

Micah68

11-03-2009, 10:40 AM

Congratulations! I love my chickens - they are so fun to watch, and of course the meat and eggs.

Bookem

11-03-2009, 10:43 AM

Congrats SheWoff.. Nice set up too..

Sugaree

11-03-2009, 11:10 AM

Fantastic! I sure wish we could have chickens, but for some reason they frown upon that kind of thing at our apartment complex :-P

Eat a big ol' omelet for me!

AngelDance

11-03-2009, 11:19 AM

woot woot, She! Everything looks great! Good job on the roosts!

Enjoy your chooks!

Angel

SheWoff

11-03-2009, 11:23 AM

woot woot, She! Everything looks great! Good job on the roosts!

Enjoy your chooks!

Angel

We will and a big THANK YOU to you Angel!!!!

She

goatlady

11-03-2009, 03:28 PM

Really good job on that coop area. You "might" want to consider just hanging a tarp from the roof to floor right in front of the roost area and hold the botton down with a board or bricks or ??, to give then a bit of weather protection during the nights and it will help keep some heat in there for them on cold nights. Just a thought. Otherwise, it's perfect for the girls!

hunybee

11-03-2009, 04:05 PM

i'm so JEALOUS!

:mrgreen:

babysteps

11-03-2009, 04:13 PM

Yay Shewoff! I love my chickens... they are a source of endless entertainment (remind me to tell you the Chicken Conspiracy Story sometime... :mrgreen:)

SheWoff

11-03-2009, 04:24 PM

Meemur

11-03-2009, 04:53 PM

Everytime I see this thread title, I start humming an old, old song from classic Sesame Street. It's not very long, about a minute and 24 seconds:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tvv5gL1pGb0

Summary:

There are chickens in the trees --
There are chickens in the trees --
Won't you listen to me, please?
There are chickens in the trees.

independent

11-03-2009, 06:04 PM

She, it looks like you live in the woods. I would consider putting something around the fence (big rocks or bricks) so the racoons don't try and dig under the fence, or your hubby can dig around the perimeter of the fence about 1 foot deep and attach chicken wire to the fence and then bury the chicken wire in the ground. Also, I have been told that the coons will shove their skinny arms in through the fence and grab ahold of a chicken if they can reach it.Don't know if your fence holes are too big or not. I'm new at this also and have already made some mistakes so I hope you don't mind my suggestions. I have lived at my present home for 15 years and have spent more time in the back yard this year than all of the other 14 years combined.The chickens are very entertaining to watch. I let them out every few days to free range and they love it. They don't go far and when I want to get them back in the run, I just grab a leaf rake to chase them back in.Also,clapping your hands loudly helps to round them up. Good luck with your chickens!

Indigo

11-03-2009, 09:34 PM

Whooooooooooo hoooooooooooooo!! Congratulations! Ya done good!

So what did you name them?

:)

Indigo

PatDaly

11-03-2009, 10:09 PM

She, independant does bring up a point, Racoons kill Chickens. I lost 8 before I caught them redhanded. ( Should have listened to my daughter )

Make sure you can lock them down at night, I haven't ever seen a coon try anything durring the day.

Nicho1

11-03-2009, 10:46 PM

SheWoff

11-04-2009, 08:18 AM

Great news, She! And a terriffic job on their new "home." Before long, they'll be sending emails back to their pals to tell them that they've found paradise! You're going to love them...and they, you.

LOL if I find them sneaking in the house to get my laptop there will be hell to pay! :mrgreen: I want to thank you all for the suggestions and comments. And no, I don't mind the suggestions AT ALL! We are new at this, so all are welcome. As for the coons, yep we have them too. Our place boarders on the woods. We have more possums than coons though. That's why we have 5 dogs. :-D And the largest female hound has taken the job of protecting the coop! She wont even let the other dogs near it or anything else either. She raked up some pine needles and naps in front of the door too. Have to pick her up and move her when I go in to check for eggs LOL. She has taken her job seriously. Those are HER chickens! One of the roosters pecked her nose yesterday at the fence. She licked his beak as if to say it's okay lol. I still keep an eye on her just in case she has some hidden motives there!

And we are getting eggs. With 3 hens we have gotten 4 eggs in a day and a half. Both the black hens are laying, the white one isn't and that may be from moving her. She was laying up until we moved her here. And they are still on laying mash.

I love watching them too! I gave them some pieces of butternut squash yesterday. They attacked it! And had the seeds pecked out of it before you could blink an eye! While I had the door open a crack, the white hen got out too. But the hound dog herded her right back into the pen. She just walked behind the chicken heading her toward the door. Kind of reminds me of the movie "Babe." LOL

If yall have any more ideas and suggestions, please shout out! They have been a blessing so far. So thank you again to all who emailed, pm'ed, posted and even called me! Yall are just great people. :-D

She

SheWoff

11-04-2009, 08:21 AM

http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i184/SheWoff/006-3.jpg

This is Daisy. She's the chicken protector LOL. Of course they are now "her" chickens.

She

CVORNurse

11-04-2009, 08:26 AM

I love my chickens. So glad you finally got them. Just watch for the predators, but glad your hound is guarding them. We don't have a dog. Lose one occasionally, once the predator finds them, he/she WILL be back. So we will lay in wait and eventually catch the critter. DH has sold and given away several coons to some of the old timer African Americans in our small town. We don't eat it so why let it go to waste. Haven't found anyone for the possums though, they don't seem to be as popular in this area.

Homesteader1

11-04-2009, 09:12 AM

Congrats She! You'll love'm, they are quite entertaining, at least our are! Wait until you eat your own homegorwn eggs and chicken, Ummm. Ummm.

PS. Our roos crow from sun up to sun down and I love every minute of it, add in the tom turkeys gobbling and it's like a symphony :mrgreen:

AngelDance

11-04-2009, 11:02 AM

I know you have named them, She.....I just know you have! What did you name them?
What color eggs are your Easter Eggers laying?

Next time you take treats to them, call them first. Make the call the same way every time you give them treats. Pretty soon, you could let them in the yard for an hour or so to free range and then they will come back in the fenced yard when you call.

I call mine with "Chook, chook, chook...Chi-CKENS. By the time I repeat that 3 times, all of my 30 or so are clustered at my feet, looking at me sideways, making their little "whatcha got?" noises and waiting for their treats. I love watching them run. They look like fat little old ladies with big bloomers on, running, head down into the wind, full tilt boogie.

If I ever need a humor boost, I go out with a handful of scraps and call the girls. Never fails to make me laugh out loud and is guaranteed to lift my spirits!

Good on ya, She!

Angel

Martinhouse

11-04-2009, 01:25 PM

Maybe next year, you'll be ready to let them into the garden now and then. Even with lots of good new scratching, they should come back near dusk, if they are used to being fed near their home.

One recommendation I have is that you might switch to laying pellets instead of the mash. There will be lots less waste that way. And full-grown birds can handle the pieces just fine.

Carol

Martinhouse

11-04-2009, 01:28 PM

Wouldn't hurt to give them some corn, now, too. It helps them make body heat and this is the time to think of that.

I've noticed mine leave the corn on the ground in hot weather. They just don't even want it.

Whole corn is cheaper than cracked corn, which is called chops.

If you get chicks, switch back to mash and chops until they are about three or four months old.

Carol

Nicho1

11-04-2009, 05:22 PM

They look like fat little old ladies with big bloomers on, running, head down into the wind, full tilt boogie.

AngelDance, this is priceless! And, it is so true. As I read it, I could just picture my chickens running. Thanks for the laugh. And, next time I see them running, I'll remember how you described them.

Birdlady

11-04-2009, 06:02 PM

LOL!! Angel...yes they DO look just as you described! Bloomers indeed....too funny!

We really enjoy our 4 Barred Rocks...they are giving us 2-3 eggs a day, with very firm shells and gorgeous yolks!

We are in a subdivision, with a rather loose HOA...well, not really an HOA, but deed restrictions re: livestock.

They are NOT livestock, but pets and each has a name. (NO, they will die of old age before they hit a pot! :grin:) And they do not live in a coop, but an "aviary" where pet birds reside...(y'all think they'd buy that?):roll:

SheWoff

11-04-2009, 06:26 PM

LOL @ Angel!! Yep, bloomers! And only one is named so far...Whitey is the one white hen lol. Hubby the chicken whisperer is taking his time naming them. He goes out to check for the eggs. Mr. "I'm not a Sodbuster" HeWoff goes out and talks to them. And he did something tonight I would have NEVER believed it had I not seen it!!!! He cast a spell on one of the birds! Yes! He held that birds nose down to the ground, drew a line straight off of it's nose in the dirt, held it there a minute and then let go. I'm here to tell you, THAT CHICKEN DIDN'T MOVE FROM THAT SPOT FOR ALMOST 5 MINUTES!!!!!!!!! She stayed right there with it's nose to the ground, not moving! I ain't never seen anything like it! So now I call him the chicken whisperer LOL. :mrgreen: Dang man of mine is full of surprises!

Oh, one thing...we have that white hen? Well she is new to the other 4 birds and they keep chasing her down and pecking at her? Is that normal? What do I do for her? Just let them work it out or what? I'm worried they are going to peck her to pieces. She stays mostly on the roost except when she gets down in the nest box. I don't know what to do for her the poor girl. Yeah, I am already attached to them LOL.

She

Nicho1

11-04-2009, 10:35 PM

She, I'm a newbie at chickens myself but I've read about a new bird in a flock becoming a "target" for the others to peck, often with some dire results. You may need to try to protect her. One of the suggestions in a book I read was to fix a place for the one that is pecked and then gradually introduce the others to HER place. That way, they are the newcomers. Others here may be able to give better/different advice. I'm thinking it's a problem that you wouldn't want to let go too long. Just sayin'.

PatDaly

11-04-2009, 11:10 PM

LOL, She, Chickens are terribly Alpha, she will find her pecking order, we have introduced several flocks together, none dead yet.

Martinhouse

11-05-2009, 07:36 AM

If your little dog insists on lying down in front of the chicken pen door, instead of making her move every time, maybe you could change the door so it opens inward.

Carol

Marigold

11-07-2009, 07:26 AM

I like your chicken digs and your chickens. They are so entertaining. Enjoy! Marigold

SheWoff

11-08-2009, 09:18 AM

LOL, She, Chickens are terribly Alpha, she will find her pecking order, we have introduced several flocks together, none dead yet.

Well I had to put the roost down on the ground, stand in front of the nesting boxes so she wouldn't just stay in that, and made the white hen mix in with the other chickens yesterday. I must of stood out there an hour! I think they have their pecking order in the works now and the roosters aren't jumping her every time she gets down off of the roost. But, I don't think she is eating. Anything. I know she has had some water because yesterday once she calmed down a little, she headed over to the water bucket and drank out of it like she had been in a desert for a week! I don't know if she will make it or not. I did what I could do to help her out...

She

Martinhouse

11-08-2009, 07:14 PM

Is there any place you could keep that poor hen for a couple of days so the other birds aren't even aware of her? Even in a large pet carrier with food and water?

Then put her on the roost well after dark. I've had more than one old-timer tell me if the new chickens are there in the morning when they all wake up, they are accepted better. This has worked for me a couple of times.

(I had to pick up the new hens during the day and leave them in the back of the truck until after dark. Yuck, was that a mess!)

Carol

Carol

SheWoff

11-09-2009, 10:35 AM

Well I went out into the pen and put the roost down on the ground for awhile again. She seems to have gotten along with the others since she is now getting down off the roost this morning and eating with the others. Even though she is on the outside of the group scratching at the edges, they are at least letting her eat.

She