Backyard Chicken Keeping: There's Poop Everywhere!

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Pet Island > Backyard Chicken Keeping: There's Poop Everywhere!

«‹›3 »

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Nettle Soup posted:

Heatlamps tend to burn out when you least expect it, makes sure you have a spare bulb on hand, they're pretty temperamental.

Flora just died. ._.

Sunday, Twilight died, I went out and she'd had a funny turn, but she'd done that before and a couple of hours in the house had perked up her up again to being fine.

Then Flora had a rattly chest and I bought her inside, she was still eating a bit but if I tried to give her water it just seemed to make her worse. I just went down for the morning check and she was dead.

I've bought some Coxid, dunno if it's that, I haven't seen any blood in her droppings and there's a lot of them covering the bathroom floor right now, but I'm seriously sad Why is it always your favourites...

I just went through your post history. It really has been a tough year for you. I know that you gave them a great life though.

# ¿ Nov 21, 2012 21:22

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ¿ May 14, 2024 02:45

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Superconsndar posted:

Sooooooooooo since I am now in posession of a yard of my own, I kinda wanna get a small coop/run and a pair or trio of hens for eggies. I ran it by my partner and she's all for it. :iamafag: No concrete plans yet, but I'd like to shoot for this spring if we do decide to do it.

This might be a dumb question, but are there any breeds that tend to be more quiet than others? You can legally keep up to 6 hens in the city limits here, but I don't want to piss off any neighbors and I also don't need a 30 minute long cackle-party every time someone decides to lay an egg. Some of the hens I used to have were louder than roosters when they laid.

I don't see how anyone could complain about chicken noise. They are far quieter than my neighbor's dog, and as soon as it gets dark they stop.

Also, make sure you give your neighbors eggs and that will go a long way to keeping everyone happy.

# ¿ Dec 3, 2012 06:27

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

I was buying feed on Saturday and they asked me if I wanted regular or organic. I guess I never had thought about it before, I asked the price and organic was $37.00 a bag, which seems a lot. Regular is $20.00. For my personal food I will buy local when I can, but for products that are not local I don't necessarily go out of my way to buy organic.

But then I was thinking about GMO corn and that organic might be the only way to avoid it. But is that even bad? I guess it depends on who you talk to.

What do other people do?

# ¿ Dec 3, 2012 20:26

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Chido posted:

80 plus million corn-eating Mexicans will tell you that GMO corn won't kill you. You might develop a natural tan and start to roll your Rs, and maybe ask people to call you Pepe Chuy, but besides that, I don't think you have to worry too much about it.

Thanks! You are a better chicken mom than I could ever hope to be, so that really sets my mind at ease.

# ¿ Dec 4, 2012 16:12

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

piscesbobbie posted:

Do I recall seeing or reading about a vaccine or something for Mareks? Is it an annual vaccine for chickens/poultry? What kind of vaccinations are available for chickens? If there are vaccines, is it something the backyard chicken owner can do or do you go to a veterinarian?

With Mareks, you get them vaccinated as chick. It's an option you can either select or not before they ship them to you, its like a dollar and I got mine vaccinated. I don't know of any other vaccines out there, especially for the backyard chicken enthusiast. The agricompanies that sell them sell them in lots of thousands of doses.

Its my impression that contagious diseases are less of a problem vs commercial agriculture because there the numbers and density are so much higher. Diseases don't get a foothold the same way when there are 6 birds running around in the fresh air compared to 100,000 under one roof.

# ¿ Dec 21, 2012 05:00

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Greycious posted:

One of my girls laid their first egg yesterday

Exactly 5 months from the day they hatched.

My father in law with one of my hens

I think she's gorgeous.

Really? that's amazing. Congratulations.

Yours arrived a couple weeks before mine. I just assumed that I wouldn't get anything until the days started getting significantly longer like February or March. Hopefully I get start getting some in a few weeks too.

# ¿ Dec 25, 2012 00:07

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

One of my chickens has a broken toe. I saw her limping down the ramp yesterday into the run; I have no idea how that happened. I never got around to selling the extra ones that I had and still have 14. Am I a horrible person for killing it? I never viewed them as pets, now that the days are so short I never see them awake on weekdays. I just refill their water and food, and when the discussion came up before I am on record as saying I would not be using a vet or spending huge money on them.

# ¿ Dec 31, 2012 20:05

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Chido posted:

I don't think you are a horrible person, Zeta. Now I'm dead tired from working and a bit sleep deprived, but you said you killed the chicken right? If you did because of the broken toe, and you don't have the chickens as pets but for consumption/egg production, then I think it's more humane to quickly dispose of the animal than let it be in pain if you can't treat its broken toe for whatever reason .

If you didn't kill it and are willing to give it a try at treating its toe, maybe you can keep it in a crate and try to bandage it's toe and see if it recovers?

I noticed it yesterday and have not killed her yet. I can't do it until tomorrow. It's not something I will enjoy, but I am from a dairy farm so I have been around that before. I have no moral qualms about eating ethically raised meat.

# ¿ Dec 31, 2012 20:33

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

One of my Barred Plymouth Rocks left me a present on Monday!

This is actually the second egg (pictured on left). I got one on Saturday and I was super excited, I brought it in, put it on the counter to take a picture. As I was getting an egg from the fridge to compare it, it rolled off the counter top and crashed on the kitchen floor. They arrived exactly 5 months ago yesterday.

# ¿ Jan 9, 2013 18:44

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

I�m so confused and a bit hurt by my downstairs neighbors. I�m now getting about 2 or 3 eggs a day so I gave them half a dozen. They gave them back to me. I didn�t realize it, but they somehow convinced themselves that my chickens are disease bombs because I have 13 of them and they make poo poo, and somehow chicken poo poo is like poison. All they can picture is eggs coming out of the chickens butt out of the same hole poo poo comes out of.

I can�t figure it out. In the space where I have 13 there would be at least 1000 battery chickens stuffed into cages 10 deep breathing air so full of ammonia it�s toxic, and everything would probably be kept going by poorly paid undocumented workers. And they are still coming out of chicken butts.

It reminds me of my ex who wouldn�t eat carrots that came from my garden because he saw me pulling them out of dirt.

# ¿ Jan 24, 2013 16:08

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

piscesbobbie posted:

Dalmation chickens! Those are very pretty. I'll have to research and see if they are winter/heat tolerant.

I briefly considered them. If you recall, I wanted a colorful egg basket and wanted a cold hardy variety that lays white eggs. Mypetchicken describes them as spritely and active. They are great foragers meaning that your feed costs will be less. The downside is that don�t like to be confined, which is a necessity in my urban location.

If you have the room and looking for breeds that do well free ranging, they would be a solid, economical and productive choice.

# ¿ Feb 6, 2013 16:42

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Hyper J posted:

I just wanted to share my mealworm colony pictures here. Mealworm farming is so easy, I just can't believe it. Our first 100 from the pet store have turned into thousands only 2 1/2 months later, and they just went through their first molt. All at the same time! And the 1000 I got from Amy at West Knoll Farm started pupating the next day, and now more than 1/2 are beetles laying eggs.

I took the adult beetles from one 3 drawer cart and put them in another, after they have been laying eggs in the first for about 3 weeks now. The first one should be teeming with worms in about 6 weeks. And the aquarium worms will be ready for the chooks to eat in about 2-3 weeks.

Aquarium with teeny worms

Ready to transfer

They need veggies for moisture, but they will eat the newspaper too.

Carrots are their favorite and are the easiest to deal with.

New colony all ready for occupancy

Three life stages. The eggs I can't see to show them to you.

All done! Crushed eggshell is good for them, they'll each get some soon. And I feed them chick starter/grower mixed together, I sift the dust out for them and the chickens get the crumbles.

If you get close to the carts, you can hear the beetles rustling around in the newspaper. If you lift it up they begin digging down into the substrate to hide, they never climb up so there are no escapees. They can't cling to the glass or plastic anyway.

I saw the megathread in the BYC forum (where I am not a member) and was trying to wrap my head around the concept.

Specifically, the things the mealworms eat are materials that are edible for chickens. They can eat carrots and oatmeal. Are you converting the energy in starches into more biologically important fats and proteins? Is something gained from a nutritional or calorie perspective, or is it that they really like mealworms?

# ¿ Feb 13, 2013 21:13

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Greycious posted:

My hens have feed 24/7...they are about 6-7 months old now and most all of them have started to lay eggs at this point. Still a bit random on the laying, out of 7 hens we get 1-5 eggs a day.

Should I be starting to measure out their food and give them X amount each day? They are on layer feed of course.
My chicken keeping in law seemed a little surprised I had them on as much feed as they want. They also get a plastic cup full of scratch a couple times a week. He doesn't keep laying breeds though.

It being winter still they unfortunately haven't had the pleasure of being able to graze the yard for a bit almost every day like they did in summer.

They don't seem overweight to me, I kind of figured them laying eggs all the time would keep them at a good weight anyways.

Yours are a few weeks older than mine if I recall. Especially being in a cold climate, they will eat a lot more in the winter to stay warm and since they can't forage right now they should always have free access to food.

He is right about meat birds. They are bred to grow so fast that if they eat as much as they want they will outgrow their bodies to the point they won't be able to walk and they will have heart failure.

# ¿ Feb 26, 2013 18:41

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Errant Gin Monks posted:

It has begun!!

Edit: I will add some info. We got these little buggers this afternoon. They are week old Cuckoo Marans. The wife has named the Belinda, Henrietta and Prissy. They are already hysterical. I love their little cheeping noises. Henrietta had some vent blockage so we cleaned her off and will be watching them all closely over the next few weeks.

The coop and run will be built next weekend, so it will be ready for them when they get old enough to live outside,

We are really excited about our mini-flock.

Super cute chicks. When I was ordering last summer I really wanted to get some Marans but couldn't find any. I did manage to get pretty much every other color though.

# ¿ Mar 11, 2013 02:52

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

US Foreign Policy posted:

First egg from (one of my two) Blue Splash Marans. They are 6 months and 2 weeks old. Their names are Owldolf Hootler and Henito Coosolini, because I enjoy my own sense of humor

Yeah, that is kind of wrong. :3:

, but that is a pretty egg.

# ¿ Apr 23, 2013 01:51

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Zaran posted:

Saw this earlier today:

Best buds!

How long it was before she started to eat her best bud? If I ever died suddenly in my coop I wonder how many minutes it would take for them to start eating me? :smith:

# ¿ Apr 26, 2013 17:25

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

So sorry about Roo. If they sold mugs that say "world's best chicken mom" then I would get you one. I know you dis everything you could.

# ¿ May 2, 2013 19:57

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Lynza posted:

I am trying to figure out how to hook my girls up with a dust bath. I tried using a shallow box my dad made for another purpose (it's about 3" deep and maybe 1 1/2' around), but they basically used it to poo poo in and not much else.

We move them every two days or so to keep the grass fresh and growing for them, so it would need to be somewhat portable. Any ideas? I know they want to do it - it's hilarious when they sort of sag over sideways with their wings out and then are confused about how to continue.

I don't think you can really make a dust bath for them. Chickens are really good at walking over things, pecking, scratching and randomly making GBS threads everywhere. But if you leave them in one place that is covered and stays dry, within a week they will end up digging out some holes about a foot wide and 6 inches deep and that will be their dust bath.

# ¿ May 10, 2013 03:05

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Now that it's getting warmer and the growing season has started I am doing a lot of yard work, doing some weeding and clearing out plants I don't want anymore. My favorite search term has become "can chickens eat..." Turns out they like hostas and Japanese knotweed. I also have tons of Queen Anne's lace and it turns out they like that too. It is reducing my feed costs, but assuming they have access to their regular layer feed and water, do I have to worry about them eating too much of these greens and becoming crop bound?

# ¿ May 13, 2013 02:46

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

cucurbit posted:

I'd watch their knotweed consumption, as it can be fairly high in oxalic acid which can be toxic in large amounts, but as long as they're eating a bunch of other stuff it shouldn't be problematic. Also, if they're pecking at it and carrying pieces of leaf around (on their feet/feathers even), they can spread the knotweed, and that stuff is invasive as can be and a bitch and a half to eliminate.

The fully mature knotweed plants are really all I'd worry about though (both for the oxalic acid and if they eat the woody stems, they could have crop issues), but the tender young shoots are even edible for humans so they're probably fine with those, and like I said above, as long as they're eating a lot of other stuff too they'll probably be okay.

I read the same thing. For the heck of it I tried eating some and it tasted like rhubarb. They do have a spacious run, but can't ever leave that area so anything they eat is me going out and harvesting it on their behalf. I also gave them some garlic mustard, another plant that is edible for humans and they devoured it. They also have fun with my watermelon rinds. I've noticed that I need to compost a lot less now.

Inveigle posted:

Zeta Taskforce: Later on, we expect some cute photos of the broody mama and her adopted chicks!

I think you have me confused with Bantaras, and yes, we do expect pics!

# ¿ May 14, 2013 05:34

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

I love my chickens, that they eat practically everything from cantaloupe seeds to weeds from my garden, and all that seems to make their eggs taste better, but if the city ever caught up to me and said I couldn't do it, it seems like quail would be a great way to go.

I'm also curious what quail eggs taste like.

# ¿ Jul 14, 2013 23:57

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Mine usually eat the entire rind, they eat the fleshy part first and then the rest dries up and gets brittle and they peck away at it until it's gone or blends into the dust. If I give them a banana they eat the entire thing.

Even weirder I gave them a mango and they ate the seed. How does that happen?

# ¿ Jul 21, 2013 17:34

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

^^^exactly

Inveigle posted:

HOLY CRAP!! $2500 for one chicken?!?!?!? Jeez!

But...man...WHAT A CHICKEN!!!! WOW!

(I was actually disappointed to learn their eggs weren't black too. The eggs are cream-colored.)

I saw that too. Everything else seems crazy expensive too, but they are in a league of their own. It's sort of like the places that advertise a $1000 hamburger. Everyone remarks on it but no one actually orders the Kobe beef marinated 3 weeks in Crystal and covered in cavier, but compared to the $1000 burger the one below it on the menu for $23 seems like a good deal.

# ¿ Jul 22, 2013 18:43

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Lynza posted:

I'm thinking we're pretty good at IDing whose egg is whose. I may be wrong, of course. But maybe I'll give it a shot. The other option is a Faverolles rooster, if I can find one. I love how they look.

Shouldn't that be really easy since they are the only ones laying blue/green eggs?

# ¿ Aug 2, 2013 18:15

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Lynza posted:

I've brought some pictures! I have the next 3 days off of work, so I've been hanging out with him pretty much all day. He loves the Chicken Facility. He hopped up on the low roost and has been hanging out there. I take him out, he eats grass for a couple minutes, then goes right back in.

He looks so studious. Simon. He was the tall chimpmunk with glasses

# ¿ Oct 10, 2013 21:35

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Dingleberry posted:

Not to hijack but have a question; I've got seven hens, three speckled, two rhode islands, two Auracanas. One of my reds "Little Red" went blind in one eye earlier this year. Then her other eye started gpung(milky/foggy look to it, pupil malformed too).
Today I noticed she's almost completely blind, she's been hunkered down in one spot in the yard all day( usually follows the other girls around all day) "Stevie Wondering" with her head. I gave 'em their a.m. treat of cantaloupe and Greek yogurt this morning and she got in on it okay.
At what point do you think her quality of life is poor enough that she needs put down? She's pretty healthy thus far but today just seemed off. She's actually one of my favorites and I guess as long as she's comfortable I don't mind taking extra time to care for/ feed her...
I can't justify vet trip for it at this point(dogs and cats galore in the house already cost a small fortune monthly).
Opinions?

I don't think there is a wrong answer here. I'm probably less sentimental than some of the other posters here. Mine don't have names, I have them because one of my passions is sustainability and gardening, and they fit really well with that. I don't have such things as kitchen waste anymore, and I don't have mounds of slowly decomposing garden waste either. And chicken poo poo makes everything grow so well! And the eggs! I've sold some to my teammates on my dragon boat team and that basically covers my costs, and it's fun to give them away to people in my life I care about. I say all that to say that mine still have a great life, plenty of fresh air, a varied diet, and they spend all day clucking, taking dust baths, and following each other inside, then back outside, then back in, but they are not pets. I probably would put her down, but if she only has an off day now and then, isn't being picked on, and she is one of your favorites, I don't think you are in the wrong keeping her either.

In case anyone needed proof how good fresh eggs are, at work we had a pot luck yesterday for one of my coworkers who is getting married. I brought in deviled eggs, and they came out amazing (of course). Everyone said they had never had such good deviled eggs, once word got around how good they were they were the first thing to go, everyone had to get one. 3 people came up to me separately and asked me what my secret ingredient was. I had to keep saying there wasn't one. I put in mayonnaise, a bit of mustard, salt, pepper and a touch of vinegar. The same ingredients as everyone else in the world uses, but you are tasting the eggs. People are genuinely surprised how good they are and how just because they look the same on the outside tells nothing about the inside.

# ¿ Nov 1, 2013 01:15

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Inveigle posted:

Since I only have access to store-bought eggs, I only buy the free range ones. I like to think that I'm at least eating something that came from a relatively happy hen. I also buy free range raw chicken when I can find it.

I've always had deviled eggs that had pickle relish in them. Is that unusual? Is it not normal to add relish to deviled eggs?

To me, white vinegar has more of a neutral taste than pickle relish. Since I have extraordinary ingredients, I don't want to add any extra flavors, but if I was working with tasteless, textureless eggs laid by battery hens that I paid $1.19 a dozen for at Walmart, I would probably use relish and more so at least there would be something there.

# ¿ Nov 1, 2013 18:39

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Chido posted:

I never tought of doing a google search on how to peel fresh eggs, because I kinda gave up eating boiled eggs. i just hate trying to peel them. I fought this:

http://queenofthereddoublewide.com/how-to-easily-peel-farm-fresh-eggs/

I'm so gonna try that this weekend

Boiling them in a baking soda solution works too.

# ¿ Nov 2, 2013 05:09

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

samizdat posted:

Thank you for the reassurance! I'm most worried about weather-proofing, as it's windy as hell here and rained twice as much as usual this April. I'm sure El Ni�o won't help this summer either. My entire backyard slopes downward so I'm scared of drowning my chickens!

Chickens are pretty impervious to temperature as long as they are out of the wind and elements, but you don't want to locate it in an area where standing water is possible. I had to rebuild my entire coop last year to make it rat proof. I don't know if that is an issue where you are, but rats absolutely can kill chickens.

# ¿ May 3, 2016 05:32

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

CountFosco posted:

For our chicken coop we took hardware cloth and buried it around the perimeter of the coop eighteen inches deep, to prevent burrowing. Hard work, but it does give us some peace of mind in that regard.

I did the same thing. Like Brawnfire, rats came to snack on the chicken food, but then they discovered chicken tastes better. I couldn't plug the holes fast enough, they kept getting in. The chickens seemed fine during the day, they were safe at night where they perched, but were especially vulnerable at dawn and dusk. I rebuilt everything with half inch mesh hardware cloth, buried it around the perimeter of the run and also dug up the run and put a layer on the ground underneath, and built a double layer wall around the run. I stapled steel wool on any visible crack on coop. It wasn't cheap or easy, but it is a fortress.

# ¿ May 3, 2016 18:03

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ¿ May 14, 2024 02:45

Zeta Taskforce: Jun 27, 2002

Electric Sugar posted:

Is there any kind of fast-growing ground cover-y type stuff that you'd recommend planting for chickens to eat/run around in/etc.?

When building the coop, we had to clear out an area beside our patio to re-purpose the gravel, so now it's just bare dirt. Plain grass is boring and I hate it. I was thinking maybe clover or something - it's a partly sunny area. Anyone have any recommendations?

Two ideas that I've done myself. I replaced much of my lawn with microclover. It is a form of white clover that is shorter and works better as a lawn. I even got one of those old fashioned reel mowers and I was able to catch it as I mowed it and dumped it in the run. Chickens went crazy. The other thing is comfrey. I planted a small cutting that I got off ebay a few years ago and it has spread like crazy. I want to separate it out again and move it right beside the run. That ground is now super high in nitrogen, which comfrey loves. It is a pretty plant too. I wish I took pictures of it flowering, it produces pretty purple flowers. The kind I got is sterile, doesn't produce viable seeds, so it will spread but won't take over your yard. It is supposed to be something like 25% protein.

I've seen people online who say its toxic and it might be if that's all you give them but mine like it and have never had a problem

# ¿ Jul 12, 2019 01:15

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Pet Island > Backyard Chicken Keeping: There's Poop Everywhere!

«‹›3 »