new chicks

[southerngardener]

well I went out and bought some chicks yesterday. Not sure what breed they are.  They're all pullets though. kinda wanted a rooster too, but all the feed store had were pullets... maybe I can find one somewhere else.  Do I really need a rooster?  I know the hens will lay anyway, but what are the benefits of a roo?  I snapped a few pics earlier, I have a small section of their new coop sectioned off and that's where they're confined to for the time being.  Didn't want them to make a mess of the whole coop just yet.  May throw some vinyl down on the floor if I can find it cheap enough....it'd make cleaning a whole lot easier.



yes, they have made a mess of things.  they could use some bedding, forgot to get that while I was in town yesterday.

[Pjames]

There are 2 reasons for a rooster... the first is if you want fertile eggs to hatch yourself. The second is to  make alot of noise and bug your neighbors... (Plus roosters are a little prettier than the hens..)

[1reb]

you are right about the rooster they do make alot of noise in the morning

[PD-Riverman]

May throw some vinyl down on the floor if I can find it cheap enough....it'd make cleaning a whole lot easier.

Just get you a few bags of sand and spread it on the floor. Works good for me. I just sift the sand about once a month and have plenty of fertilizer to compost.

[Pjames]

Guess I need to work on my reading skills..I overlooked the vinyl floor idea. Otherwise I would have warned you that smooth surfaces can cause the chicks to get splayed legs... But covering the vinyl with some litter of some sort will take care of that..

[TN_GARDENER]

I 2nd the sand idea.

[pootsnicker]

I only keep one roo,any others get put in the freezer at about 17 weeks old. as far as advantages some say they can help with protecting the hens  but in my experience not much.the only real advantage is for breeding. I enjoy the sound of them ,something my wife disagrees with .  and as far as bedding,  news paper is fine but I put some 1/4 inch wire mesh to give some traction so you don't get sprawled leg's.

[tbird]

  I use pine shavings and/or sawdust from my shop with whitewood, pine and/or oak.  I do not put cedar in the mix because it supposedly irritates the respiratory system of chicks.  I tried the newspaper and it didn't work out for me as well, so I went back to shavings and sawdust.  I do a lot of dado cuts so I wind up with a good bit of very coarse stringy saw dust.   

[southerngardener]

those crazy hens kick their food tray full of pine shavings.  I clean it out twice daily.  same thing with the water.  I have the water sitting on some 2x4 scraps, stacked 2 high so they don't kick as many in it. the food is sitting on a 2 2x4 scraps placed side by side.  I have them in a box I constructed out of a sheet of plywood that measures 2'Dx4'Wx2'H with a lid screened with hardware cloth.....while I finish their coop.  No vinyl for the floor, I'll just paint it.  I'll turn em loose in there in a few days.  Think I'm going to order some more chicks from Ideal Poultry Farms in Cameron, TX...so I can get a roo to make some noise and breed a bit.

[jem]

those crazy hens kick their food tray full of pine shavings.  I clean it out twice daily.  same thing with the water.  I have the water sitting on some 2x4 scraps, stacked 2 high so they don't kick as many in it. the food is sitting on a 2 2x4 scraps placed side by side.  I have them in a box I constructed out of a sheet of plywood that measures 2'Dx4'Wx2'H with a lid screened with hardware cloth.....while I finish their coop.  No vinyl for the floor, I'll just paint it.  I'll turn em loose in there in a few days.  Think I'm going to order some more chicks from Ideal Poultry Farms in Cameron, TX...so I can get a roo to make some noise and breed a bit.

I had the same problem with the shavings in the feed and water so I got a feeder and watered that hang and can be picked up higher and higher as chicks grow older, just a suggestion for when you finish your coop

[Misplaced Texan]

We hang our feeders and waterers also.  Really makes a difference.

Gail

[tbird]

  I went through that shavings in the feed and water thing for a week or so and then made the hangers for them.  Now they can't get the shavings up high enough to mess it up!   

[tbird]

  I don't worry about the clean Hil,  its the odor.  Shavings and such reduce the odor that I and Nancy have to put up with.  I keep bedding of pine needles in my coop with 16 chickens, and my neighbor has the same size coop with only 5 chickens.  His is dirt floor and when I feed his chickens for him I can hardly stand the smell.   I much rather have some odor reducing bedding in the brooder and the coop.  Just a personal preference.  I knew people that raised chickens in back yards with no bedding at all and the chicks were healthy as Methuselah!   

[goonybird]

you are right about the rooster they do make alot of noise in the morning

Not just morning! Our neighbor behind us has a rooster, and our roosters and their rooster will crow back and forth for a while. Couple times a day.  I know what our roosters are saying, though -  "Where's our treats?" LOL!

Nancy

[Misplaced Texan]

We had a family come to buy rabbits earlier this spring.  their 2 y.o. little girl could really crow.  she and Blackheart, our Wyandotte rooster, crowed back and forth for about an hour!

Very Cute.

Gail

Hi! Nancy

[goonybird]

Hi Gail!