Search results

  1. chrismahon

    Hybrids :)

    I guess to class them as Leghorns they would need to comply with breed standard Dinosaw. The hens should have a floppy-over comb that doesn't flop so much as to obscure vision, but unfortunately in my experience can be prone to frostbite. Suppose the term 'utility modified leghorn' may apply...
  2. chrismahon

    Broody Hens

    Our hens seem to have gone broody all at the same time, which is strange. Some of them do it silently, hoping you don't notice? No clucking or raised feathers, they just sit there looking as though they are just going to lay an egg, but taking ages about it. Noticed the other day though that if...
  3. chrismahon

    Hello from Rotherham

    Hi Topaztiger1983 (Chris) and welcome to the forum. Loads of good info here plus on the host site 'poultry keeper.com'. Of course much of the forum is filled with problems and that could lead you to believe poultry keeping is just one problem after another. But that isn't the case. Start with...
  4. chrismahon

    Hello from County Mayo Ireland

    Our biggest predators are stray hunting dogs Patsonline. They can (and have) torn through chicken wire. The foxes are timid here and won't come in the daytime, unlike England, unless the crops around us have grown enough to give them cover, so we have 3 months high risk (starting now). We had...
  5. chrismahon

    Hello from County Mayo Ireland

    Our local breeder hatches all year round Patsonline. But its not as easy as you would think. Problems in this area begin with very high winds -there are no wind turbines here as they would blow over. Also hot summers mean that the fluffier ones have to go inside a stone barn to keep cool. The...
  6. chrismahon

    Hello from County Mayo Ireland

    Hello Patsonline and welcome to the forum. A great selection of breeds listed there. La Bresse Gaulois is a native breed in France obviously. But our local breed is the Black Gascone- a sort of black Leghorn I would think. Loads of them around us, although the French here are beginning to become...
  7. chrismahon

    Poo picking

    Continuing my quest to reduce the strain on my back I have been looking at a way of poo picking the enclosures without bending down. There are dog poo pickers available and horse poo pickers available. I've used a horse poo picker (just a dustpan and brush on a stick) and it's hard work as they...
  8. chrismahon

    New to the forum

    Hi Jackie57 and welcome to the forum. Good luck with the hatch, it's always an exciting time for us. Something we will be doing later in the year once we have our enclosure better arranged for new arrivals. Our flocks are getting old and this year may be our last chance to keep them going.
  9. chrismahon

    Hello from Lancashire

    Hello Gilly and welcome to the forum. They seem to lay younger all the time. A few years ago 21 weeks was exceptional. I think the quality of the rearing has a big influence, as well as the breeding.
  10. chrismahon

    Hello World

    Hello Poultryman and welcome to the forum from me as well. Whereabouts are you located?
  11. chrismahon

    Drinkers -what's wrong with just a plastic bowl?

    I'm posting this question having pulled my back again, after moving the 'bell' type of plastic drinker into one of our low runs. We have them in every run and most have coloured plastic balls inside to show the water level at a glance from a distance. Most are also 9 litres capacity so quite...
  12. chrismahon

    Egg eating

    We have a rather strange situation with egg eating. We have two Brown English Bantams laying at the moment. One of them is Bluebell, the youngest at 16 months and very much top hen (she replaced Snowdrop). The other is Daisy, now three. We have a single nest box fitted with a curtain. Laying can...
  13. chrismahon

    Hello from an Insulated Hen Coop owner

    Hello Greatrooster and welcome. My guess of your location would be Quebec Canada. Having looked at your link I can see that the coop is far bigger than it first appears. I have an old book which recommends insulating a coop in the North of Scotland as there it will get quite cold, but not as...
  14. chrismahon

    greetings

    Hello Cukoo and a warm welcome from a very sunny Gascony in France. I have no doubt your considerable experience will be a valuable asset this forum.
  15. chrismahon

    Hello from Horse Rider12!

    Hello HorseRider12 and welcome to the forum. Afraid I don't know much about ducks but I'm sure someone can answer your questions. Whereabouts are you?
  16. chrismahon

    Hello from Chalky

    Hi Chalky and welcome to the forum. Amazing quest you have. We have a problem here keeping the fluffier breeds cool in Summer and one keeper I have contacted (she has 400 chickens plus numerous rabbits) keeps all hers in a large (600 square metres floor) stone barn and uses a big mobile...
  17. chrismahon

    Hello from Herefordshire

    Hello Marches Farmer and welcome to the forum. We have a rather depleted flock of Blue Laced Wyandottes with a sick cock at the moment. Foxy does Salmon Faverolles. I seem to remember that she visits Bristol regularly which may help you.
  18. chrismahon

    Hi, Total Newbie

    They should be fine on a cold windy day, provided they are backed with good mesh Lotta. Otherwise predators could just chew through them. A calm hot Summer is another thing, which is why all our vents have sliding panels to open them out fully. I have also built Summer mesh pop-hole doors now to...
  19. chrismahon

    Newbie from Cheshire

    Hi MJG and welcome to the forum. Sorry about your problems with Popcorn. Hope it all goes smoothly from here onwards.
  20. chrismahon

    Hi, Total Newbie

    Hi Lotta and welcome to the forum. I can see you have based your coop design on others on the market (in this case the Chinese ones), which is a good start. But most have chronically small runs. Your 24 square feet is really only enough for one bird. The pop-hole looks short for a cockerel and...
Back
Top