Newby Questions

[kitty]

Hi everyone, just picked up my first 4 hens this afternoon, 2 speckeldy and 2 black rock and they seem to have settled in quite nicely already.
Just a couple of questions though, firstly what do I do with the water and feed when the hens are tucked away for the night,do they go in the coop? Secondly what do i do with the food in the feeder when its raining and is likely to get soggy? Finally, are the chickens ok to go in the coup when they're soaking wet, I guess they will be but would just like to confirm.

Thanks in advance

 

[Anonymous]

Hi kitty,

Nice to see you on here,everyones is welcome.I'm a newbie to(got my first hens in september)and I'm definitely addicted.

Really pleased they seem to be settling in well ,hens really are man's best friend,anyway,to your questions.
Firstly,at night when your hens have gone to bed,remove their food and water completely.Your hens will be sleeping(in the wild,they wouldn't risk their lives by stopping roosting for a snack)if they are left in a run or actually in their coop it will attract rodents like rats or mice.
Secondly,the food does need to be kept dry,put their food containers under shelter,so they can feed in comfort and the food doesn't swell up.It wont stay as fresh all wet and soggy.
As regards going to bed wet,certain breeds loke polands and houdans(who have fancy headgear feathering) would definitely need to have their hats dried.I also think feather legged varieties benefit from having their legs feathers dried.Strictly speaking,it is ok for the hybrids you've got to go bed wet.I personally prefer to dry mine(3 ex-batts,2 pekins,1RIR)so I call then into my house,shut them in a metal dog cage/crate and give them a blast with my hairdryer on a cool setting that isn't like a gale force wind.This is down to personal choice,I just don't think they are as comfortable soaking wet.

As your girls are new,even if they don't appear to be stressed they probably are.They need to adjust to their new environment.If you're not already doing so,add some apple cider vineagar(10mls to a litre of water) to their drinkinhg water and some garlic.Make sure it is unrefined ACV,equine ACV.This is beneficial as opposed to supermarket variety which has had beneficial nutrients removed.
Hope this helps.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Kitty. I had the same problem of food in the feeder getting soggy when it rained, but what I did was buy a large round plastic saucer that would normally fit under a pot plant container. I took the original silly little top off the feeder which is useless and replaced it with this larger one and put a couple of tiles on top to keep it steady. The big saucer keeps the rain out really well even when there is a downpour.

 

[Anonymous]

I keep my gals food in their house but others I know keep it in a covered run or under the house if it's off the floor a bit.

As for hens getting wet - ideally they shouldn't get soaked through but can get a bit wet at times. It's Important to make sure your girls can get shelter when it's raining. The hens you have are quite hardy compared to some of the fancy breeds like Poland that Lydia mentions.

 

[victorias poultry]

My hen houses are on top of 3ft logs so the food is kept under their houses during the day so keeps dry and is also a shelter for the birds when raining. The food is then put in the hen house at night so vermin can't get at it.
The drinkers I keep out all the time, in winter I empty it at night as they tend to freeze and refill in the mornings. I am afraid I don;t dry my birds when they are wet, with over 300 birds I would be there all night.
Have had poultry for over 20 years and never had any problems.
Good luck with your new birds, I am sure they will give you years of enjoyment, they all have their own personalities.

Sue

 

[kitty]

Hi folks, thanks for the replies, I think you've answered all my questions.
Just one bit of eggsellent news though, yesterday, the day after we bought them, we were presented with one lovely brown egg which is amazing. It would be nice however to know which hen was the layer!!

 

[Anonymous]

Brilliant,the first egg is the lovelyiest.

I get 2 egss a day laid by my 3 ex-batts-I can never decide which 2 are laying.The eggs are in the nest boxes before I get there.

 

[kitty]

Just an update for everyone, our 2 black rocks & 2 speckledy chooks have settled in very nicely and the pecking order has been well established 1st is largest speckledy, 2nd smaller speckledy, 3rd is bigger blackrock and finally smaller blackrock, but generally they all get on together pretty well.
To date we've had about 8/9 eggs, not sure who's laying them but we're well pleased. The blackrocks appear slightly more friendly with the smaller one allowing me to stroke her and pick her up readily.
We've had a couple of problems along the way particularily with them getting on to the top of a 3 metre + wall on the perimeter of our back wall and with a similar drop on the other side. Although we are at home most days, we're afraid they would not be able to get back to their coop so we will have to keep them in their run when we're out, so it looks as if some wing clipping is necessary although we don't want to do this if at all avoidable. We've also had to fit mesh over the top of the run, the fence of which is about a metre high in case they would get out into the garden and then over the wall.
As far as wing clipping is concerned, we have read conflicting reports on whether the chooks could still fly after wing clipping some say they can't others say they can and do we clip 1 or 2 wings, so any comments on members experiences would be appreciated
Finally, we have to say that we are thoroughly enjoying our new experience

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Kitty,
Really pleased it's going well.
with regards wing clipping,one wing is trimmed to un-balance the bird,it can sort of fly,but only for a foot or two with out gaining height,then they crash or bump to the gropund.
It is easily done,Tim has done a very good diagram on the poultry keeper site complete with picture.I just don't remember where it is :? .
Basically though,sit a chicken on your lap,give it a minute or two to relax,take hold of it's wing(there is a joint that you can feel in your hand)and gently but firmly pull it away from the hen so it opens.
With a sharp pair of scissors,start at the base of the wing(closest to the hens body and where the shortest flight feathers are)and cut up at an angle,so that the flight feathers at the top of the wing where they are longest have the most cut off.So if you cut the right wing,you'll be trimming in this direction /.
Only cut the feathers where the blood supply has ended,like a dog's quick,so not the quill part but the feathery part.
Do only trim one wing.