i have put them in the same cage, they are in a possum trap (hehe, only cage i have, its quite long, plenty of room for at least 3 big hens) and i have it sitting on blocks of wood off the ground so the air can get underneath. i have put them under cover so they wont get wet if it rains. they are not too happy in there at the moment either :( its got quite windy and cold here over the past few days, so hopefully it wont take long, i dont want them to catch a chill though either.
nycafe,
Oct 29, 2:43am
Woohoo finally we will get our chooks on Saturday :-) does little happy dance Only question I have now is recommendations for chicken food and where to buy in Auckland if anyone can help would be much appreciated thanks.
jules.,
Oct 29, 3:32am
thats so cool nycafe, its very exciting, they will quickly become part of the family :) try this web site, http://www.takaninifeeds.co.nz/they sell CHOOK CHOW, its great stuff, very fresh, our girls LOVE it. also, PECK N LAY pellets, you can get it from good pet stores, RD1 and farm supply stores. the super markets also sell their brands of pellets, mash and wheat, i do get it for my girls from time to time when i havnt had time to get to the farm store. it seems to be ok, they still eat it as normal, just may not have as much goodness and vitamins. good luck and let us know how you get on with them :)
lesleyf,
Oct 29, 3:54am
Well, solved the escaping chickens without having to clip any wings - put up a higher gate - looks much better and they definitely can't get out !Next problem - found one of the chickens in nesting box this afternoon pecking and eating at an egg!She had eaten one already and was about to start on another!I suspected that one of them was pecking at the eggs but now I have caught her in the act.Question is - how to stop her!Usually we get to the eggs before she gets a chance but there are some days we're at work/school and can't check on them.I have heard of leaving a golf ball in there - but does anyone know if it works!Or is she for the pot!(she is a good layer though - but with cannibalistic tendancies obviously!)
lesleyf,
Oct 29, 3:55am
ps she isn't hungry or lacking in vitamins / minerals etc. as I give them good food and plenty of it :-)
purplegoanna,
Oct 29, 6:11pm
leslyf get an egg put a hole in each end and blow the insides ut, fill it with a thick curry/parika/flour paste mix and leave it in the nest.not guaranteed but often works giving them a not so nice taste.speaking of escaping chickens ive just had to go next to the nieghbours to retrieve henny.bloody cow, can't for the life of me work out how she got over a 3mtr high mesh & electric fence with 3 strings of barbed wire at the top! the neighbours think im NUTS! and it didnt help having to chase her.thank gawd for my giant net and her getting stuck in some weeds.if she does it again shes roast!
jules.,
Oct 29, 6:39pm
are you sure she got over and not under purplegoanna! seems an awful way up and out!
cfa,
Oct 30, 1:56pm
yah.we have our first 2 eggs, my daughter has a grin from ear to ear - she's so proud. Found out we had 5 roosters, they started practising early morning & were gone that morning.
jules.,
Oct 30, 10:11pm
thats so cool cfa, it feels so rewarding when you get that FIRST egg!
purplegoanna,
Oct 30, 10:59pm
nah jules it wouldve had to been over, the whole fenceline has been filled with large stones & bricks in anticipation of any future break/dig outs before i put them in there.im going to have to remove my two teens i put in on thurs ive just witnessed extreme agression from the two brown shavers, it was horrible.i cant decide wether to keep the teens or keep the brown shavers.the teens i hatched myself and theyre very special but not laying yet.the shavers are feral tarts i inherited and are currently laying.
mothergoose_nz,
Oct 31, 2:39am
what age would you expect a rooster to develop pointed hackles!i picked up a poorly bred sussex rooster this morning.well it had rounded hackles. the seller is sure its a rooster.it has a lot of black all over its back so its more a crossbred although the eggs were bought in as pure. it would be about 12 weeks old.
cfa,
Oct 31, 4:06pm
no eggs so far this morning! Does the first egg hale the beginning of an egg a day or does their systems need to finely tuned at the start!
arie404,
Oct 31, 9:58pm
hi everyone, im new to this as well. Im getting my brown shavers next month and they will be about 18 weeks old. i have a coop with a door on the side that goes into the run area. I am renting and the coop was used before i moved in- do i need to clean it before the chickens arrive! and do they need to have perches! on the side of the coop up high it has shelves that i assume the chooks used as they are covered in poo. and if i clip their wings how will they get up to their perch! im in two minds of letting them free range or keeping them in their run. Im worried if they free range i wont get them back and they are an investment i cant afford to lose. Plus hubby is scared of chickens!
jules.,
Nov 1, 1:27am
yes i would give it a good scrub out, could be mites, bugs and diseases from the last lot of chooks. they will need perches to sleep on, they dont need the be high but it is better if they can perch at night. they would love to free range, but i would get them used to their new home and you first. after that, if you let them out in the afternoon for a couple of hours, then feed them in the pen, they will put themselves back in for dinner. good luck, and this is the place to ask for help, so dont hesitate :)
koru_designs,
Nov 1, 1:43am
Mothergoose.my boy was definitely showing pointed hackles & saddle feathers by around 12-15 weeks but they would have been noticeable earlier (I just wasn't paying too much attention). They'll be thin & long & pointy. The wattle & comb are probably a better clue - they'll be significantly longer/bigger than a pullet's plus he'll be generally bigger in size & "strut" more upright than a pullet. You'll know for certain soon enough - he'll start trying to crow ;) Cfa.do you mean how often are eggs laid! Depends on breed & daylength & the individual. They won't necessarily lay every day to start with (& the eggs maybe slightly odd when a chook starts laying - smaller or larger than normal, double yolks, etc) & depending on breed, may not lay every day even when they're mature. But my understanding is the next egg arrives after 20-something hours (25 or 26, I think!). Your birds will quickly get a rhythm going & you'll work out when the best time to collect the eggs are. Don't panic too much if you have days where there aren't any eggs. This is normal.
koru_designs,
Nov 1, 1:51am
Arie.yes, you'll need to clean out the coop & scrape off old poo, etc. You can get coop cleaning solution from farm supply stores & large pet shops that will also kill mites. I'd personally recommend that (just in case the previous chooks had them). They don't *need* perches (my old birds choose not to use them) but they'll be happier - poultry instinctively like to perch high out of danger of predators at night. Make sure the perches are reasonably thick, though (if they're too small, they can develop deformed breastbones - especially when they're young). When you clip wings, you only clip one - it doesn't stop the flying, just steering properly. They won't have any trouble jumping on to their perch. All of what Jules said is spot on. Free range is best if you can manage it. But keep them in their coop for a few days (especially if they have a run) so they get used to their new home. And no, you won't loose them.chooks are creatures of habit. If they've bonded to their new coop, they'll come home every night to roost.
arie404,
Nov 1, 5:07pm
hey thanks everyone, i feel a bit more at ease about the free ranging. Lol thank goodness i dont get them for a month, i have time to get that coop into shape. It kinda needs a good waterblast. times like this i wish hubby would do it!
purplegoanna,
Nov 1, 5:54pm
After youve given it a good scrub buy a bottle of Apple Cider Vinegar from the supermarket and a cheap weed sprayer from the warehouse and give it a good spray of at least 1part ACV to 10part hot water, let it soak in and dry in the sun,i do all my aviarys etc with this mix at least once every 3 mths.
purplegoanna,
Nov 1, 5:55pm
I got sucked into that then found out that if henny gets miffed with me at any stage for any reason then i get no eggs for as long as shes in a shitty!.at the moment its cause i put 2 teenagae chickens in her precious run, i havent had an egg from her for about 4 days! .shes forgotten im boss & the hand that feeds! lol
arie404,
Nov 1, 5:59pm
Thanks purplegoanna for that, i was wondering what to clean it with. Is there any other natural ways of keeping chickens healthy. I was hoping to do it as natural as possible if i could!
purplegoanna,
Nov 1, 7:16pm
Yip you can put ACV in their water at a rate of about 2-4Tbsps per ltr of water and you can also spray them with the same sprayer & mix you spray your hen housewith, wont hurt them in the slightest.just make sure you use a new sprayer and mark it clearly so no-one else eva uses it for a chemical etc.
jules.,
Nov 3, 11:46pm
bumping us back to the top!
stompy,
Nov 4, 1:57am
Bump for great thread
tinart,
Nov 5, 8:10pm
I have recently move to a home where i can have chickens.Can anyone give me advice on the best type of chicken for laying ( was thinking of getting some from local poulrty farm!) any do's and donts for chicken coop! anything that is bad to feed them!i wouldnt feed them chicken meat of course but i heard its good to feed the shells back to them!dont assume any advice is too obvious!:o))
oakhills,
Nov 5, 8:21pm
Its all very nice buying battery hens (brown shavers) and giving them a new gorgeous life:But all the ones Ive had are psycho!Nasty pecky flappy things.I would recommend Minorcas or plymouths, check out TM listings.Also, check the pets and animals message board - heaps of chook people there:)
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