What makes a chicken coop easy to live with?

[Lucia]

Hi folks,

 

Got two daft questions to ask today!

 

First one is - I have three chickens all of whom are bumper bitted due to them pecking each others skirts and leaving the poor souls looking rather oven ready! NOT a good look. They have been bitted now for about 12 weeks and while on has regrown a decent pair of knickers the other two haven't? Can they still peck with the bumper bit on?

 

Second daft question is - I have two young chickens coming today from a work colleague (they are going to live in a broody run till they are ok to introduce to the Omlet cube). They are not vaccinated and haven't been treated for anything but appear fit, healthy and parasite free etc

 

I plan to let them settle in, give them a good check over for any problems and worm them (and treat for any thing else as necessary) before we begin the introductions to my current girls but should I also them vaccinated and if so what should I ask the vet to vaccinate them against? (and while I'm on the sibject do the vacinations need repeating or do they last a lifetime?)

 

Thanks in advance!!!

Edited September 11, 2009 by Guest

[xScrunchee]

Not daft questions at all

 

Yes, they can still pull feathers whilst wearing bumper bits

 

No-you will not need to get the new hens vaccinated

[Lucia]

Hmm I have no idea how to stop Mil-Dread pulling the other feathers out then.. They seem ok and she at least can't draw blood now but it would be nice if they all had knickers on!

 

As to the new ones...I went to collect them today and it appears he had rehomed the two older hens to someone else, but had two others for me............8 week old babies!

 

So they are home and in a broody run, had to rush out to buy food as I only have layers and the local place only had MASSIVE sacks of growers so they have had to go onto chick crumbs in the interim (chappie in shop said that would be fine till I got some growers)?

 

They are very sweet and cheeped all the way home bless them. The other girls can see and hear them and there was a bit of outrage initially (lots of chicken swearing, feather puffing and strutting about!) but they soon lost interest when fed some corn and blackberries!

 

So any advice re bringing up babies?

[Olly]

gosh that's a bit naughty of the breeder. I have no experience of chicks, someone else on here no doubt will be along shortly.

 

Under NO circumstances put them with your older girls, I know you said they're in a separate run, so you probably appreciate what might happen if they could get to them!

[beulah59]

I think I'd be rather put out if someone did that to me ... selling my hens onto someone else, I mean, not bumper bitting me!!

[Lucia]

Not entirely happy at getting two babies mainly because I'm not experienced enough to be able to tell if they are actually girls!

 

He has been breeding them for three years and reckons he can tell at 8 weeks (he sent the one cockerel the same age to the local petting farm) but has said he would take them back if he got it wrong.

They appear to be Black Rocks or similar!

 

(it is a work colleague who bred them).

Edited September 10, 2009 by Guest

[Falkor]

What breed are the babies? Some are quite easy to tell I believe.

 

I went to see some 8 week old Cuckoo Pekins the other day and the boy was very obvious.

 

Congrats on the new ladies and I am sure they will be fine of Chick crumb for the time being

[teri]

chick crumb is fine for the chicks and don't be afraid to let them scratch about themselves. mine have been eating everything they can get their beaks on since they were a few days old including grass, corn, bugs and table s"Ooops, word censored!"s. be sure to avoid giving them oyster shells though as they are to young. my chicks went onto growers mix and chick grit at about 10 weeks and are thriving. at 13 weeks they moved into the run with the big girls but still have seperate sleeping quarters. they are now 14 weeks old and as you can see coping very well with the big girls

 

good luck and be assured that chicks are surprisingly hardy little things

ps if you post pictures someone may be able to identify their sex if you are worried

[Lucia]

Thanks guys - will try to take some piccies tonight.

[Lucia]

Sorry not very good ones but here are the two new arrrivals.

 

 

And

 

 

(this one is a Bantam apparently. )

Edited September 12, 2009 by Guest

[Valkyrie]

They look lovely. I'm not sure whether male or female - just been in a similar position - in fact one of ours did a fantastic job of cross dressing until the last moult and produced beautiful green tail feathers - suddenly grew massive and yesterday crowed for the first time (he was dispatched this morning before we upset the neighbour, so first time for us with that too).

It's quite a big comb on the first one so possibly male and the second female - but I am guessing and I got it wrong with ours, although I did have doubts. I looked at lots of pics of birds - some had big combs for girls and some girls also had spurs. Still none the wiser. I read one test was to lay them on their backs and depending on the sex, one is supposed to wriggle and the other doesn't. So I tried that method - knowing our Maran was a girl (nice distinctive blob of white on her head as a chick) I tested her first. She struggled, so fine I thought. Then the other (which we now know is a girl) didn't, while the boy also struggled. That theory blown out the window.

Someone will be along shortly - Egluntine knows her stuff.

Edited to add fingers crossed for girls for you.

[Redwing]

They are either both girls who are not the same age or the top one is a boy

 

The top does look girlie to me though

[Lucia]

Hi well the one in the pics below (the smaller one) is allegedly a bantam and a different breed but I have no idea what!

 

Local old farmer told me to chuck something over the top of the run....hens duck for cover, cockerels puff up, stand tall and yell out an alarm. Well threw a ball over the run and they both ducked but no idea if it has any truth! LOL!

[Valkyrie]

[Space Chick]

 

Local old farmer told me to chuck something over the top of the run....hens duck for cover, cockerels puff up, stand tall and yell out an alarm.

 

In that case my Sarah-Jane is having an identity crisis, and she doesn't duck and shouts at us, but has been laying us lovely speckled eggs