Is my pekin bantam male or female?

[comeonsmithy]

Hi everyone!

 

We are going to be completely new to the world of Chickens & Eggs. We've researched, we know what to do for the chickens and have decided to go for an Omlet Cube as their new home.

BUT

Do we keep in one place or move them around the garden?

What do you do?

Is it worth moving them every week or so?

 

Really appreciate your thoghts

Nic & Nick

[SmurfingDude]

Been moving my & around to keep the grass looking good but its all dead now need RAIN.

I'm thinking of leaving the in one place now.

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Welcome . Most people start out thinking it'll be a doddle to move the eglu/cube regularly but in reality, it's a bit of a chore, so most people end up with a fixed run area .

[alet_chicken]

Hi, welcome to the forum!

 

We used to move our Eglu run around every week but found our (then 4) hens destroyed the lawn anyway. Like ANH said, moving the eglu is a bit of a chore (not heavy, just so big!).

 

Since we got the Cube I have left it in one place. I think it's less work raking the floor over every week (I have woodchip on bare earth) than moving the Cube, plus it saves the lawn.

[SmurfingDude]

+ you get hooked & keep getting more &

[Mercedes55]

We are new to keeping chickens too and have 4 ex batts. You will see on the videos on the Omlet store that it makes it seem easy to move even the Eglu, when in fact it's actually quite heavy and awkward to move. I would imagine the Cube is even heavier. We've made a permanent run with soil that is covered by a few inches of wood chips. The only problem so far is the difficulty in keeping the run clean. I don't know if it's easy to get inside the Cube run but if it isn't I would consider maybe getting the Cube but buying a WIR to house it that is big enough to stand up in

[migsy]

Definitely don't bother moving it! I've got mine on a bed of hard woodchip. This is a useful thread.viewtopic.php?f=4&t=34765#p536647 Good luck!

[Meganymoo]

Definatly otherwise my will ruin our garden though we haven't got the best garden!

[Barleys Mum]

My arrived Friday and I've spent the last 3 days assembling it. It's been hot so have been waiting to get shade. Can't get the roof to fit properly, so until I can call them tomorrow I thought I would move it to a more convenient place in the garden. Quite frightening, it's very heavy and it's now run into the hedge and I can't move it by myself.

 

The lady on the course I did has a garden similar to mine with slopes and she moves hers.

 

Beginning to wonder if I have made an expensive mistake . Just as well I don't have yet waiting to go in.

[coco]

I bought an ark when I first got hens but even that was too heavy to move so we extended the run and it stays in one place. I use Easibed or Auboise on the run floor.

[comeonsmithy]

This is great folks - really appreciate your input. We are now thinking of a static run...

 

Nick

[Debaser]

Hello,

 

I have a normal eglu with a run extension for my 3 girls and move it a least once a week on to fresh grass, however I think it all depends on your garden size.

If you have limited space then consider leaving it in one place and horse bedding for the run floor.

 

Cheers

[whoopsie]

Used to move mine around all the time but when I get the new girls I think it'll be static - I had a rubbish lawn to start with but now it's a real mess!!

[Chucky Mama]

I move my cube every week to a fresh bit of grass but my girls free range all day and really only visit the run to eat. In the winter however I leave it in one place and have a special roll put plastic path that I put around it to stop the area getting muddy. If my girls were in the run all day I would definitely have it in a fixed area.

[Tutti Frutti]

This results of this survey might interest you! General consensus is... moving them around isn't practical or simply doesn't work for many people

[Isabel]

I leave it in one place and have a special roll put plastic path that I put around it to stop the area getting muddy

 

Chuckymama .... that sounds interesting! What is the product you use? Do you put it inside the run or just around the outside where the foot traffic is heaviest? Does it completely kill the grass underneath or does the grass recover in the springtime? My girls have a similar set-up to yours ... have house and run but f/r all day and only use the run to access the house or their food. Still, winter worries me - I need to get shelter for them and also don't want a mudbath!

 

Thanks

 

Isabel

[Chucky Mama]

Hi Isabel, it is Garden Track

 

Ideally to get all the way around the cube so that you can collect eggs, shut them in & clean them out you need 3 rolls. I am a scrooge and only bought 2 but it works fine for me. You clip sections together to make the roll as long or short as you need it. I leave the cube in 1 place and make sure that the grass under is not too closely cropped for the winder. The part of my garden where the cube is is prone to being boggy. This year using the track it has been absolutely fine under foot. The grass was fine underneath and happily grew through the gaps in the track. My only word of caution is, be careful during the snow. A thin layer of snow over the top can be slippery.

(google plastic garden path or garden track - can get offers for more that 1 roll sometimes )

[Isabel]

That looks superb! Thanks for the reply and the pic

[Barleys Mum]

I have managed to retrieve the cube from the hedge. The roll out plastic path seems a great idea, I was wondering about winter because our garden gets quite boggy.