2009 Omlet cube and run for sale

[stehaggan]

Well I have 2 questions....

 

I have got 4 new chickens... 2 12 week olds and 2 bantams, I have separated them in the WIR as supposed to, but before i opened the classic and the 12 week old sussex jumped out and my 6 warrens jumped on her and had her in dead lock on the floor. They pecked at her but luckily I was right next to her so got them off straight away... i never thought my girls would be so vicious... so my question, am i best of leaving them separate until the new girls are about 18-20 weeks so that if they get pecked they can fight back or run? And I've read its best to put the old girls in the separation part for a few days to throw off the balance.. will this work?

 

My other question is -MUD!!! with all this rain, I have made a roof for my WIR and put about 6 omlet shade at various places but it still seems to be getting a bit too mucky inside for my liking. Does everyone have this problem? i have seen pics of tarpaflex to cover the WIR sides to keep rain out of the sides- i think this might work but i wanted ask as it would be quite expensive for me to buy it all to cover the run and don't want to waste money if people think its not worth while.

 

Thanks

Edited November 3, 2010 by Guest

[cooker]

I have a big mud problem aswell....I have put up plastic sheeting over large areas of the run, and we plan to create a roof section this weekend, but it won't cover the entire run. I get a big embarressed admitting I have a mud issue! I have seen some beautiful walk in runs on pictures on here that are all covered, for us to do that we would have to knock our entire run down and start again.... girls don't seem to mind, they tend to hide under the cover when it rains and I have a dry area for a dust bath for them..

 

Rachel

[Chortle Chook]

It seems that quite a few people on this forum use transparent shower curtains. Seems like a good idea to me. though I haven't needed that yet as my little run has a roof.

[Powerlady]

12 weeks seem a little young to me to be mixing with big girls..but sure some will be along who knows more than me

[Plum]

I think you need to leave the youngsters seperate until they are at point of lay. If you put up divider in the run then they'll get accustomed to seeing each other but not be able to do any harm. Then when they grow up I do slow introductions by letting them together in the run but with escape perches and things to hide behind but also no places they can get cornered, so move any stuff in the run away from the edges so they can shoot behind and run out the other side.

To begin with I would keep them seperate because of unrecognised disease anyway.

Hope they've got over the attack but it's perfectly normal chicken behaviour but you do need to protect the babies.

[skye]

Hi there!

 

You don't mention what you have on the floor in your WIR, but many of the people on the forum use a horse bedding made of hemp - various trade names such as Aubiose, Hemcore, Easibed. That tends to keep things dry and absorbs poop well, as long as you have a roof on your run. As far as the clear tarps go, I bought one from EBay for about £15-20, expensive but heavy duty and brilliant for when the rain/snow is coming horizontally! You can just roll and tie it up like a tent door when the weather is fine and then it is there for quick conversion if the weather turns nasty.

 

Don't know how your WIR is sited, but we just have one tarp along the longest end of the run/the end that receives the prevailing wind, and then use a couple of Omlet shades as you mentioned for other parts. People buy clear shower curtains and secure them with bungees, but they are prone to ripping in strong winds I think.

 

I believe it's best not to cover your whole WIR as it needs ventilation and can get damp if there isn't a good flow of air going through it.

 

Good luck with integrating your girls! As others have said above, it's best not to mix them until they are POL and can defend themselves. Keep them so they can see each other and maybe sprinkle a bit of corn along the division, so that even though they are feeding from each side, they get used to eating together.

 

skye x

[patsylabrador]

We covered the floor of the run in loads of gravel last year as it's so cheap and built it up higher than the surrounding ground and then put on bedding. This year, the gravel has been absorbed into the ground and it is quite solid although it hasn't been tested by much rain yet. I might have to top up the gravel, but it worked as the water drained away from the run, and sometimes they looked like they were surrounded by a moat.

[Chortle Chook]

We covered the floor of the run in loads of gravel last year as it's so cheap and built it up higher than the surrounding ground and then put on bedding. This year, the gravel has been absorbed into the ground and it is quite solid although it hasn't been tested by much rain yet. I might have to top up the gravel, but it worked as the water drained away from the run, and sometimes they looked like they were surrounded by a moat.

Hey that's a good tip. I'm going to borrow that

[LauraJ]

We put woodchip down in the run for our girls, quite a thick layer. It lets the rain drain away and also lots of little bugs and worms like it so the hens have some yummy treats!

[Mr Rhode Island Red]

At the moment one half of my chicken run is a total quagmire, house getting twice as dirty because of muddy feet.

[jill the potter]

I agree with the others about keeping them separate until they are a bit older, particularly as they will be on different food? I did this with mine until they were on layers pellets (16/17 weeks) It was a bit of a pain and a faff but I think well worth it as they now all get on together - albeit a bit wary and the odd threatened peck from Tikka just to show who's 'top chick'.

 

With regard to the mud, it might not just be rain coming in through the sides, it could be coming through the base, particularly if the run is in a slight dip. The trick with the gravel sounds good to raise the floor a bit. I noticed with my WIR that even though it on paving slabs, has a roof, and some of the sides are covered the rain still seeps under the edges. Some of it I have sealed with silicone sealant, but it still gets in at a couple of the corners. I now realise that we should have had the slabs raised higher than the rest of the garden.