chickenlass Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 Hi everyone....I hope some of you experienced chicken keepers can give me some advice please.... I love my Eglu and it has been a great way to introduce me to chickens but now I really have the chicken bug and am fortunate enought to have the space in my garden as my cattery is closing at the end of September.[ I have ran it for 16 years and time for a change]...the space where the cattery is at present would be ideal for a larger chicken house.....so I have decided to order a wooden chicken house with large run so I can have more chickies! I p lan to keep my eglu and run but my main concern at present is now I have taken the plunge and ordered a wooden walk hut and run I am already worried about Red Mite!! Can anyone offer me any advice as to how best prevent an attack in he first place and what should I do if anything to the hut and run [which my husband will be assembling] before it is put together ? Are there any products other than redmite powder] I can treat the sections with before it is assembled to help stop and attack? This is what I have ordered but it is of walk in height with a 10ft run off it too. [My girls will still free range when I am about] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinnamon Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 Its really nice I ahve been looking at similar things, but just a run so that I can just put my Eglu (or a cube,maybe) in it. The ones I have been looking at have a fox-proof wire skirt too...a bit like the one on the Eglu run. But I like the idea of an attatched house too, which I could use as a chicken supplies shed & emergency accomaodation (or nursery,maybe?) Where did you get it from? Sory - no tips on red mite Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mountainboarddude Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 i have a wooden forsham cottage ark ark. it is pretty easy to clean, and in the year i've had it i have only just had red mite. i spray the house with poultry shield liquid every week whilst recovering from red mite, and every month thereafter. they are easy to clean and the chooks seem very comfrtable in it. the new house looks very nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenlass Posted July 24, 2007 Author Share Posted July 24, 2007 Where did you get it from? Sory - no tips on red mite Hello Cinnamon...what I have ordered is from Fishers woodcraft inThorne near to where I live. It's a combination of that model plus another one they do called the Sheperd as I wanted it to be walk in height with an extra long run. I have been looking to expand for a couple of weeks now and although there are lots of great websites to browse I wanted to have a look at he sheds for real to see how well they are made. These are superb and although a little pricey I hope will last for years [plus it was really nice to meet the guy who is actually going to build it for me.] edited to say thanks for that Matt..will look into poultry shield...perhaps If I start spraying right from the start I will escape an attack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starboyhull Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 That looks very nice I think as long as you keep on top of cleaning it then im sure you will be fine.....Chickens after all have been kept in wooden houses for as long as people have kept them (Im guessing ) A walk in one like that will be much easier to keep clean I would think too..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheilaz Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 Although I'd rather have a couple of Cubes. Really! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ladylucan Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 HIya, i did have an Eglu when i first started,but like you got the 'chicken bug' and ended up getting more chickens, well you can only house so many in an Eglu that in the end i just couldnt cram anymore in, so i sold it and bought a wooden house, i have had no trouble with it, i clean it out once a week, and the girls are more than happy in it, ( and i still have space for more chooks) Go for it, x ( though i do like the cubes) xxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 Vigilence really is the answer - whatever type of house you have. I have some Forsham arks (2 x Boughtons and 2 x Bedgeburys) so they are much smaller than your very grand affair, but the principles are the same. I sprinkle a layer of Diatom on the floor of the hen house, where the perches sit and on the perches too. Then I add a layer of aubiose as bedding and sprinkle another layer of either diatom or red mite powder on top and repeat this every week. Ditto for the nest box. I poop pick every day - that way I can do a quick check for any invaders (and get an early warning of any poop problems!!!). The first place to look is where the perches sit. You can also do the wet kitchen towel trick when they're roosting - rub it under the perch and if it turns red, you have red mite. Another sign is chickens not wanting to go to bed, but it would be a bad infestation by then! Once every 6-8 weeks I remove all the bedding and hoover up all the dust, then start all over again. Once or twice a year, when the house is empty, I soak the inside with Poultry Shield and leave it to dry out. I also usually have at least one or two houses empty at any one time, depending on what bantams and chicks I have and where they are - my garden is really awkward and difficult so the houses stay in their respective runs and I move the chooks around!! HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted July 25, 2007 Share Posted July 25, 2007 Hi I have a fairly small book called Chickens at Home; Chickens at Home (The Gold Cockerel Series) by Michael Roberts, Victoria Roberts, and Sarah Roadnight Its been around for a good while, and I think it's really good, covering maintenance etc. of wooden chicken houses etc. as well as pretty much all the other aspects of chicken keeping you need. Amazon are selling it for £6.60 - your library might even have it. Might be worth you having a look Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenlass Posted July 25, 2007 Author Share Posted July 25, 2007 Thats great..thanks so much for all the replies...I am taking on board all your suggestions so hopefully I will be able to stay on top of any problem that may occur. I shall get myself a copy of that book too Richard. LOl Sheila... I too love the Cubes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mountainboarddude Posted July 25, 2007 Share Posted July 25, 2007 like jools i have a bedgebury, i had not sprayed it with anything until i found red mite which was a pain to get rid because they were nesting in the gaps of the shiplap , but if i had started to spray as a precaution beforehand i'm sure i wouldnit have had a problem. p.s withg wooden houses you can paint them in any colour you want Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
