Chickens, and things related

[Soundguy]

For anyone with no bird experience.. make sure the flooring of your bird cage has ample surface traction.. sometimes small birds.. can get spraddle if the flooring is too slippery.. this usually ruins the bird if not caught in time.

soundguy

 

[Tororider]

I have seen people using linoleum in the bottom of the coop. I would think that has decent traction and easy to clean up. That is what I was planning on using.

 

[dooleysm]

I built my brooder with an open bottom and am planning on sitting it on the concrete floor in the barn and covering with wood chips or sawdust.

There's a lot of good info over on the chicken forum I've been reading, but as a whole they seem be into chickens much more for the egg/pet aspect whereas I definitely intend on butchering and eating my chickens. I think that's excellent motivation for the ones that are being stingy with their egg production

 

[sseelhoff]

Toro, I'm not going to answer any of your questions because it sounds like you really need to visit the library and check out a good 'raising chickens' book. Then I can't give you any more misinformation One bit of advise, however, on the chicken feed: buy a steel trash can with a lid to keep the rodents out and consider adding a mouse eating barn cat to your must have list.

I have found a good Jack Russell Terrorist(I mean terrier), makes a good mouser, too. Our old fella, Dickens (R.I.P.) would catch mice, moles, just about anything. Our new girl Cricket (9 months) caught her first mouse this past weekend. That'll keep the varmints out of the barn!

 

[Tororider]

There's a lot of good info over on the chicken forum I've been reading, but as a whole they seem be into chickens much more for the egg/pet aspect whereas I definitely intend on butchering and eating my chickens. I think that's excellent motivation for the ones that are being stingy with their egg production

I agree with you, I want good dual purpose birds that when they stop laying they can go in the freezer or straight to the frying pan. They tend to make them pets, not livestock, I think their meat birds section is the least posted in, hehe.

 

[dooleysm]

Right, though I'm pretty sure you don't want to fry them when they stop laying, too tough. My wife's uncle has a bunch of chickens that he raises just for eggs, white leghorns, like 75 I think. He never has any that don't lay, he says they disappear before then. He lets them out every evening and I guess the older ones go off somewhere and get eaten or die or both before they stop laying. He gets another 25 or so every spring.

He also gets another 25 (don't know what breed) that he raises for meat. I helped him butcher some this past summer so I could get a feel for what it takes. It's not terribly difficult, and certainly doesn't stink like rabbits or deer that I've shot.

By the way, we've been eating eggs from the wife's uncle's birds for about 3 years now. Occassionally he runs low and we have to buy some from the grocery. Everyone talks about how much better home-raised eggs taste, but I can't tell the difference. They look different, but darned if I can tell them apart by taste.

 

[Tororider]

Yeah, I don't know how old is too old to butcher and eat, but I guess I would find out. I guess the other thing is, when I can get more chickens I could ge straight run and butcher the roosters at 5-6 months.

I have found mostly that I don't feel I need to season, salt mostly, the farm fresh eggs as much. Now we refrigerate them right away and I heard if you don't refrigerate them, they stay good for a few weeks on the counter, that the taste is different. So tastewise, seasoning is the difference for me. But they sure do look different.

 

[davitk]

I have found a good Jack Russell Terrorist(I mean terrier), makes a good mouser, too. Our old fella, Dickens (R.I.P.) would catch mice, moles, just about anything. Our new girl Cricket (9 months) caught her first mouse this past weekend. That'll keep the varmints out of the barn!

let me know if the new terrorist eats what she kills

 

[Tororider]

Shawn, There was an article about using older birds for making soup broth. Maybe that is what I will have to do with freeloaders when they stop producing.

More realistically, with only 3-4 birds, I will let them live out their lives as pseudo pets. We will see.

 

[davitk]

Shawn, There was an article about using older birds for making soup broth. Maybe that is what I will have to do with freeloaders when they stop producing.

More realistically, with only 3-4 birds, I will let them live out their lives as pseudo pets. We will see.

We used to have funerals dug graves, built crosses......

Thought I had buried one alive once. Dropped her in the hole, hole was a little snug so I gave her a push with the shovel, she SQUAWKED

I maintain to this day that it was just air escaping as her lungs were compressed.