CHICKENS!

[BmillsSkier]

Wow. That coop is nicer than the hovels some dirtbaggers call home.

I like the decision to put it right next to the hot tub. Must help set the mood.

[berko]

Those motion detector lights are a great idea. We lost 1/4 of our girls to those sneaky bastards.

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Ancient thread bump. We got chickens to "save money" lol. I had 12 Rhode Island Reds when I was a kid so not a total noob. The fiance went a little crazy this spring and we have 19 chickens total now. The oldest are almost 3 months and the youngest are 6 weeks I think. 3 different broods. A whole bunch of different breeds. Buff orps, silver lace wyandotte, choc orps, black star (aka Mos Def and Talib), cinnamon queens, rustic rock aka barred rock, probably something else I can't remember.

Got the 100 year old coop re-furbished and they are loving it. Based on our square foot calc I think we have room for like 40+ chickens in there so for 19 they are nice a roomy. Auto timer door to an outdoor run. Main coop is tight though. Solid windows that can be opened but have hardware cloth covering the openings.

Biggest question is predator issues. There are certainly coyotes around. No foxes I don't think. Previous owners of this farm had all kinds of electric fencing around the two buildings they were using for chickens. Two other little hobby farms down the road have their chickens free ranging all day long everyday. We have been doing some free range the last week, but Emily is worried about the hawks and eagles circling over daily. The coop and where the chickens hang is under heavy tree cover though. I think the chickens know to not venture out into the open fields. Ideally they just free range everyday and we don't need to worry about the little outdoor run area at all. That area is already pretty much all dirt/shredded and they have only been out there like a couple weeks.

Also, I'm in the camp of "They have tons of water and feed and an automatic door, so we can leave for a couple days and they will be fine." They aren't laying yet so it's not like there are eggs to collect. Maybe add exterior motion sensing light and wifi camera and I would feel ok going on a camping trip or something for a couple days.

Who else has gone down the chicken rabbit hole? If I didn't eat eggs every single day there is no way I would do this haha.

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

Everything likes to eat chicken

[KQ]

Love chickens but I've got too many birds of prey raccoons, fox and coyotes to allow them to roam free and I wouldn't like to have them in a coup all day.

Wouldn't mind some Guinea fowl to take care of my tick issue but again.... predators.

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

In over 20 years of keeping chickens, we only lost free ranging birds to neighbor dogs. A couple of hawks came close, but couldn't connect.We did lose one bird to a hawk in the pen, and another to a bobcat. Did catch and run off multiple foxes and coyotes looking through the fence for their next meal.Never lost any in the fully enclosed run and coop.

[riser4]

Love chickens but I've got too many birds of prey raccoons, fox and coyotes to allow them to roam free and I wouldn't like to have them in a coup all day.

Wouldn't mind some Guinea fowl to take care of my tick issue but again.... predators.

We aren't totally rural like you, but did have predator issues at night. We went with a large fenced in "yard" with loose netting on top. We moved this in a great arc over time as they stripped each area. This was attached to a more tightly fenced "catio" type area that was for days where we wanted something more secure and winter use. This was attached to the coop which we absolutely had to put them in at night. If we forgot on a given night, we would absolutely lose one or two.

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Our chickens all want to go in at night on their own so far. We have the auto door close 30 minutes after sunset.

[John_B]

Chickens are born to die. Maybe not as bad as sheep though. In the last few years I've had buddies lose entire coops to Great Horned Owls that flew into the coop, bobcats in the coop, sport killing weasels and bears. It seems like with the good auto door and a solid coop you're set up pretty well but will probably still lose a bird or two every once in a while.

Good luck and I hope your fiance doesn't get too attached to the birds.

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Thank you. She's a bit obsessed and she really enjoys it. I think the best thing is that she will leave her phone inside and go out and do chicken stuff or just hang out there watching them for hours. We did lose one from the oldest brood about 6 weeks ago maybe. It possibly came from the hatchery with pneumonia or something. Either way she was rattled like she did something wrong and then I got her to understand that shit just dies on farms sometimes for no reason. No she gets it and realizes that we may lose some to predators etc.

[MakersTeleMark]

<p>
The definition of chicken is letting a bunch of chickens keep you from going camping for a few days.</p>
<p>
Congrats, BTW.</p>

[yeahman]

Chickens are cool but what about roosters? Fucking things are noisy. I was just sitting on our deck enjoying my coffee and listening to a rooster like a quarter mile away. If those people lived near me we'd have an issue. They got a peacock too, holy fuck those things are obnoxious. Who does that to their neighbors? Now get the fuck off my lawn.

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

Hippie chickens are awesome.

[m2711c]

Unshaven chickens with dreads? They follow the dead too?

[riser4]

Unshaven chickens?

Careful, next thing you know there will be bald-headed chicken fuckers in this thread.

[m2711c]

Pretty sure Coños already here.

[riser4]

Chickens are cool but what about roosters? Fucking things are noisy. I was just sitting on our deck enjoying my coffee and listening to a rooster like a quarter mile away. If those people lived near me we'd have an issue. They got a peacock too, holy fuck those things are obnoxious. Who does that to their neighbors? Now get the fuck off my lawn.

Former landlord who lived nearby on the same farm property had peacocks. I hate those fuckers with a deep passion. We knew he had them going into it. We had no idea what hell we had signed up for.

[skaredshtles]

The definition of chicken is letting a bunch of chickens keep you from going camping for a few days.

This. Kiss travel goodbye. But the fresh eggs are nice, for sure.

Congrats, BTW.

Also this.

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

hippie chickens = peacocksI love those fuckers. Their shrieks of HALP!! and NO!! are comforting to me.

[KQ]

hippie chickens = peacocksI love those fuckers. Their shrieks of HALP!! and NO!! are comforting to me.

X2

[riser4]

You people are nuts!!! Those cries send me into a rage.

[yeahman]

Yeah you guys need professional help if you like that noise.

But maybe I just need a fresh perspective. If I think of the noise as being beautiful, maybe I will come to love and appreciate the peacocks..

Naah. Hand me the pellet gun.