Chickens 2023/2024/2025

[NHCraigT]

Well, the new batch of motion sensors paid-off today.

We had an alarm go off, indicating a specific area. The wife was outside but didn't hear the outside alarm receiver. I head it on the inside alarm receiver.

I went out as quietly as possible. Sure enough, there on a nearby hill, about 25 feet from me was the backside of a coyote, with its head turned around looking at me.

It started to run, I had a suppressed AR and fired off about 3 rounds in its direction.
Im hoping I at least nicked it with one of the rounds.

 

[NHCraigT]

 

[lancecolonel]

Took a ride to dodge grain today. I was able to grab a buff Orpington, a black australorp and a gold laced wyandotte. They were supposed to have blue/red wyandottes but there was some kind of mixup on their list.

 

[Knob Creek]

Setup a low watt LED light for a couple hours in the morning.

 

[Romokid]

Took a ride to dodge grain today. I was able to grab a buff Orpington, a black australorp and a gold laced wyandotte. They were supposed to have blue/red wyandottes but there was some kind of mixup on their list.

Are those pulllets? Our chicks that we got in the beginning of May just started laying the other day. I believe it’s the olive egger that kicked in as it’s a green egg but the other chicks are Easter eggers, black copper maran, blue copper maran. The only thing is our other chickens are mounting so they aren’t laying and my wife was thinking of trying to find some pullets.

 

[lancecolonel]

Are those pulllets? Our chicks that we got in the beginning of May just started laying the other day. I believe it’s the olive egger that kicked in as it’s a green egg but the other chicks are Easter eggers, black copper maran, blue copper maran. The only thing is our other chickens are mounting so they aren’t laying and my wife was thinking of trying to find some pullets.

Yes. They’re between 8-10 weeks old. They won’t lay for a couple months at least.

 

[lancecolonel]

Home | Dodge Grain | United States

Dodge Grain is a family-run company for horse and pet feed, pet and animal supplies, lawn and garden supplies.

www.dodgegrain.biz

Click on the poultry button to see what they have in stock and what will be coming in the future.

 

[Romokid]

Home | Dodge Grain | United States

Dodge Grain is a family-run company for horse and pet feed, pet and animal supplies, lawn and garden supplies.

www.dodgegrain.biz

Click on the poultry button to see what they have in stock and what will be coming in the future.

Thanks. I will show this to the boss.

 

[JayMcB]

Ugh. Door blew open while I was away and something got into my coop/run. Nothing left but feathers

11 birds and my @$$hole rooster.

14 years doing this….and this was a slaughter.

 

[lancecolonel]

That sucks.
I lost another girl to some type of predator last week. I got 6 new pullets in the last 2 weeks and don’t plan on letting them free range til spring. Something knows there’s an easy meal around here.
Hope whatever got your girls moves on.

 

[MAD Geary]

Anyone in the Foxboro area want a few silkie-mix roosters to process for soup? Figured I’d ask before I send them to Valhalla.

 

[Romokid]

Well out spring girls have just started kicking in with the eggs, which is good because our other 2-3 year olds decided now is a great time to molt. A couple of them look like that have been through chemotherapy. Now I’m hoping the other 4 new ones start but with the cold weather and lack of sunlight I won’t hold my breath.

Side note - one of our 3 year old Easter eggers (who hasn’t laid an egg since early spring) was found dead in the nesting box. No mites, lice or anything on the outside. Figured something was up as the day before she was out in the lawn standing by herself while the others were all scratch and pecking the ground together. But like I told the wife - the idea is not to have chicken pets but egg producers.

 

[Cowgirlup]

Well out spring girls have just started kicking in with the eggs, which is good because our other 2-3 year olds decided now is a great time to molt. A couple of them look like that have been through chemotherapy. Now I’m hoping the other 4 new ones start but with the cold weather and lack of sunlight I won’t hold my breath.

Side note - one of our 3 year old Easter eggers (who hasn’t laid an egg since early spring) was found dead in the nesting box. No mites, lice or anything on the outside. Figured something was up as the day before she was out in the lawn standing by herself while the others were all scratch and pecking the ground together. But like I told the wife - the idea is not to have chicken pets but egg producers.

Your new girls should lay all winter even with low light. Mine always have.

 

[Romokid]

Your new girls should lay all winter even with low light. Mine always have.

I was hoping they would, but it seems that only the Easter and olive Eggers are laying right now the blue copper and black copper marans haven’t. I think I read that they may take longer to start laying than the others.

 

[JayMcB]

I was hoping they would, but it seems that only the Easter and olive Eggers are laying right now the blue copper and black copper marans haven’t. I think I read that they may take longer to start laying than the others.

I added a light on a timer for my coop. I've heard people say 'it stresses the birds'. Maybe so, but egg production is your job, so do it.

Different breeds lay at different interval and start laying at different times. Easter eggers were consistent performers in my flock.

 

[Andy in NH]

I added a light on a timer for my coop. I've heard people say 'it stresses the birds'. Maybe so, but egg production is your job, so do it.

Different breeds lay at different interval and start laying at different times. Easter eggers were consistent performers in my flock.

The old wives tale that I follow is that, "Chickens need 14 hours of daylight to keep their reproductive cycle active".

I've got a light/timer in the coop to give them that and they seem to do well that way.

 

[Romokid]

Different breeds lay at different interval and start laying at different times. Easter eggers were consistent performers in my flock.

Yeah we had a couple easter eggers before and now got a couple more plus the olive eggers. We got this batch in May and I read that the marans can take 6+ months before they start laying so hopefully any day now.

 

[Cowgirlup]

I was hoping they would, but it seems that only the Easter and olive Eggers are laying right now the blue copper and black copper marans haven’t. I think I read that they may take longer to start laying than the others.

I got a mixed batch of chicks in May. My olive egger started laying in Sept and blue layer in late Oct. Just this week the other two started laying.

 

[Romokid]

I got a mixed batch of chicks in May. My olive egger started laying in Sept and blue layer in late Oct. Just this week the other two started laying.

Right now we are getting 2 blue eggs and 1 green egg a day and sometime 1 to 2 eggs from the silkies. The other "veteran" chickens all seem to be moulting so no eggs right now from them.

 

[NHCraigT]

Eggs are getting scarcer and pricier ahead of the holidays. Here's why.

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza — also known as bird flu — is killing layer hens and reducing the nation's egg supply.

www.yahoo.com

 

[xtry51]

There is zero reason to kill birds over the flu.

 

[NHCraigT]

 

[Andy in NH]

I've never seen an egg this wrinkled.

Seems OK otherwise, we'll see how it does in a few days.

 

[xtry51]

I've had a few wrinkled eggs over the years. They usually are normal inside.

 

[Andy in NH]

I've had a few wrinkled eggs over the years. They usually are normal inside.

I wonder if that condition is indicative of something else?

I got two more this morning.

 

[Romokid]

I wonder if that condition is indicative of something else?

I got two more this morning.

View attachment 944180

Yeah I could see if it was the same girl but 2 now from different ones could be something but not sure what. Soft shells is a calcium issue no idea what wrinkled shells is from. Do you have an idea of which breed they came from?

 

[xtry51]

Try supplement feeding them crushed sea shells to add calcium

 

[Andy in NH]

Yeah I could see if it was the same girl but 2 now from different ones could be something but not sure what. Soft shells is a calcium issue no idea what wrinkled shells is from. Do you have an idea of which breed they came from?

They are all New Hampshire Reds.

 

[Knob Creek]

Something got over a 6’ chain link enclosure and killed one of my chickens and ripped the entrails out of another one. Happened this afternoon. Hawk or something else out during the day.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

Something got over a 6’ chain link enclosure and killed one of my chickens and ripped the entrails out of another one. Happened this afternoon. Hawk or something else out during the day.

I’m sorry. It was me.