Advice Needed!

[Bex]

Never been on the board before because I've never had the need. Our allotment site has just had permission from the council and we are now allowed chickens. This is something that was on our wish list as a family but now it could become a reality I don't know where to start. Allotment site have provided a website to re-home ex-battery hens so livestock isn't a problem it's just everything else.

How much room to allow, where can I pick up a coup for a reasonable price, I know they will eat some kitchen scraps but how much is feed/upkeep etc, how do I stop foxes getting in? As you can see I need lots of help.

This isn't something that I am going to rush headlong into as I would ideally like a bigger allotment (only got half plot at the mo), any input would be gratefully received.

[Bramble-Poultry]

A Jennie essay - just pre-warning - actually this is a cut and paste extract from a magazine article I wrote

Just because you want a chicken for eggs do not fall into the idea that you must get the most prolific layer on the market, there is a finite amount of eggs that a household will use so bear in mind the amount of eggs you would use on a weekly basis add a few on for family and friends and that is all you need. Many more become a problem and you are constantly searching for ways to use up eggs. There is however so much more to a chicken than eggs, you will fall in love with their comical characters and mischievous ways, there is not better garden pet than a chicken much more interesting and rewarding than a rabbit and just as easy to keep.

You also need to consider the amount and type of space you have available and then where and the way in which you intend to keep your birds. If you are keeping your birds away from you house on an allotment then expensive ornamental breeds should be avoided as they are a high theft risk. Chickens are birds and as such they can technically fly and many of the bantam breeds and smaller breeds can do so very effectively but most of the larger breeds tend not to be so flighty and are generally more placid and larger chickens actually require no more space than a bantam, bantams are more active and require more space for their size than some of the larger breeds, most of the large breeds will happily and contentedly scratch around your garden or their run all day.


Chickens do not require vast amounts of space to be happy and healthy but what they do require is security from pests and predators and also to stop them escaping. A good quality house or shed where they can keep dry and warm with good ventilation, enough room to stand up tall and to stretch their wings and flap them freely both inside and outside, this is usually 1m cubed minimum for each bird but should ideally be more, a bird also requires free access to enough food and water without competition from the other birds. There are many commercially available hen houses and they all have their guidelines on how many hens they will house but use you best judgement and allow the bird sufficient space, always buy the biggest house and run you can accommodate even if it says for 8 hens and you only want 3, this allows more room for the birds and they will be grateful. Try to avoid ark style runs as whilst they are attractive to look at there is a lot of wasted space as your hen will never be able to access the sloping areas.

Chickens are not solitary creatures so one chicken on its own is not advisable, when people ask about hens we always recommend three as a minimum, this provides companionship and warmth even in the unfortunate circumstance of losing one of your birds. It is also an adequate number of birds for an average household, three birds will not create excessive mess or noise and can usually easily be accommodated in most commercially purchased hen houses whilst still producing a sufficient number of eggs for the household. I would recommend no more than six birds in an average garden as more than this will start to create problems with maintenance. Of course there is no rule that states all of your birds have to be the same breed - have a mixture, variety after all is the spice of life.

There is a big movement towards rescuing ex battery hens with several specialist rescues springing up around the country. Rescuing an ex battery hen and giving them a new life is a very worthy ideal, they are very good layers having being bred exactly for this purpose and will give you a sense of fulfilment but you will also encounter lots of health problems and heartache along the way, they are usually in a very sorry state when you get them and very often require a trip or two to the vet at your expense, it is also inevitable that you will lose one or two of them and if you have children around this can be difficult, actually it can be difficult even if you don’t. Don’t misunderstand me rescuing hens is very rewarding and worthwhile, we have lots of ex-batts and other rescues here with us just be aware that it is not the easy plain sailing route to chicken keeping.

The best age to buy a chicken is at point of lay, this is a term used for a chicken that will shortly be in lay, your hen at this point will be anywhere from 16 weeks old. Just because a bird is point of lay does not mean that the bird will immediately start laying it can take several more weeks to come into lay and when they do start laying it will be a little erratic and that wait for the first egg to be laid will be a excruciatingly long one, but there is no joy quite like that of your first egg.

When choosing a pet chicken for your garden do not necessarily get drawn in by the breeder telling you that they are from a certain line or are show winning stock, If you want a pedigree bird to show and breed from then fine but if you want a pet for the garden then these things are immaterial and do nothing other than increase the price of the bird, she will not lay more eggs because her mom was a 3 times show winner and she certainly will not be loved any less by you and your family because she’s not quite breed standard. What you are actually looking for after you have decided on the breed and colour you want is how healthy the bird is. As tempting as it may be to buy the poor sad looking thing all hunched up in the corner don’t! you are buying a bird that is not right.

A healthy bird should be active moving around and interested in scratching and pecking at the ground. There should be no discharge from the eyes or nose areas and no crossing of the beak. Plumage should be nice and shiny, not be patchy and not be ruffled. The wattles and legs should be smooth and scale free. Watch for the bird constantly shaking its head as this bird has parasites of some sort and should be avoided, also avoid birds that seem overly aggressive towards the others or overly shy, these are not problems that will go away when you get the birds home and will ultimately cause you problems. When buying try to purchase from a reputable source and ensure that your birds have had their vaccinations most importantly Mareks and Salmonella but there are several other vaccines that a breeder may give including Coccidiosis and infectious Bronchitis.


Hope it helps!!!

[Suechooks]

What more can we say! Well done Jennie.
Just wondering if that article should be a Sticky? How do we go about making it one?
Welcome to the forum Bex.
BTW I keep chooks on my allotment. You need to be on guard for 2 legged predators as well! I've lost 2 lots to low-life thieving scum . I now havew a variety of security and am constantly upping it!

[Bramble-Poultry]

BTW - welcome to rule the roost - if you do want ex-batts there are several other people who rehome them also if BHWT do not have any.

To the rest of you reading this I know I recommended no more than 6 birds - don;t lynch me - this was written with the "average" family of full time working people in mind.

As for coops, on an allotment my suggestion would be a 6x4 shed - the cheap one from b&q - a lot of us use these. then just add 6x3 mesh aviary style panels until you have the desired run size, very easy to make yourself - more versatile to enlarge etc or use round posts sunk into the ground and chicken mesh - much better than a commecial run and much much cheaper. Rememeber to cover your run!

If you want a smaller run - there are some plans on here somewhere.

[MaureenHall]

Hi and welcome to Rule the Roost

One thing that Jennie didn't mention (all her advice is fantastic!!) is that as you're going to keep the chooks on your allotment, you really do need to make it fox-proof. You'll need to sink the strong glavanised mesh into the ground and preferably have some slabs around the perimeter to stop the devils digging under the fence. Also, consider where you're going to keep the feed. If you're going to store it at the lottie, then you'll need some rat-proof containers. There's probably more stuff you'll want to know, but I can't think of anything else just now

If you do get your hens from BHWT at Coventry, say Hi to Mollie and Ian for me .................. most of my girls came from there

[Bex]

Wow, thank you so much for all the advice.

What do you think of this for a couple of chooks:

NEW LARGE CHICKEN COOP HOUSE & RABBIT HUTCH CAGE COOPS on eBay (end time 10-Nov-09 21:00:00 GMT)

Yes/no/maybe but...

[Hans Mum]

Another thought..... is the distance of your lottie from home, as you will have to go there at least twice every day, perhaps more in winter when the water freezes,

[Eco-Chic]

Hi Bex,

Welcome.

This recent thread has a lot of info which should be of interest to you. It includes a post from myself outlining my set up costs to which can be added:
2nd coop, feeder & drinker £72 (unassembled)
20 kg mixed corn
240ml Gentian Violet Spray (medical kit for wounds).

You can pare back on the initial outlay by purchasing smaller sizes but, as always there are savings in bulk buying.

It may be worth getting together other people at your lottie to bulk buy. Feed can be stored in dustbins.

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...-up_40063.html

[Eco-Chic]

Bex,

I have that coop you listed without the exterior nesting box for 3 Orpington Bantams (originally 4 but lost one). The roof is slightly bowed and water collects in a puddle and does seep through the felt to the ply underneath. I imagine that sustained rain would mean that the roosting area would become damp and I shall be obtaining a tarpaulin or clear ridged roofing to put over it to weatherproof it.

I think the run is adequate to allow my chooks to scoff up their growers pellets during the morning before free-ranging in the garden until dusk. If they weren't able to free-range I think an additional run would be a must.

The second coop looks to be the same as the link you posted. It is extremely flimsy and not, IMO, as sturdy as my first coop. I wonder whether it would stand up to the rigours of the weather on an exposed allotment?

Wickes recently had a 6'x4' shed for sale @ £109. I think this would be far better value. The additional space could be used as storage.

[Bramble-Poultry]

3 full size chooks would be a little cramped in there to be fair and it is a little on the flimsy side, I have seen these. You can buy it now but have to buy another this time next year.

We built a similar one ourselves but bigger and it cost £89 to build but can be done cheaper but we used security grade mesh.

As eco said you have to think about going to the lottie 2 times everyday hail rain or shine and someone to look after them whilst you are away on hols.

Eco - we split on of the shed in half and store stuff in the front half and the chooks have the back half - great extra little bit of storage

maureen - yes forgot about foxy loxy - thank you, have to consider two legged predators too!!

[Bex]

Thanks Everyone, you've given me lots to think about.

[Eco-Chic]

Just thought of annuver fing Bex,

You'll need some sort of light to tuck the chooks in at night. If you do a search I'm pretty sure Walldanzig started a thread recently about lighting.

[Bex]

Thanks Eco, I'll add lighting to the list.

[walldanzig]

I did and I settled on a head torch I tried the car battery thing it ate the power too fast a head torch works just great it allows me to have my hands free whilst still being able to see in the dark. It does make me look a little foolish but at 7 o clock at night there isn't anyone else stupid enough to be lurking around a dark allotment plot. It has also taught me a valuable lesson of putting my tools away.

[Bramble-Poultry]

as long as you leave the door to the roosting area open during the day, then the birds will put themselves into bed at night as it starts to get darker (or is that just me with trained birds? ), the light you would need at the lottie would really only need to be a decent torch so that you could check all are in bed and safely tucked up, all catches locked down and doors bolted etc.

The RSPCA (and common sense) state that the birds shouldnt be left locked up for any great time in the morning in the house, so ideally should be let out by 9am at the latest. This is especially important in the summer where the house could have been in full sun since dawn and be getting very hot by then.

You can purchase a solar powered door opener that lifts and closes the coop door according to light levels, however they arent that cheap and i sometimes wonder that the chance is that it could open the door first thing, whilst a fox is stood there. It would be like opening the door to an all you can eat buffet!

Perhaps if you could set a timer to open that would be better. You must remember that foxes arent a evening only predator, they also hunt at dawn and city foxes will even wander around in the daylight.

Have good fun with your birds, whichever you choose. If you go for ex-batts at this time of year, remember that they will not be fully feathered so wont be able to keep warm very well. Speak to Jennie (my dear wife) who will sort you out with a knitting pattern for a chicken jumper.

Yes, those of you who know Jennie, its official, she spent last night knitting burgundy jumpers for the ex-batt chickens.

As we havent got any ex-batts that are featherless at the moment, i am starting to get that feeling of an addition to the family, similar to when you see your wife knitting booties you get the hint that a baby is on the way except this time she is knitting chicken jumpers.............