Thinking of getting hens.

[Darwin.]

I have a nice sized garden and I'm going on shift work shortly so I was thinking of getting hens to keep me entertained on my days off. I get through about 20 eggs a week so free range eggs would be nice.

I'd imagine it's going to be a big expense setting up a roost and run for them and then actually buying them. I have no idea how many to get or what breeds to go for. I used to love bantam hens when I was younger but they wouldn't be great for eggs. I could probably get a few of those and then a few others for eggs. Maybe 6 altogether, 2 bantam and two each of larger breeds.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

[Nicos]

A lovely thing to do!
Thing is, there is a restriction of bird movement in the uk at the moment, but no harm in planning and preparing ahead!
I started off with banties-each egg was about 32g-but 2make a normal 60g.
They tend to lay all year too...plus their yolk:white ratio is higher, so overall banties are actually more productive than most other breeds.

[lottie dolly]

Hi darwin,thats what i am planning,i have had several happy hour last few weeks,just looking on line about the fowel world,also if you are handy,there is no need to spend lots off money,again,look on line at not only ready made coops,but how to knock something up yourself,lots to see,i have found the baisics are in terms of space per hen is,4square ft inside the coop,and minimum of 10 if not free range,don't take my word but have a look,i was lucky enough to have scrounged a shed,that is going to be fashiond into a coop,have look on the free adds ext,not just a shed,but any wood for building 1 with,and chicken wire for the run,as soon as the weather is better,i will start,and hope defra will release a go buy date,best of luck to you.

[mrsbusy]

Hi Darwin. I am in my third year of keeping hens and I can share how I went about it but everyone on the forum will have different advice.
Before I spent any money I, with mrbusy and my daughter and partner - they being the other people in the house who would be involved - attended a half day beginners course. We learned how to pick them up, clip their flight feathers, clip their claws. We looked and smelt a poorly hen. We looked at poop! We looked at the different breeds on the farm. We discussed feeding, worming and dealing with lice, the dreaded red mites, the other sort of mites. It was a great half day - I got it through the Omlet website. We all loved the hens - no one felt they would have a problem.
I then looked for a second hand Eglu cube as I decided I wanted to be able to move the run easily round the back garden. They are expensive to buy new and hold their second hand value but I think I paid about £400 for the whole thing. Next I decided to have ex battery hens, yes to save them from the food chain, but also because I thought I would learn a lot plus they would all be vaccinated. So British Hen Welfare have hen homing days and I asked for 8 Ranger hybrids. They ask for a donation of £4 per hen to cover their costs. Point of lay hybrid will cost about £17 and a breed will be around £40 at least. My hens settled in well - they had come from a free range farm so were used to being outside. One died within 24 hours. The others all did well.
I was right about the learning curve - and have dealt with all sorts of things - round worms, tape worms, lice. Lashes, funny eggs, heart failure, fly strike - there is quite a list. I spent the first 6 weeks googling like mad. They all laid from the start.
One thing we did not have was red mite until I got a second hand wooden hen house and run on Freegle - which we took apart, rebuilt - cleaning it as we went along but goodness me those ******* are something to get rid of. I won in the end but had to get the big guns out. Diomaceous earth was a nice idea. So guess I would say be very careful if you get a second hand wooden set up. my plastic one does get them but nothing like the wooden.
So my wooden hen house was for the second lot of ex battery hens - which are Hubbard type of hybrid. They are dual purpose - very hefty but good big eggs too. They are very different to the Rangers and we had quite a lot of fighting despite trying to integrate them with separate runs/houses/divided garden. However they all get on well now. We have lost 2 to the fox - one had to be dispatched because she broke her leg, 2 others just died. The lady who ran the course offered a dispatch service thank goodness - but she also does an advanced course including dispatching.
I am going to get some point of lay in June and I have my name down for Australorps.
Other things to consider - disposal of the poop - they poop a lot - we compost the poop and some bedding rots down quickly - miscanthus is good, shavings take much longer; disposal of dead hens - I cremate mine on the lottie in an incinerator - you are not meant to bury them. If you free range them, is the garden fox proof. Do you have a dog? Dogs can be very dangerous if so inclined, so you need to make sure any pets are chicken proof. We have 2 cats - they are fine; my daughters dog is fine but my sons dog has killed hens in the past so not allowed in the garden.
So good luck - my ex batts are just amazing - they are funny, friendly, want to be in the middle of any gardening. They are a tie - I let mine out at sunrise so that is about 8 in the winter but 5.30 -6.00 in the summer. They put themselves to bed at night - which in the summer is 10ish, but 4ish in the winter. You can get a door which will close on a timer.
They are worth it all.

[alldigging]

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/a...r-2016-to-2017

[Darwin.]

I see some lovely coops online for, €160 - €199. I might get one made instead though. My brother in law is very handy at that kind of thing and my neighbour does fabrication so I'd have no problem getting one built. It might turn out more expensive but it'll be done right.

I have a concrete foundation that my greenhouse was bolted to so I could bolt a frame for a coop to that, 8' x 12'. There's a corner there beside it, maybe 20' x 20' that I can fence off for a run, there's a young crab apple tree growing there but I doubt they'd harm it.while I can give them free run of the lawns then at times once we're about to keep an eye on them. The back garden isn't fox proof but the lawns are and their run will be too.

The droppings will go in one of my compost bins. Can they be used for veg? It'll be the summer now before I get set up if I want to do it that way. Hopefully the bird flu thing is over by then. My brother used to have chickens, I must call up and see if he still does and where he gets them.

[mrsbusy]

Yes you should get great compost which is good for everything. We also make a' tea' using the hen poop which is watered onto the lawn - safer than bought fertilisers. I would like a henhouse that I could stand up in. Some breeds of hens are better at scratching but mine don't damage shrubs and trees but they would dig up newly planted annuals. Just have to barricade the plants in until established - last year I put bricks round things like cosmos.

[Darwin.]

Will they keep the grass down in their run, or will I still need to mow it?

I'll try and make it tall enough to stand up, I'll probablyget cover the top so wild birds can't get in.

[Nicos]

Grass?...ha!..you'll be lucky!
Unless it's a huuuuge run, they'll scratch it bare!

[Nicos]

Covering is a good idea because it'll keep off any snow, and form some shelter from rain.

[Darwin.]

The run will only be about 20' x 20' for maybe 6 hens. I'd like to let them out for a bigger wander about a few times a week.

We're very exposed to wind so I'll need to make sure they're well protected from it when they're inside.

[veggiechicken]

Can you split the run in 2 so that you can rest one half for a couple of months while the hens rummage in the other half?

[Darwin.]

I suppose I could split it but it would leave them with a pretty small run then. It might be a good idea to split it in case some get sick or are fighting.

[mrsbusy]

We too were advised to say goodbye to the grass but the hens have not caused any damage so far and they free range all day. They are really forest dwelling creatures and like being under bushes trees hedges and plants. They love getting behind the hollyhocks and runner beans.They do eat the grass but we still mow it over the summer . We do move the coop n run in the summer but it is on the patio slabs overwinter. I put some old rubber matting from the stable on the slabs and Barley straw on top of that. I have competely weather proofed the run with crystal clear tarps and some vinyl flooring on one side as the tarp was short. If it rains they shelter in the run. I leave them shut in the run for couple hours in morning as they avoid eating the layers pellets if they get out.

[mrsbusy]

Have a look at Newlands Poultry . Com chicken run mud management - its worth a look.