It all started about three years ago when my wife and I decided to get a few chickens. We thought it would be nice to have a few fresh eggs and they were so cute (or so my wife thought). Well, there were a few things we weren't aware of like housing, feed, watering, cleaning the coop, the weather, predators.... and so on! Since the chicks were so young when we got them home, I had to build a brooder. A brooder is a small cage that is kept at about 90 degrees while the chicks are young and then the temp is brought down about five degrees a week until the temp inside the coop is the same as your temperature outside. Like I said, there was a lot we didn't know!
I had about three weeks to build a coop before our girls were ready to come out of the brooder. We had an old wood shed out in the coral that came with the house. I thought I could cut in a few windows, frame out a door and I would be done. Needless to say, my wife had a different idea of what a chicken coop should be. I found a great website called "Back Yard Chickens". It was full of great information and photos. The more I read, the more I put into the coop.
Not only did I cut in the windows and frame a door. I also insulated the walls, put contractors mesh on the floor then covered that with 3/4 inch plywood to keep predators out. I put wire over the windows, to keep predators out. I built a run 16 feet long by 5 feet wide by 5 feet high covered in wire to keep the predators out. I put a roof on the run to keep the predators out. I dug a one foot ditch around the perimeter of the run and filled it with 30lbs. of nails and broken glass before I buried the fencing in the ground TO KEEP THE PREDATORS OUT! And finally, when winter hit and the cold weather moved in, my wife thought the chickens would be cold, so I put in a heat lamp. All of this was so I wouldn't have to share my house with them..if you know what I mean!
As our girls grew, we noticed one of the four was quite bigger than the rest. Then, while working in the garden one day, I heard a strange screeching noise coming from the coop. At this point I wasn't sure, but I thought we might have a rooster! Well, in a few weeks there was no question about it, one of our girls was indeed a big, beautiful rooster.
Not knowing what a rooster truly meant in the pecking order of a flock, he quickly let us know. Now a rooster's job is to defend his ladies from any threat, including the people that feed them and give them fresh water and clean up after them. This bird was always ready for battle. Eventually, to go in the yard you had to have not one, but two weapons of mass destruction to DO BATTLE. My weapons of choice were a rake I could use to distract him and a broom to hop him in the ass while he was busy attacking the rake. This became a daily ritual that we both looked forward to. He was like a dino rooster! But, in the three years we had chickens we only lost one bird and that was because she left the fenced-in area. I attribute the luck of the flock to this rooster's ability to do battle with everything that moves within his domain.
You must check your flock on a daily basis. Our chickens live the good life. They have feed and clean water daily, plus my wife makes them oatmeal on cold mornings and they get a treat of yogurt with raisins in the afternoon! During the winter their water freezes, so you have to keep up on it because they drink a lot. Chickens do get sick and occasionally you must medicate them. I built an enclosed feeder that holds 30 lbs. of feed, so I only fill it about once a month. Chickens love to eat and table scraps go a long way with them. Our chickens love spaghetti, yogurt, raisins, carrots and just about any leftovers from the dinner table.
I can't go over or even remember everything I have learned over the years, but if you have any questions about starting a flock or about an existing flock feel free to leave a comment and I will gladly reply.
Until next time....
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