Chicken Coops for Sale in Springerton, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Springerton, Illinois
Cleaning the Chicken Coop; Fall Chores
Pallets leaned against Coop act as a wind break in Winter.
One of the chores I like to save for beautiful Fall weather is cleaning out the coop. I know that before I got chickens, I really wanted to see other people’s coops and how exactly they did things. So here is a look at my coop and the regular maintenance I have to do to keep my girls happy.
My coop is basically a chicken tractor made permanent. See how I built my chicken coop . It is only good to protect my egg laying divas during the night. I have to get up in the morning to let them out. Trust me they let me know if I am late. Late is after 8 am, so it is not like they start wailing at 5 o’clock in the morning or anything. They have a kind of wail that they only make when they want out. It is the strangest sound, kind of like a long drawn out moooooom , where are youuuuuuu? You have to hear it to understand.
Shoveling out the “raised bed” that my coop rests on.
To clean out my coop I have get someone to help me lift the coop off of the raised bed it is resting on. I have handles on either end, but it is too heavy for me to lift by myself. Thankfully my strong boys help me. Shoveling out all the old bedding and putting in new wood shavings is not too hard of a task, considering you only have to do it about 3 times per year. I empty out the nest boxes and add new hay to freshen things up. I heard for the first time the other day that it is a good idea to add crushed dried herbs to the nest boxes to make them more appealing to your hens. I tried crushed basil this time. Yes, hens are a constant source of amusement. They always want to lay eggs where everyone else is laying. I just have 2 nest boxes for my 10 hens. I call them nest boxes but they are a little unconventional. One is an old basket, the other is an old drawer. This time of year as we transition into winter the light wanes as the days grow shorter. You will notice your egg production reducing quite a bit. This is why commercial growers put a light on their chickens 24 hours a day; to keep their egg production up. Here at the homestead we try to work with nature instead of against it. That means more kale, less eggs. This is also the time that the rabbits really start producing well. While one thing lessens another takes it’s place. This probably wouldn’t work up north but I lean pallets against the coop to provide a wind break. A lot of people ask me if I need to provide a heat source for my girls when temps fall below freezing. The answer is no. It is important to make sure their water is unfrozen. Other than that chickens really do better in the Winter here than the heat of the Summer.
My hens checking out the new fresh nest box.
After the coop is all cleaned out it is time to add new wood chips. I get what is called a “Country Boy” which is farmer speak for a big packed bag of wood shavings. I get mine from my local feed store in Garland. When I first started chickens I used Fall leaves gathered from the curb. I like the shavings better because the compost turns out better, but oak leaves work out well as chicken bedding too. It is hard to see in the picture but the bottom of the coop against the ground is wire screen(yard cloth) to keep digging critters out.
My hens get very curious about all the changes taking place and come to check it all out. I put the old bedding into a bin and drag it to my compost. Thankfully I don’t have to go too far. I keep my compost in my chicken yard so that my hens can stir my compost and so that they can get the minerals they need to keep their egg shells hard. I put the cracked egg shells in the compost where my hens can gobble them up therefore getting the calcium they need to keep their egg shells firm. I also put other left over kitchen scraps in the compost for them to enjoy. Speaking of compost, a lot of people ask me about mine. Let me just say that trying to heat up a compost pile without manure of some sort is NOT easy. To heat up a compost pile without manure add fresh grass clippings. However right about the time fall leaves are readily abundant, grass clippings are NOT readily available. If you have read my posts at all you are probably sensing a theme; get an animal or a source of manure for your garden. Chickens or rabbits, even worms; your garden will thank you with beautiful veggies.
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Chicken Coop Free Plans in Springerton, Illinois
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Springerton Illinois" into any one of the numerous search engines and a wealth of information will pop up. This information will provide links to other websites that will be informative and will provide the right direction for finding Springerton Illinois chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Springerton, Illinois With the massive boost in chicken keeping there has been a just as large rise in the range of chicken materiel on sale. Chicken real estate is a proceedings in factor. It's also a timeless instance of the great old bandwagon being got on as numerous would-be fowl housing specialists peddle an array of cottage declaring to be the perfect option to your chicken real estate demands. Typically the price looks desirable, the house looks appealing, heck even the clean-cut household standing there feeding the chickens look appealing. Surely they understand a high quality chicken house when they see one? There are lots of economical and awful coops flooding the market. I know this as I've examined a variety of them in the field, and seen a ewe run directly through one when the feed pail showed up. The outcome was only a pricey pile of firewood and a small group of bemused and currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Plans Pdf in Springerton, Illinois
Most of the time these standardized designs are created of quick grown up lumber - come the initial decline of rainfall they swell, leaving you either defending a door that won't close, or tearing the doorway furniture off in a vain attempt to launch the squawking citizens. The initial warm and comfortable day means the wood dries as well as cracks, the felt roofing bubbles and also boils, and also come nightfall the chickens choose not to go in. This is not due to their dissatisfaction at the decline of their as soon as eye-catching home however considering that the hovel is currently a sanctuary for, as well as most likely abounding, the poultry keeper's bane, red mite. Add that it said on the blurb that it would suit four large hens when that stocking density was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and just what are you entrusted? A few joints and also some kindling. A decent coop for thee to 4 birds should cost you around ₤ 300 though this could depend on whether you elect for a complimentary standing house or one with a run connected. Thinking you are varying your birds in a huge room and the pop hole door allows enough for the type you keep, then the major needs of housing boil down to three points which will define the number of birds the house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes as well as ventilation. A lot of breeds of chicken will perch when they go to roost during the night, this perch should preferably be 5-8cm wide with smoothed off edges so the foot sits conveniently on it. The perch needs to be more than the nest box access as chickens will certainly also normally search for the acme to perch. A perch less than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is incidentally when they create one of the most poo) leading to soiled eggs the following day. They shouldn't nonetheless be so high off the floor of the house that leg injuries might occur when the bird comes down in the morning. Chickens need about 20cm of perch each (in tiny types this is clearly much less), plus if greater than one perch is mounted in your house they ought to be greater than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their neighbors however are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally your home should have a least one nest box for each 3 birds and also these need to be off the ground as well as in the darkest area of your home. Your home must have sufficient air flow: without it then condensation will certainly develop every evening, even in the coldest of climate. Understand, ventilation works with the principle of cozy air leaving via a high space drawing cooler air in from a reduced space - it's not a set of holes on contrary walls of the house and also at the same degree, this is just what's known as a draught. If you have a house with a run affixed then the factors above are still true, but you should additionally consider the run size. The EU maximum lawful equipping density for a totally free variety bird is (as well as let's face it, among the inspirations for maintaining some hens in the house is possibly boosted or much better well-being) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's maximum one bird each 4m made even. Take a close check out a few of the bargain residences - it could well be your home has the appropriate perches, correct ventilation as well as ample nest boxes for a sensible variety of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized item of ground to invest the day on? And so as the saying goes, "you get just what you spend for". You might believe you've got hold of a bargain, but you as well as your flock could rue the day you did. Acquisition the ideal house as well as it will last for a few years, if not longer given the correct therapy. Eventually your chicken as well as your fowl keeping encounter will be a lot the far better for it.build build
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