Chicken Coops for Sale in Pendleton, Indiana
Chicken Coops for Sale in Pendleton, Indiana
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 You Can Walk In in Pendleton, Indiana
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Pendleton Indiana" 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 Pendleton Indiana chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Pendleton, Indiana With the big rise in chicken keeping there has been a similarly large rise in the variety of chicken paraphernalia for sale. Fowl real estate is a proceedings in factor. It's also a timeless example of the good old bandwagon being got on as various potential chicken housing experts peddle a selection of accommodation claiming to be the perfect solution to your chicken housing demands. Typically the cost looks appealing, your house looks eye-catching, hell also the clean-cut household standing there feeding the chickens look attractive. Definitely they know a top quality chicken house when they see one? There are many economical and unpleasant coops flooding the marketplace. I know this as I've checked a variety of them in the area, and also seen a ewe run straight with one when the feed pail appeared. The outcome was just an expensive stack of firewood and a small flock of bemused and also now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Materials List in Pendleton, Indiana
Generally these standardized designs are built of rapid grown wood - come the initial drop of rain they swell, leaving you either defending a doorway that will not shut, or tearing the door furnishings off in a vain attempt to release the squawking occupants. The initial cozy day indicates the wood dries out and cracks, the really felt roofing bubbles and boils, and come nightfall the hens refuse to go in. This is not as a result of their disappointment at the decline of their when eye-catching home however because the hovel is currently a place for, and also possibly crawling with, the poultry caretaker's nemesis, red mite. Add the fact that it claimed on the blurb that it would certainly suit 4 huge chickens when that equipping thickness was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as just what are you entrusted? A few joints as well as some kindling. A respectable coop for thee to four birds should cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this could depend on whether you choose for a free standing house or one with a run affixed. Thinking you are varying your birds in a large space as well as the pop opening door is big sufficient for the type you keep, after that the main demands of real estate come down to 3 factors which will certainly define the number of birds your home will hold; perches, nest boxes and also air flow. The majority of breeds of chicken will perch when they visit roost during the night, this perch needs to ideally be 5-8cm vast with smoothed off sides so the foot rests conveniently on it. The perch should be higher than the nest box entrance as chickens will certainly likewise normally search for the acme to perch. A perch below that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is incidentally when they create one of the most poo) resulting in stained eggs the following day. They shouldn't however be so high off the floor of the house that leg injuries could take place when the bird comes down in the morning. Chickens need about 20cm of perch each (in small types this is undoubtedly much less), plus if greater than one perch is set up in the house they should be greater than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their next-door neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally your home needs to have a least one nest box for every 3 birds and also these need to be off the ground and also in the darkest location of your home. The house needs to have ample air flow: without it then condensation will certainly build up every evening, even in the chilliest of climate. Know, air flow works with the concept of cozy air leaving with a high gap drawing cooler air in from a reduced void - it's not a set of openings on other walls of your home and also at the same level, this is just what's known as a draught. If you have a house with a run attached then the points above are still real, yet you need to also think about the run size. The EU optimum legal stocking thickness for a complimentary array bird is (as well as allow's encounter it, one of the motivations for maintaining some hens in your home is perhaps enhanced or far better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird each 4m made even. Take a close check out some of the deal homes - it could well be the house has the ideal perches, correct ventilation as well as adequate nest boxes for an affordable variety of birds, but will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized piece of ground to spend the day on? And so as the claiming goes, "you obtain what you spend for". You might believe you've got a bargain, however you and also your flock might rue the day you did. Purchase the right house and also it will last for a couple of decades, otherwise longer offered the appropriate therapy. In the long run your fowl as well as your poultry keeping experience will be considerably the far better for it.chick coop
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