Chicken Coops for Sale in Casco, Maine
Chicken Coops for Sale in Casco, Maine
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 Casco, Maine
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Casco Maine" 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 Casco Maine chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Casco, Maine With the significant boost in poultry keeping there has been a just as big rise in the array of poultry paraphernalia for sale. Chicken housing is a proceedings in factor. It's likewise a timeless example of the excellent old bandwagon being jumped on as numerous prospective fowl real estate specialists peddle an array of holiday accommodation declaring to be the ideal solution to your chicken housing needs. Frequently the cost looks attractive, the house looks attractive, hell also the clean-cut household standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Definitely they recognize a professional chicken house when they see one? There are several economical and also nasty coops swamping the marketplace. I recognize this as I've checked a number of them in the area, and also seen a ewe run straight with one when the feed pail showed up. The result was nothing but an expensive pile of fire wood as well as a tiny group of bemused and currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Guides in Casco, Maine
Most of the time these mass produced versions are built of quick grown hardwood - come the initial drop of rain they swell, leaving you either blockading a doorway that will not close, or ripping the doorway furnishings off in a vain attempt to launch the squawking citizens. The first warm day suggests the hardwood dries out and also fractures, the felt roof bubbles as well as boils, and come nightfall the hens choose not to enter. This is not because of their frustration at the decrease of their when appealing residential property but since the hovel is now a haven for, and possibly abounding, the poultry keeper's bane, red mite. Add on that it claimed on the blurb that it would certainly fit four huge chickens when that equipping density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and exactly what are you left with? A number of hinges and some kindling. A good coop for thee to 4 birds need to cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this could depend on whether you elect for a cost-free standing house or one with a run connected. Presuming you are ranging your birds in a large area as well as the pop hole door is big enough for the breed you keep, after that the primary requirements of housing boil down to three points which will certainly specify the number of birds your home will hold; perches, nest boxes and ventilation. A lot of types of chicken will perch when they visit roost in the evening, this perch should preferably be 5-8cm wide with smoothed off sides so the foot rests pleasantly on it. The perch ought to be above the nest box entrance as chickens will certainly also naturally try to find the acme to perch. A perch less than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is by the way when they generate the most poo) bring about dirtied eggs the following day. They shouldn't however be so high off the floor of your house that leg injuries might happen when the bird comes down in the early morning. Chickens need concerning 20cm of perch each (in little types this is undoubtedly less), plus if greater than one perch is mounted in your home they need to be more than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their next-door neighbors but are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Ideally your home must have a the very least one nest box for every single three birds as well as these ought to be off the ground as well as in the darkest area of your house. The house must have appropriate ventilation: without it then condensation will accumulate every night, also in the coldest of climate. Understand, ventilation works with the principle of cozy air leaving through a high void drawing cooler air in from a lower space - it's not a set of openings on other walls of your house and also at the same level, this is just what's known as a draft. If you have a house with a run connected then the factors above are still real, however you ought to also consider the run size. The EU optimum lawful equipping thickness for a cost-free range bird is (and also let's encounter it, one of the inspirations for maintaining some chickens in your home is potentially boosted or better well-being) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's maximum one bird per 4m made even. Take a close check out a few of the deal houses - it could well be your house has the right perches, correct ventilation and also adequate nest boxes for a reasonable variety of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized piece of ground to invest the day on? Therefore as the claiming goes, "you obtain just what you pay for". You might assume you've grabbed a deal, yet you and also your group could rue the day you did. Purchase the ideal house as well as it will certainly last for a couple of years, otherwise longer given the right treatment. Eventually your poultry as well as your fowl keeping encounter will be a lot the much better for it.plans chicken
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