Chicken Coops for Sale in Westville, South Carolina
Chicken Coops for Sale in Westville, South Carolina
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 Used in Westville, South Carolina
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Westville South Carolina" 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 Westville South Carolina chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Westville, South Carolina With the huge increase in chicken keeping there has actually been a similarly large surge in the array of chicken materiel for sale. Poultry housing is an instance in point. It's also a timeless example of the excellent old bandwagon being got on as various would-be poultry real estate specialists pitch a range of lodging claiming to be the optimal option to your chicken real estate requirements. Often the price looks appealing, the house looks eye-catching, hell even the clean-cut household standing there feeding the chickens look appealing. Undoubtedly they recognize a quality chicken house when they see one? There are several economical as well as nasty cages flooding the market. I recognize this as I've examined a variety of them in the area, as well as seen a ewe run straight with one when the feed container showed up. The result was only an expensive heap of fire wood as well as a small flock of bemused and currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Enclosures in Westville, South Carolina
Usually these mass produced models are created of rapid grown up timber - come the very first drop of rainfall they swell, leaving you either fortifying a doorway that won't shut, or tearing the door furniture off in a vain effort to launch the squawking occupants. The first warm and comfortable day suggests the wood dries out and also cracks, the felt roof covering bubbles and boils, and come nightfall the chickens choose not to enter. This is not because of their dissatisfaction at the decrease of their as soon as desirable property yet because the hovel is currently a place for, and possibly crawling with, the chicken keeper's nemesis, red mite. Add on the fact that it claimed on the blurb that it would certainly match 4 large chickens when that equipping density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and exactly what are you left with? A few joints as well as some kindling. A suitable coop for thee to four birds should cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this could rely on whether you elect for a complimentary standing house or one with a run attached. Presuming you are ranging your birds in a huge space and the pop hole door is big sufficient for the breed you keep, after that the main requirements of real estate come down to three factors which will certainly define the variety of birds the house will hold; perches, nest boxes and also air flow. Most breeds of chicken will perch when they go to roost at night, this perch should preferably be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off sides so the foot sits conveniently on it. The perch must be above the nest box entrance as chickens will certainly additionally normally search for the acme to perch. A perch lower than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is incidentally when they generate one of the most poo) bring about stained eggs the list below day. They shouldn't nevertheless be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries could possibly happen when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens require concerning 20cm of perch each (in small types this is undoubtedly less), plus if greater than one perch is set up in your home they should be more than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their next-door neighbors yet are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally your home ought to have a least one nest box for every three birds and these should be off the ground and in the darkest area of your house. The house must have appropriate air flow: without it after that condensation will accumulate every evening, even in the chilliest of weather condition. Understand, air flow works on the principle of warm air leaving via a high gap drawing cooler air in from a lower gap - it's not a set of openings on contrary walls of your house as well as at the very same level, this is just what's referred to as a draft. If you have a house with a run connected after that the points above are still real, however you must likewise think about the run dimension. The EU optimum lawful stocking thickness for a free variety bird is (and allow's face it, one of the motivations for keeping some chickens at home is potentially boosted or better well-being) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird each 4m made even. Take a close look at several of the bargain homes - it could well be your house has the ideal perches, appropriate air flow and sufficient nest boxes for a practical variety of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized piece of ground to spend the day on? Therefore as the claiming goes, "you get exactly what you pay for". You might believe you've grabbed a deal, however you as well as your group could possibly rue the day you did. Acquisition the best house and also it will certainly last for a few decades, if not longer offered the proper therapy. In the end your chicken and your chicken keeping encounter will be considerably the better for it.coop for sale
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