The Community Guide

c/backyard-chickens

9

xena_murphy•16d ago

I was super skeptical about using diatomaceous earth for mites... until I actually saw it work

I kept hearing people swear by it on here but I figured it was just another snake oil thing. Then last summer I noticed my Buff Orpington, Gertrude, was scratching way more than usual and her feathers looked kinda rough. I pulled her aside and sure enough there were little red mites crawling around near her vent. I dusted the whole coop floor and nesting boxes with food grade DE from the farm supply down the road. Three days later I checked all the birds again and I didn't see a single mite. I mean it was like they just vanished. Has anyone else had that kind of luck with DE or did I just catch a mild infestation early?

5

wren_jackson•18d ago

Why does nobody talk about how much heat chickens can actually handle?

I was reading through some extension office articles from my state last week, and I stumbled on a fact that totally caught me off guard. Apparently, chickens can tolerate temps up to around 95 degrees Fahrenheit before they really start struggling, but anything above 100 can be lethal fast if they don't have shade and water. I always thought they'd be fine in the summer heat since they've got feathers, but that stat made me rethink my whole setup. Last August, we hit 102 for three straight days in Colorado, and I lost two hens before I figured out to add frozen water bottles and a misting fan. Now I'm checking the forecast way more carefully and making sure my coop has proper airflow. Has anyone else lost birds to heat stress and found a trick that actually works?

5

rowan262•18d ago

Spent $150 on a fancy heated chicken waterer, and it cracked in the first freeze

The plastic base split right down the middle at 15 degrees, so now I'm back to hauling warm water out twice a day like a sucker - anyone else have better luck with a different brand?

31

abby_singh•19d ago

Surprised by how much heat a single hen puts out in winter

I was reading a poultry extension article from Ohio State last night and found out a single hen gives off about 10 watts of heat. That is like having a small space heater running in the coop. I always figured they just huddled together for comfort, not for actual warmth. Has anyone else measured their coop temperature with and without birds in it?

2

mila395•20d ago

Talked to a guy at the feed store who made me rethink my chicken feed

He said I was wasting money on those layer pellets with extra calcium since my girls get plenty from oyster shells on the side. Switched to a plain grower feed last month and they're still laying fine, saving me $12 a bag. Anyone else cut out the fancy additives and see no difference?

13

drew_chen•24d ago

Neighbor told me my chicken coop roof was too flat, glad I listened

Had my coop built for about 6 months last year. Roof had just a slight pitch, maybe 1 inch drop per foot. Looked fine to me. But my neighbor who used to keep chickens back in Iowa pointed out water was pooling after heavy rain. He said it would rot the plywood within a year. I added some extra 2x4s under the roof sheeting to bump the pitch up to 3 inches per foot. Night and day difference now. Rain slides right off. Anyone else had to rework a coop after someone called out a flaw?

3

the_dylan•24d ago

Surprised by my own egg count after tracking for a year

I started tracking egg production last January just out of curiosity, and I was shocked to see my 5 hens laid 1,247 eggs over 12 months. That averages out to about 24 eggs a week, which is way more than I expected for a small flock (I thought it would be closer to 15 a week). I found this out by flipping through my notebook last weekend, and I double-checked it twice because it seemed so high. Has anyone else been surprised by their actual egg numbers after keeping records? I'm wondering if I'm counting wrong or if my birds are just overachievers.

2

fiona130•25d ago

I used to think chicken runs were optional until my girls got eaten by a hawk

I had a decent coop but let my 6 hens free range during the day because I thought a run was just extra work. Last Tuesday I walked outside and saw a red-tailed hawk sitting on my fence with one of my Barred Rocks dead on the ground. That bird cost me $40 in feed and 2 years of egg production from that hen. Now I'm building a 10x10 covered run with hardware cloth this weekend. Anyone else have a close call that made you change your setup? How big did you go?

15

karen_shah56•26d ago

Fed up with mites until I tried the food-grade DE trick

I was losing my mind over mites in my coop last summer, tried everything from sprays to those hanging strips but nothing stuck. Then my neighbor who's had chickens for 20 years told me to just dust the nesting boxes and dust bath with food-grade diatomaceous earth every 2 weeks. Haven't seen a single mite since I started that routine in July, and my 6 hens actually stopped losing feathers. Has anyone else had luck with DE or did you find something better for a small 4x6 coop?

26

kellygarcia•28d ago

Ngl I went with a heat lamp over a brooder plate for my first chicks and I'm kinda regretting it

On my first batch of 6 chicks last spring I figured a heat lamp was the way to go since my dad always used one. But man that thing made me so nervous about fire risk and the light disruption. After about 2 weeks I swapped to a brooder plate and honestly the chicks seemed way calmer and slept better. Has anyone else switched and stayed with one or the other?

13

joseph_martinez35•29d ago

Old chicken keeper told me I was feeding my flock all wrong

I was giving my hens straight scratch grain for months until a guy at the feed store said they need a balanced layer feed with at least 16% protein. He showed me how my birds were getting fat but not laying well because of all the corn. Has anyone else had a big change in egg production after switching up their feed?

12

dixon.felix•29d ago

That hatchery tour near Lancaster changed my whole view on brooder heat plates

I went to this small hatchery outside Lancaster, PA last spring and saw how they kept hundreds of chicks under simple heat lamps with no fancy setups. Everyone in my chicken group swears by those expensive heat plates that supposedly mimic a mother hen better. But the hatchery owner told me straight up they lose fewer chicks with standard red heat lamps because the birds can get the exact warmth they need. I switched back to a basic 250 watt red bulb after that tour and my mortality rate actually dropped from about 4 chicks per batch to just 1 or 2. I know the heat plate crowd says they're safer and use less power, but has anyone else had better luck going back to the old school lamp method?

18

iris_dixon91•1mo ago

My old egg washing method was wasting so much time

I used to wash every single egg under running water before putting them in the fridge. Now I just give them a quick dry brush with a bit of fine grit sandpaper if they're dirty, and keep them unwashed on the counter for a week. Has anyone else found that unwashed eggs hold up way longer than fridge washed ones?

4

the_vera•1mo ago

Switched from straw to pine shavings for the coop floor...

I always used straw because that's what my grandma did, but after 6 months of constant mite issues I finally tried pine shavings. The difference in smell and cleanliness is night and day... no more mites either. Has anyone else had a similar switch that worked better for their flock?

26

the_wren•1mo ago

Took me 2 years to realize I was overfeeding my hens

I kept wondering why my girls weren't laying as much as they should. They looked healthy, had plenty of space, but egg production just dropped off around month 8. Last week I actually measured out their feed instead of just filling the feeder. Turns out I was giving them almost double what they needed. They were full but not getting the right balance of nutrients cause they'd pick out the tasty bits. Once I cut back to the recommended amount per bird, I got 5 eggs in 3 days from 6 hens. Anyone else figure out they were overdoing it with feed?

17

pat_hart•1mo ago

Found out my hens need way more calcium than I thought

I was reading through some extension service fact sheets from my local university last week and found out laying hens need about 4-5 grams of calcium per day. That's way more than I figured, since a standard layer feed only has around 3.5% calcium. I started giving them crushed oyster shells on the side and within two weeks the eggshells went from thin and cracked to nice and hard. Has anyone else noticed a big difference after adding extra calcium to their flock?

7

the_dylan•1mo ago

A weird thing I saw on my hens' combs last fall turned out to be a real problem

I noticed a few of my girls had these small, grey, scaly spots on their combs and wattles. I thought it was just dirt or maybe a weird scab from a pecking order squabble (you know how it is). I almost ignored it, but after about a week it spread to three more birds. A quick search and a call to my local feed store in Springfield convinced me it was fowl pox. We had to isolate the sick ones and treat their sores with iodine for nearly a month. Has anyone else dealt with a fowl pox outbreak and found a good way to keep the rest of the flock from getting it?

12

jade_hunt48•1mo ago

Pro tip: don't buy cheap plastic feeders from the big box store

I got a $25 plastic feeder from the farm store in town, and the chickens knocked it over and wasted feed constantly. After a month, the plastic cracked in the cold and I had to buy a metal one anyway. What's a good, heavy feeder that won't tip for a flock of 8 hens?

8

dixon.felix•1mo ago

My neighbor told me to put a cinder block in the coop for grit, and it actually works

I was skeptical because it seemed too simple, but the girls peck at it constantly and their eggshells are much stronger now. Has anyone else found a weird but effective trick like that?

7

leo567•1mo ago

My hens were laying way less after the time change last fall

I noticed a big drop in eggs around November, down to maybe 2 or 3 a day from my flock of 8. I figured it was just the shorter days, but it lasted for months. I finally added a simple light on a timer in the coop to give them 14 hours of light, starting about 6 weeks ago. Now we're back up to 6 or 7 eggs a day. It's crazy how much that extra bit of light matters. Anyone else try this and have a favorite kind of bulb that's safe for the coop?

15

kelly338•1mo ago

Just saw a hawk take one of my hens and realized my coop run was way too open.

It happened yesterday afternoon in my yard in Boise. I always thought the chicken wire on top was enough, but the hawk just swooped right through the big gaps. What's the best wire to put over a run to stop birds of prey?

9

davis.emma•1mo ago

Pro tip: I finally weighed my finished compost after six months in a five-gallon bucket

It made 18 pounds of perfect stuff for the garden beds around my coop, and the girls love scratching through it. Has anyone else tried this to cut down on bedding costs?

10

claire999•1mo ago

My neighbor in Springfield said letting the hens brood is better than an incubator

I was chatting with my neighbor over the fence yesterday, and she saw my new incubator setup. She told me, 'Every time I let a hen sit, the chicks are just tougher. They teach them everything.' I've always trusted my Brinsea Mini Advance for my Barred Rocks, but her point about natural learning hit different. Has anyone else raised chicks both ways and noticed a real difference in how they turn out?

4

maxpalmer•1mo ago

Update: My neighbor's comment about my chickens' waterer made me change my whole setup

I was filling their metal waterer every morning in my Phoenix backyard, but she pointed out that after just two hours in the 110-degree sun, the water was too hot for them to drink, which is why my egg production dropped last July.

1

caseyfox•1mo ago

My $40 automatic coop door was a total game changer

I was always worried about forgetting to close the run at dusk, especially in winter. The door I got from a local farm store opens and closes with the light, so I never have to rush home. What's the best upgrade you've made for peace of mind?