questions about chickens

[Dutchie]

The way things are looking we will be getting chickens sometime soon.
I have started to look up some stuff about loking after them but I still have a couple of questions. Our chickens will be in a chicken coop but will be able to run around our yard when we are cleaning it out.
We used to have a couple of chickens a LONG time ago and most of that info is way forgotten.

Now the questions.
- What do you feed your chickens?
- I know that I can run to the store/mill etc. and get 'real' chicken feed but is there an alternative?
- Can I feed them leftovers and if so, what kinds?
- Can this be their only food or does it have to be supplemented with 'real' stuff?
-We are planning on having the coop on a hard underground (probably paving stones with a thick layer of straw).
- Is this a good idea or should we lift the stones and let them just 'dig' in the dirt or is it better in this case to put down some straw?
- We are not sure about whether or not to also get a rooster. How much noise does one actually make? I know stupid question - we only had chickens and no rooster. But here's another one - I know that a rooster will crow in the morning but how long does he do this and does he do it the rest of the day?
(We live in an urban environment and don't know if the neighbors are waiting to be woken up by a rooster very early in the morning - hence the stupid questions.)
Thanks for taking the trouble to read/answer this.

[ladytoysdream]

Hi
Getting back to basics here, and we got a unplanned purchase of 12 meat chickens a month ago. We both have farm backgrounds, and we live in the country surrounded by farmer's fields. The one son just gave us 5 more baby chicks that I have my fingers crossed are going to be egg layers. They sure act different than the meat chickens. We got a mixed run of them and so far, it is looking like 6 boys, 6 girls.
For the layers, thinking about keeping one rooster, so the eggs will be fertile, and can have one of the sons hatch us out some babies either later this year, or next spring. You don't need a rooster if you only want eggs for eating. They do crow and if your neighbor's are close, they probably won't appreciate the noise early in the morning.
We have a small coop and a fenced in yard currently for the meat birds. Have to figure out something for the new kids. Hopefully we can get some kind of more permanent coop up before winter comes. And or make a small room, in the addition on the garage for them with a small door made so they can get to a outside run. The more I research on this subject, the more I want some laying chickens to be a permanent critter here on our two acres. We are homebodies, and enjoy doing things around here.

A coop should be easy to maintain, and keep the birds protected from the weather and predators. We had a shunk sneaking around here yesterday that is now no longer alive. What a shame, he was a purty critter.

Good luck. Let us know how you make out

[Dutchie]

Hi
Getting back to basics here, and we got a unplanned purchase of 12 meat chickens a month ago. We both have farm backgrounds, and we live in the country surrounded by farmer's fields. The one son just gave us 5 more baby chicks that I have my fingers crossed are going to be egg layers. They sure act different than the meat chickens. We got a mixed run of them and so far, it is looking like 6 boys, 6 girls.
For the layers, thinking about keeping one rooster, so the eggs will be fertile, and can have one of the sons hatch us out some babies either later this year, or next spring. You don't need a rooster if you only want eggs for eating. They do crow and if your neighbor's are close, they probably won't appreciate the noise early in the morning.
We have a small coop and a fenced in yard currently for the meat birds. Have to figure out something for the new kids. Hopefully we can get some kind of more permanent coop up before winter comes. And or make a small room, in the addition on the garage for them with a small door made so they can get to a outside run. The more I research on this subject, the more I want some laying chickens to be a permanent critter here on our two acres. We are homebodies, and enjoy doing things around here.

A coop should be easy to maintain, and keep the birds protected from the weather and predators. We had a shunk sneaking around here yesterday that is now no longer alive. What a shame, he was a purty critter.

Good luck. Let us know how you make out

Thank you for you reply. Can you tell me something about feeding the chickens? What do you feed yours?

[ladytoysdream]

We bought the bags of chicken feed from the farm store to get ours started. You need a high percent of protein for the meat birds. Ours is 20 %. I had 2 coupons of $2 each that I used for bags 3 and 4 we just bought. Only had one of the 20 % left and we got a bag of 15 % and mixed them together. Ours are just a month old. I was reading that they can have more variety in their diet now. Meat birds need the higher protein because they grow so fast.
I just took some pics of ours and will add them to my chicken album.
I am trying to get back up to speed on raising birds
Plan is to use veggies from the garden for them, as treats. Being outside in a run helps them to chase bugs, etc, and eat grass.

[ladytoysdream]

What kind of chickens were you thinking about getting ?
In the future, I am thinking I want some Rhode Island Reds, so they can be for eggs and or meat.

[bonnotsm9]

We've had chickens in the past and are in the process of building a coop so we can have them at this house. We aren't going to have any roosters this time. Our other flock included several roosters, and let me tell you, they can be mean and nasty little fellows. They chased the hens constantly and fought like the dickens with each other. Although they did fertilize some eggs, our hens were poor setters. They would sit on the eggs for a fews days or so, then abandon them. The kids would go to collect eggs and took all the ones without a hen sitting on them. It is simply revolting to crack open an egg and discover a bloody half-develped chick embryo instead of the yolk and white you were expecting.

Some hens are more broody than others. It may have been that our hens were not a broody variety, but for us, it's not worth having a rooster to hatch out our own eggs. Hens will live for several years. When we need to replace our flock we are just going to order day old chicks again.

As far as crowing goes, they can be pretty noisy. I really can't say that I found them too loud, but if you have neighbors nearby, they might think so!

Also, the roosters of certain breeds of chicken can be much more aggressive than others. It's worth checking out if they will be around kids. Our Rhode Island Red rooster attacked my son once.

[redmaples]

in your chicken run, i would remove the stones so that they will have a dirt floor. they need something to scratch in & need dirt especially for their dust baths...this keeps lice & mites off them naturally. they need to get sunshine & also to have enough space per chicken in the run. they can get picking at each other if the conditions are overcrowded.

i feed both scratch grains & egg layer crumbles, kitchen scraps & greens

when they are not free ranging. & don't forget to add a bit of grit when they are cooped up.

If you the coop & run is close to your house & neighbors you'll want to carefully consider the rooster. do you want to be wakened before dawn every morning by crowing?

A lot of roosters are very mean. many people i know have to carry a stick into the run/coop to defend themselves from an aggressive rooster. I am fortunate to have a very friendly, mild mannered rooster. We've given away many who were attack birds.

good luck in your chicken venture!

[dean]

We use starter feed for the babies. Feed store.
Then we went to layer mash, veggie peelings, apple peeling, they love pears (friend has a pear orchard they never use, so we take all we can get in the fall and put in the root cellar)(we chop everything up to bite size, it's alot of work, but the price is right), corn on the cob, (They'll take it off), they are free range in the back yard, so they're always in the compost pile, eating bugs.

[Dutchie]

Thanks everyone for your answers to my questions.

I cannot say that one specific reply is the best one because I got so much good info from so many folks here.

I am not sure about what kind we will get but I think it will be barnevelders (this is a Dutch breed). We had these before and they gave a lot of eggs and were friendly.
I have decided not to get a rooster because of the arguments given here.
Thank you for all the info, it was all VERY helpful.
As soon as we get them I will post some photos.

[freebs]

Chickens like to scratch so the hay that you put over the stones wont stay there for long, they will have it turned over for you. I have a dirt floor for my chickens and i do have other animals in with my chickens and they love to dig under anything! Roosters~ They crow all day! Mine start about 2 am and are still crowing at chore time around 4 pm. They crow up till dark....lol. The only reason you would need a rooster is if you want to hatch eggs. Even at that rate there is no gaurantee that they will be fertile. I have 10 hens and 2 roosters(not by choice just one that got thru my sight before butchering him) and i still only have about 50% fertile eggs or less. You can tell if they are fertile when you break them open and there is a red spot in the yoke. I feed mine chicken scratch it cost about $9 at the feed store for a 50lb bag, but i also feed them grass clippings, bread scraps, tortillas, meat scraps, rice, beans, salad mix, veggies, so about anything we have left over i feed. Now they cant eat beans that are not cooked and i only feed cooked rice. I hope this helps!

[rottiegirl]

- What do you feed your chickens?

Mine are free range, so plenty of grasses and bugs I'm sure, but their main feed is layer pellets and scratch grains I buy in bulk from a local co-op.

- I know that I can run to the store/mill etc. and get 'real' chicken feed but is there an alternative?

I know there are some people who grow corn to feed cattle and also feed it to their chickens, but i don't know much about this.

[/B]- Can I feed them leftovers and if so, what kinds?

Anything but chicken Keep in mind fish, onion, garlic will give chicken eggs a funky taste, some people also won't give their chickens meat... I have seen chickens eat baby mice so.....

Can this be their only food or does it have to be supplemented with 'real' stuff?

I don't know anyone who feeds a "scraps only" diet.

-We are planning on having the coop on a hard underground (probably paving stones with a thick layer of straw). Is this a good idea or should we lift the stones and let them just 'dig' in the dirt or is it better in this case to put down some straw?

I, as well as many poultry farmers prefer a dirt floor, it seems to help with the ammonia smell that can build up quickly with chickies

We are not sure about whether or not to also get a rooster. How much noise does one actually make? I know stupid question - we only had chickens and no rooster. But here's another one - I know that a rooster will crow in the morning but how long does he do this and does he do it the rest of the day?
(We live in an urban environment and don't know if the neighbors are waiting to be woken up by a rooster very early in the morning - hence the stupid questions.)
Thanks for taking the trouble to read/answer this.

Roosters crow all day, some are loud some are not, in your situation i would NOT advise getting one.

[mauimagic]

Just adding my experiences from Kauai - Roosters crow all day and night - very noisy. Since Hurricane Iniki his the islands - about 16 years ago this September - the island is overrun by wild chickens and roosters. It would be funny - except for all the noise!!

Good luck with yours!!

[Missy]

Now the questions.
- What do you feed your chickens?

For ours, their main diet is layer feed, minimal amounts of scratch, kitchen scraps, garden scraps, no avacado, no potato peels, no sugar...nothing treated with chemicals.

- I know that I can run to the store/mill etc. and get 'real' chicken feed but is there an alternative?

I am sure you could formulate your own, but I like the feed mill choice because I know I am not forgetting something they need.
- Can I feed them leftovers and if so, what kinds?

Sure you can, just no avacado, potato peels, don't give them the vines of your tomato plants...

- Can this be their only food or does it have to be supplemented with 'real' stuff?

I go the other way around, i feed them scraps and such as a suppliment to their feed.

-We are planning on having the coop on a hard underground (probably paving stones with a thick layer of straw).
- Is this a good idea or should we lift the stones and let them just 'dig' in the dirt or is it better in this case to put down some straw?

chickens need grit in their diet, the bare earth would be a much better choice than the stones or straw.

- We are not sure about whether or not to also get a rooster. How much noise does one actually make? I know stupid question - we only had chickens and no rooster. But here's another one - I know that a rooster will crow in the morning but how long does he do this and does he do it the rest of the day?
(We live in an urban environment and don't know if the neighbors are waiting to be woken up by a rooster very early in the morning - hence the stupid questions.)
Thanks for taking the trouble to read/answer this.

Roosters crow all the time. Least mine did, morning noon and night too, I personally wouldn't get one if i live in the city. I got rid of mine before anyone complained. I didn't want to give them any reason to complain about my flock

hope that helps a little bit.