We have gone through some major changes in our coop this year. First, tragedy struck. Our very own dog broke into our coop and all of our laying hens perished. We decided to beef up security and get some new chicks this spring. Built a dog proof fence, bought some more secure wire fencing, and I am lining the inside of our summer coop with some plywood for better predator proofing and more insulation. During this re-building time, it would be a great time to buy some new chicks. Decided on getting a couple of Rhode Island Red hens as well as the Barred Rocks just to see how they do. Both breeds are prolific egg layers. Since we were without any hens, we decided to raise the chicks outside, in an inner brooder box within the summer coop. A little repositioning of the feeder, and a little light install, and our brooding area was good to go.
My biggest fear when raising chicks is losing power, or popping a bulb and have the chicks freeze their tail feathers off. Its the most likely thing to happen as light bulbs burn out and breakers go off. It could be devastating if it happens at night or while I am at work. I set up one 100 watt white flood light on constantly, paired with a red 250 watt heat lamp on a thermostat. The regular flood light keeps it pretty warm, and if it was to burn out, we would have a secondary heat lamp to help the chicks maintain their balmy lifestyle of 95 °F. Also if the sun comes out the heat lamp use is instantly reduced by the thermostat. All I need to do is make sure they have food and water, and look out the window and make sure our lights are functioning.
Most of the work is in the hands of our Chicken Wrangler, Nicholas. He is in charge of gathering worms and feeding them some ground up rolled oats right out of his hand. Anytime its worm time, you can bet it will soon be followed by child giggles from the coop, as the chicks play "worm football". The chicks will also need some grass clippings and some grit added to their diet in a week or so. Feeding them these treats with our hands helps the chicks get used to us and imprints them with our presence
early. They associate our hands with a yummy treat every time they see
us. This helps to hand tame your chickens to make them easier to round up and handle. Often times you will have to inspect your chickens for health reasons, moving them from coop to coop, or just plain catching an escaped chicken. Hand taming will help you become a more effective chicken farmer, and help the all around health of your chickens.
Most of the work is in the hands of our Chicken Wrangler, Nicholas. He is in charge of gathering worms and feeding them some ground up rolled oats right out of his hand. Anytime its worm time, you can bet it will soon be followed by child giggles from the coop, as the chicks play "worm football". The chicks will also need some grass clippings and some grit added to their diet in a week or so. Feeding them these treats with our hands helps the chicks get used to us and imprints them with our presence
early. They associate our hands with a yummy treat every time they see
us. This helps to hand tame your chickens to make them easier to round up and handle. Often times you will have to inspect your chickens for health reasons, moving them from coop to coop, or just plain catching an escaped chicken. Hand taming will help you become a more effective chicken farmer, and help the all around health of your chickens.
