Re: Re:Happy Chickens

[Guest guest]

> Historically, they have been in our garden area for a couple

> of years, til we kicked them out this spring. We tried a chicken

> tractor, but it was too small for them.

Two things:

1) PLEASE don't include an entire digest in a reply.

2) How big was your chicken tractor for how many chickens? We're in an

urban area and we have raccoons and possums lurking about (not to

mention our own dog, who's not much of a hunter but is an opportunistic

predator). So your setup is unfeasible for us. We are thinking of a

tractor that would fit over one of our beds, which are planned to be

10x4; we'd then move the tractor from bed to bed every quarter or so.

We were thinking of 6-8 ladies in this setup. Is good? is bad? My

chicken experience is limited to eating them!

Lynn S.

of the " Green 0.2 Acres " S's...

------

Lynn Siprelle * web developer, writer, mama, fiber junky

http://www.siprelle.com * http://www.thenewhomemaker.com

http://www.democracyfororegon.com * http://www.wisforwomen.com

[Guest guest]

that would be fine, but you will need to move them more often than that. we

have an enclosure about that size, and the chickens can kill all the grass

and plants inside of it in less than a week. it's not easy to move so we

only move it about once a month, but in rainier times of the year it's not

enough, it stinks.

we also have a smaller " tractor " with 5 girls in it, and they will eat all

the greens in a 3x9 area in 3 days. we move their enclosure weekly or more

often as possible, it's smaller and lighter than the first one mentioned.

you can decide if you want any grass in the enclosure. i also let my girls

out for a few hours each night to scratch and dig for bugs.

> predator). So your setup is unfeasible for us. We are thinking of a

tractor that would fit over one of our beds, which are planned to be

10x4; we'd then move the tractor from bed to bed every quarter or so.

We were thinking of 6-8 ladies in this setup. Is good? is bad? My

chicken experience is limited to eating them!

Lynn S.

of the " Green 0.2 Acres " S's...

[Guest guest]

>> Heidi, How many chickens do you have in this space? What kind of fencing

>do you have? Do you anticipate having to move the chickens to a new area

>after awhile? Do you close them in a coop at night? Sounds like a great

>idea. Janet

I have about 24 right now, not by plan (long story). They have a 5 foot wire

fence,

the one with those metal stakes you pound in. They can jump it if they want, but

they don't. Mainly it keeps the dogs and coyotes out.

I WAS closing them in a coop at night, but that gets to be a pain, which is one

reason

for the fenced area. They have an open coop where they can perch out of the

rain,

but some also perch in the trees. The little banties are doing the best, BTW ...

they fly

nicely and for the amount of food they eat, you get the most eggs. Also the

banty rooster

is actually nice enough that we can keep him (the previous roosters attacked the

kids,

this one doesn't).

My plan is to have about 3 pastures, and rotate the chickens and the goats

in and out as needed. The forest area seems to be holding up well though, much

better

than the garden area did. They clear the garden nicely though, so some at least

will be

up there prior to the spring planting. We are thinking of having one BIG pasture

for meat

goats though (I only have two semi-pets right now, which clear blackberries and

keep the

lawn mowed). The goats and chickens could co-exist, I think.

Heidi Jean

[Guest guest]

Lynn:

>Two things:

>

>1) PLEASE don't include an entire digest in a reply.

Did I? Huh. I usually select just a portion to reply to, and I don't

get a digest. If so, my error.

>2) How big was your chicken tractor for how many chickens? We're in an

>urban area and we have raccoons and possums lurking about (not to

>mention our own dog, who's not much of a hunter but is an opportunistic

>predator). So your setup is unfeasible for us. We are thinking of a

>tractor that would fit over one of our beds, which are planned to be

>10x4; we'd then move the tractor from bed to bed every quarter or so.

>We were thinking of 6-8 ladies in this setup. Is good? is bad? My

>chicken experience is limited to eating them!

We made a 10x6 chicken tractor, and it worked fine as a nighttime area

for them. But they decimated the vegetation after one day ... you COULD

do it if you had only one or two chickens and they were used to being in

a small area. Ours are used to roaming 5 acres, and they didn't like the

cooped up space at all, and that was only with 7 chickens, we have more now.

6-8 might be ok if they never had a bigger space, but personally I'd think

it was too crowded, unless they were banties.

Or, you could do it with meat chickens, which is what the author of the

chicken tractor handbook did (his egg chickens left the tractor during the day,

or had bigger runs). Meat chickens don't move much, and you don't keep them

very long, only 2 months or so, which is enough to get your bed ready for

planting.

However, I have a friend who keeps chickens in a small wired area. She

just adds straw every week or so, and gives them weeds and leftovers.

They are happy chickens, and lay lots of eggs, and she has very little

chicken mortality (hers are 7 years old now, which is older than any of

ours ... the price of freedom, for a chicken, is high!). I've also seen chickens

that are *indoors* using " horse stall pellets " and they seem happy enough

too. Part of it is what the chickens are used to. Whatever they experience in

the first few months of life, is " normal " and they adapt to it, it seems.

As far as predators ... we have lots, and we lost 5 chickens to a coyote

last year. But doglike predators are pretty easy to keep out. Rats and possums

and raccoons are harder ... and we have those ... but they don't seem to kill

chickens (they may take the eggs, I don't know). Cats for some reason leave

chickens alone, I guess they are too big, even the banties.

>

Heidi Jean