Self sufficient with chickens?

[Terri9630]

There is one county in Texas without feral hogs. I thought it was my county since the creeks here rarely have water in them except after a big rain and it doesn't stay around long. It used to be possible to find areas along the creeks that had water most of the time, but with all the irrigation drawing down the aquifer, I wouldn't think any of them are still here.

I found an e-mail address for someone who is reputed to be an expert on the subject so I asked him by e-mail. If I remember correctly, he said the one county without feral hogs in El Paso County.

Nope. Theres hogs there. They find a way to survive in the desert just like the javelina and antelope do.

 

[Terri9630]

There are hogs that thrive in Russia and Siberia. It may be the Mangalitsa but I was half asleep during that documentary.

 

[joel]

The hairy hog is a sub group, that did not lose it hair because of colds climate.

The North Siberian (Russian: Cибиpcкaя ceвepнaя, Sibirskaya severnaya) is a general purpose pig breed from Russia. Developed in Novosibirsk Oblast in Russia, this medium-sized breed was formally recognized in 1942. A cross of the short-eared Siberian pigs with Large White boars, the North Siberian was bred for a dense bristle covering and undercoat to increase hardiness to the harsh climate of northern Siberia. Adult males typically reach 312 kg in size.[1]

The North Siberian is a white breed, and multicoloured specimens rejected during the breeding programme were used in the development of the Siberian Black Pied breed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Siberian_pig
SORRY, did not mean to hijack the chicken thread.
Chickens are jungle birds that were domesticated, now live wild & domesticated all over the world.

 

[Tirediron]

We raised hog in some pretty brutal conditions, but the farrowing sows got to live in the barn, we had milk cows and shipped cream, so the hogs drank a lot of skim milk. I don't remember the exact details, but I think the rest of the bunch just live in low roof sheds in outdoor pens, hogw wont crap where they sleep if they have enough room. so they don't need their bedding changed. thread officially derailed

 

[Amish Heart]

We raised jungle fowl and they were very strange. The rooster would get out of his run on occasion, and it would take both twins and a big towel to catch that bird. He was strong and fast. I was able to incubate and hatch just one egg.
They are not good layers, eggs are not much bigger than a silkie egg, and the hens maybe only lay twice a week, and not at all in the winter. Their colors were awesome, though.

 

[montanabill]

I just brought home a 1200 pound tote of "cleanout" grains. We have a seed and grain mill nearby and they clean out one product before running another. So they save it in palletized big nylon tote bags. The 1200 pounds cost me $126.00. I once figured out it would take about 50 pounds of grain to get a chicken thru the worst of our montana winter. We are going to have some hunter killer chickens around for grasshopper control around our garden this summer. They will be in chicken runs around the perimeter.

 

[Tsrwivey]

I ordered some speckled Sussex chicks, they’ll be here in the middle of June. 18 pullets and 2 roosters. Hopefully at least one will be broody.

 

[Tsrwivey]

I’ve been shredding cardboard boxes in my 12 sheet paper shredder for bedding. We put some in the 5x7 chicken coop about 2 inches deep with 14 chickens a couple months old. Two months later, I cleaned it out. It was all bone dry and no smell! The cardboard will decompose a lot faster than wood shavings and worms absolutely love it so it will give me a better supply of compost for the garden. I think I’m going to try it out in the ducklings incubator next. Those things are messy!

 

[winds-of-change]

I have a chicken question, too. We’re moving to some acreage. I’m thinking of getting just a few chickens. Free range in the day, cooped at night. How difficult is it to clean out the coop. How do you keep from breathing in dusty chicken poop? I’m thinking of only getting 4-5 good laying hens. Do I need to have a rooster?

 

[LadyLocust]

I have a chicken question, too. We’re moving to some acreage. I’m thinking of getting just a few chickens. Free range in the day, cooped at night. How difficult is it to clean out the coop. How do you keep from breathing in dusty chicken poop? I’m thinking of only getting 4-5 good laying hens. Do I need to have a rooster?

Congrats WoC Hoping others will chime in also. You only need a rooster if you want the hen(s) to sit and hatch babies. They will lay eggs without a rooster. As far as cleaning out the coop, it's not too bad. It's mostly under the roosts. I think it depends upon your set up. I usually just opened the doors.

 

[winds-of-change]

Congrats WoC Hoping others will chime in also. You only need a rooster if you want the hen(s) to sit and hatch babies. They will lay eggs without a rooster. As far as cleaning out the coop, it's not too bad. It's mostly under the roosts. I think it depends upon your set up. I usually just opened the doors.

Can you put what you clean out of the coop into a compost?

 

[SheepDog]

Absolutely! The straw and "fertilizer" help build a good compost.

 

[joel]

Can you put what you clean out of the coop into a compost?

I know people who spread, sand, then wood shaving from the pet store, to add to the compost at years end. I would put the waste out in the fall, if you have a bed you do not use in winter, add the mix to it.
That way you skip composting & let the winter do the work & rotate that bed every year.
Or you could compost for ninety days & spread a little in every bed.
You will need crustacean grit for the hens & any that ends up in your garden is great.
Stone grit will work to, but the sand will help also.

 

[JustMe]

I have a chicken question, too. We’re moving to some acreage. I’m thinking of getting just a few chickens. Free range in the day, cooped at night. How difficult is it to clean out the coop. How do you keep from breathing in dusty chicken poop? I’m thinking of only getting 4-5 good laying hens. Do I need to have a rooster?

Before you let them free range, be sure you don't have predators in the area. Hawks, eagles, coyotes, raccoons, neighbor or stray dogs, etc.

Roosters are for waking you up and fertilizing the eggs.......and maybe a good chicken soup


As for a clean coop.....it does depend on your set up, how big or small the coop is and the number of birds you have. I currently have 6 hens and a roo, but have had up to 24 birds in a 10x12 shed with a dirt floor. I do deep litter method, especially in the fall/winter and only clean it out once or twice a year. I use straw for the litter. Maybe one bale in there thru the summer, then will add another in the fall. Sometimes I'll add smaller amounts over time instead of all at once. Most of the time they are let out in the yard or a sectioned off area for a run, but also depends on weather or how I feel as to how long they are allowed out. Currently they've been in lock down as a precautionary against bird flu that has been found in my area.........but my point here, is that while they are inside the coop, they are scratching & turning that poopy litter and breaking it down for me, Sometimes it gets stinky in there, but them keeping it turned helps keep down the odor, Adding another bit of straw helps too.

When I do clean it out, it's just a matter of scooping it up with a pitchfork and hauling it to the garden or compost, With a small number of birds, I'll do the cleanout around October and if I have more than 10, I'll also clean it out around February or March.


I do also have a small 3x6 coop, one of those store bought kits that I'd only clean out the house part whenever it got dirty, but that was just dumped to the part below that sat on the ground where they'd scratch it in. It didn't need cleaned often because they spent most of the time either in the bottom or outside in a run

 

[INresponse]

Our chicken coop has large wood trays under the roost where we use a couple inches of construction sand (the cheapest sand we can find in the store) like kitty litter under the roosts. Use a large kitty litter like scoop to clear out the poop and change the sand 2 or 3 times a year. Super easy and very cost effective. The coop should have ample ventilation so the ammonia smell will dissipate, we have no smell in our coop. We do use pine shavings in the roosting boxes and clean that regularly too and change it out as needed. Each spring and just before winter arrives we use the hose and a brush with soap to wash out the entire coop.

Paint the inside with exterior paint and it makes cleaning very easy. Our girls love the light blue hue, look for "oops" paint marked down at stores like Lowes or Home Depot for a super low price on good quality paint, when the colors don't match what the customer wanted they need to sell it cheap to avoid hazmat disposal fees for perfectly good paint. The Home Depot I work at used to sell it for $9 a gallon even for their best paint but even if it was $15 or $20 it is a great price compared to normal retail.

An easy set up for us, I made a ramp from the coop to a 10'x10' by 6' tall chain link dog kennel and with an enclosed roof over the kennel they are protected from predators and can walk out of the coop in the morning and be safe until we go out and let them roam in their fenced run all day. In the evening they slowly work their way into the fenced kennel (we call it the green house because we wrap it in clear plastic for the winter) and then slowly enter the coop to roost at night. With the gate open during the day they can go into the coop to use the roosting boxes whenever needed. We place large rocks around the bottom of the kennel to keep out predators but aside from stray cats we really do not have a predator problem here. If you have coyote or fox or raccoon or other predators you may need more protection around the bottom of the kennel.

As for the manure, our best tomatoes grow just outside the chicken run where the chickens push the dirt through the fence surrounding the run. This "composted" dirt is full of manure and several times a week when washing our water buckets or the duck house or emptying the duck pools the water flushes the manure rich dirt down to the plants and they thrive on the fresh manure. I know it isn't "right from the source" but they poop right next to the fence as often as anywhere else in their run so don't be afraid of the fresh manure, just don't dump a shovel full around each plant.

 

[winds-of-change]

Thank you, everyone, for all the information. I’m still thinking whether I want chickens or not. Just gathering all the information I can to make the right decision for me.

 

[rice paddy daddy]

We have been keeping laying hens for about 25 years now.
Have had a variety of breeds over the years, keep coming back to Araucana's. Although Plymouth Barred Rocks are quite beautiful and good layers too.
We have had as many as 60+, right now we have 11 plus one rooster.

When we started, layer feed was $6 per 50 pound bag, right now it's $17, which is why we limit the number of birds we keep. Social Security does not leave much discretionary money.

With a horse (in our younger days there were 3) there is always hay for the nesting boxes.
The hens are kept in several 6 foot high chainlink dog kennels that have peaked tarp tops to keep the weather out. These are inside a 40 X 60 foot area surrounded by 6 foot high chainlink fence. The birds are let out into the main area during the day and closed inside at night.
The kennels have dirt floors, the main area is grass, the manure just falls where it may and returns to the earth. the nesting box hay gets changed out regularly.

 

[rice paddy daddy]

The important thing is to get waterers that hold at least a gallon, and empty/refill every day. Without fail!!!!

 

[Chaosdawn]

I have a question, apologies if it's already been answered.

Are there advantages/disadvantages to having a coop on a cement slab instead of dirt?

 

[Amish Heart]

Things won't dig in if it's cement. Our coops are cement. Lots of straw in them. Our runs are dirt and have secured chain link around them. Chickens dirt bathe in the runs.

 

[montanabill]

Cement is great for protection from burrowing predators and you can really clean the coop out if you need to between batches of chickens or if you have any disease problem.
Currently the price of concrete is really high so for this summer we are using fencing dug into and out from the coop so burrowing critters would have a hard time. I am also contemplating making a smaller coop on skids so I can move it around the area with our 4 wheeler to fertilize a patch at a time.

 

[montanabill]

I have been having a lot of fun with my "chicken cam". I just picked up a simple security camera system about the same time I got our little flock of peepers this year so I set up one camera outside the coop with a wide view and one camera inside looking down on the chicks.
The system also has a simple sound system so I can hear them peeping away or listen for disturbances. The camera's are wireless so the small screen to watch them is portable to anyplace on the property with power.
I think I might have posted earlier about this but it has proven out to be usefull and a lot of fun.

 

[INresponse]

I have been having a lot of fun with my "chicken cam". I just picked up a simple security camera system about the same time I got our little flock of peepers this year so I set up one camera outside the coop with a wide view and one camera inside looking down on the chicks.
The system also has a simple sound system so I can hear them peeping away or listen for disturbances. The camera's are wireless so the small screen to watch them is portable to anyplace on the property with power.
I think I might have posted earlier about this but it has proven out to be usefull and a lot of fun.

That is a great idea.
What make/model did you get? Would it be possible to set it up to live stream? Our Goose has 600 followers who might enjoy watching her and the ducks.

 

[Chaosdawn]

Thanks, I was hoping the concrete would work. We have a car port on the other side of the garage, the structure itself is rotting and we plan on having it taken down soon but the concrete slab underneath is in perfect shape.

 

[goshengirl]

@Tsrwivey I'm really interested in your experience as it unfolds. We feel like working with chickens is our first step in being more self-sustaining with meat (then on to either pigs or cattle... maybe). We've had layers for about 10 years, but we've never:
1. hatched out any eggs
2. raised any meat birds
3. butchered any birds
4. fed our chickens solely from what we raised on our property

The original plan for the summer was to raise meat birds and butcher them, as well as get a roo for our layers and hatch out some eggs from amongst our layers. Then we'd work our way towards developing a flock of a good dual-purpose breed, knowing that dual-purpose birds are slower growing than meaties (and therefore require more time and feed), but can be bred and hatched on site and not tie us to a supply chain. The American Bresse seems to be the rage these days, but they are very expensive - so I want to get our skills up (hatching and butchering) on less expensive breeds first.

We have grown corn specifically for our chickens before - Bloody Butcher and Ohio Blue Clarage, both are beautiful heirloom varieties (deep red and deep blue, respectively) that are higher in protein than the usual field corn. Our girls have always loved the corn, but we only use it for scratch purposes while still giving them their main nutrition from formulated chicken feed. We've also grown and fed our girls sunflower seeds, pumpkins, chard, buckwheat, and a bunch of other things that escape my mind right now. We've not had luck growing wheat or oats.

I'm interested in how you do with the worms for your flock. I've considered raising mealworms. We've been able to free range in the past, but where we're moving that will be hard due to predator issues. I think keeping the protein level up will be the biggest challenge.

 

[montanabill]

That is a great idea.
What make/model did you get? Would it be possible to set it up to live stream? Our Goose has 600 followers who might enjoy watching her and the ducks.

I think it was this one but I payed like $169 for mine. Harbour freight has worked for me on most stuff. My other four camera system has been working full time for a year.
https://www.harborfreight.com/4-channel-wireless-surveillance-system-with-2-cameras-63842.htmlI think there is a real possibility for a critter channel to go viral.
The gentle peeping of my birds is very restful at night.

 

[joel]

I have a question, apologies if it's already been answered.

Are there advantages/disadvantages to having a coop on a cement slab instead of dirt?

I agree slab is better protection, but dirt/sand is grit for chickens.
So with a slab you need a dust bin so the chickens can use a dust bath to fight mites.
And a sand pile for grit or rock dust/oyster shells & recycled egg shells for the hens.
Many people do not want the cost of a slab, so they bury a wire mesh at a 45degree out from the outer fence. The buried wire looks like the bottom half of a "k" & dogs, fox & coyote will give up after a few try's. Laying large logs around the out side of the fence will stop digging too.

 

[rice paddy daddy]

My wife learned how to process her hens, but as someone mentioned above, “real” chickens are kinda scrawny compared to the hybridized ones that are sold commercially.
And, actually, neither one of us has the heart to kill our hens when they get old, after they fed us so well for years with eggs.

I don’t hunt, either, not since the war.

 

[joel]

the sold commercially hens are also injected with liquid, to make them plumb up.
But we killed & eat all the young roaster, because our chicken lived outside & roosted in trees,
we had about 45% roaster & all they did was fight, so we eat them.
Dogs & cats were safe, but we eat everything else on the farm.
Tim Pool had a grown man ask him why he had roaster, did they have a different kind of eggs.
Do not laugh, that guy vote every time.

 

[Amish Heart]

Same here