Housing The more space you can give
your chickens the better, bearing in mind your chickens will spend most of
their day outside in the run and only a small amount of time in the nest box
to lay their eggs and then at night to sleep on the perch. The rest of the time they are outside in
their run or garden. A chicken needs at least 6-8
inches of perch space each, with the perching being approximately 2 inches in
diameter, with no sharp right angled edges.
Your chicken house must also have a nest box (the ratio is 1 nest box
to 4 birds) in which you put either wood shavings or straw. Hay and sawdust is not recommended as they
can contain a lot of dust, which over time will cause your birds respiratory
problems. There must be adequate
ventilation in your chicken house too. You must clean your chicken
house out every week, and when the heat of the Spring starts until the late
Autumn, you must use Red Mite powders/solutions every week to deter red mite
that love to live in the cracks and crevices of your chicken coop. The most important thing of
all is to ensure your chicken house is as fox proof as you can possibly make
it. Always ensure you shut your
chickens away at night by closing the pop hole, and if you let you birds out
in the garden always be with them, as Mr Fox is waiting for you to “pop in
for a cup of tea”, and will strike quickly and devastate your flock. A strong bolt on the door is a good thing
too. Feeding Feed your birds with good
quality Layers Pellets or Layers Mash, this has all the vitamins and
nutrients for a chicken’s long life and maximum egg production. You can also supplement their diet with
vegetable scraps from the kitchen, including apples, apple cores, greens,
tomatoes etc. They love warm potato
peelings, but they must be cooked (potato peelings with eyes are poisonous). Pasta and rice are also enjoyed plus small
amounts of bread. Lettuce in large
quantities should be avoided as it is approximately 95% water, with no great
nutritional goodness. No meat should
be given to your birds. Too many
greens will give them diarrhoea. Ensure you give your birds grit
and oystershell, the grit will act as their teeth and grind down the feed
that they eat, and the oystershell will dissolve in their gullet and give
calcium for their own bodies, as well as to strengthen the eggs shells they
produce. Mixed corn or wheat is
adored, a treat you can give them by sprinkling it on the ground (doing your
Farmer Giles impression!), or putting it in your hand and offering it to
them. They will love you forever… Access to fresh grass (not
grass cuttings) is also advised. Very
long grass must be avoided as this can develop into a hard ball inside their
crop and your chicken will get impacted crop. Always remember the
‘goodness you feed to your chickens’ the ‘goodness you get out’. You are the ones going to eat the lovely
eggs that you girls produce, so give them good quality feed/produce. Frequently
Asked Questions Do
chickens bite? No, chickens tentatively
peck. Don’t forget the chicken’s beak is like their hand, they use it to hold
onto things, and to eat with. They love
to peck/explore new things, especially sparkly things like rings and
bracelets. Painted toe nails (enter at
your peril!). They will gently peck at
anything to see what it is, and to see if it is edible. As with any animal, if you treat it with
the respect it deserves, they will love you forever. How
much food should I give them? Fill up your feeder with
layers pellets or layers mash, never let the feeder run dry. Chickens will not over eat on layers
pellets/mash. Mix a small amount of
oystershell and grit in with your pellets/mash. Treats/’sweeties’ such as corn, vegetable
scraps etc, should be given in the afternoon, ensuring that the chickens have
had a good quantity of their layers pellets/mash before filling them up with
the ‘sweeties’ they so adore. Fresh
water should always be available during the day. Do
I put food/water in the chicken coop at night? Chickens do not have a night
light that they can turn on and have a midnight feast! Once a chicken has gone to bed, it has literally
gone to bed. If there is enough space
in the coop, keep the feeder in there permanently, this will reduce the
amount of vermin the feed will attract.
The water can be kept either inside or outside, again it just depends
on the space within the house itself. How
do I introduce new hens to an existing flock? This is never easy, but if
done correctly, the squabbling will soon be over, and once the new pecking
order has been established peace, not war, will reign. You must never introduce a single hen to a
flock of established birds, unless you have only one original hen. It is best to introduce your
birds at night, once your existing girls have gone to bed, you then introduce
your new girls by putting them in between the old girls on the perch, so that
they get used to the smell of one another, and then in the morning they need
to get used to ‘sharing’ and the looks of the new birds too. Having a temporary feeder and drinker
positioned where your new girls feel most secure for a few days, is recommended,
just to ensure the new birds get enough food and water until the new pecking
order is established. Or you can put your new hens
in a separate run, so that both sets of hens can see one another, and after a
few weeks let them roam in your garden together and they will soon become one
flock. The last option is to remove
the hen causing the most problems for a week or so. The flock will have established its pecking
order, and then you add the original hen back into the main flock, the
pecking order will change but settle quite quickly to harmony. Chickens
poo, and its different consistencies/colours A lovely topic… Moving
chickens to a new environment is stressful for them, and the consistency of
their poo can change/vary especially at this time. Chicken poo at the best of times varies
quite a lot, sometimes it is solid and compact, other times it is runny,
smelly or yellow all of this is perfectly normal. However if the poo from the same chicken is
constantly out of sorts, I always recommend either Apple Cider Vinegar or
Vermex (wormer) is added to their water.
Don’t forget too much greenstuff, out of date feed, mouldy feed,
stress, etc, will give them the runs too. The
first eggs are small!? Generally, within the first
few weeks of your chickens laying eggs, the eggs will be small. Over the coming months the eggs will
increase in size and depending on the breed of bird will at least increase
(assuming they are large fowl), to a medium, large, and possibly extra large
egg. Wow, an egg worth fighting over
at breakfast! Do
I need a cockerel for the hens to produce lots of eggs? You only need a cockerel if
you wish to have fertile eggs and produce young chicks. Having a cockerel will not make the hens
produce more eggs. What
do I take my new hens home in? A
cat carrier or cardboard box is an ideal means of transportation. Just ensure there are ventilation holes in
the box, and preferably a little bit of straw for your new girls to snuggle
down into on their journey. The box
can be about the size of a crisp box, but must be at least 18 inches
tall. You do not need an individual
box per bird. Can
I mix the breeds/colours? Yes, but what you must
remember is that they must be all the same ‘size’, otherwise bullying will
occur.
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