mjmjr25's latest build: Chicken Coop Edition

[dsheinem]

I've considered doing something like this at times...how much does it cost to keep them? Can they all eat the same thing or do you have to buy different brands and types of feed? Do you have to go to special stores to buy supplies? Do you have to do a lot of coop cleaning maintenance? Can you leave them with a lot of food and then go away for a few days/week?

[mjmjr25]

I've considered doing something like this at times...how much does it cost to keep them?

Can they all eat the same thing or do you have to buy different brands and types of feed?

Do you have to go to special stores to buy supplies?

Do you have to do a lot of coop cleaning maintenance?

Can you leave them with a lot of food and then go away for a few days/week?

They say the first egg will cost you $1,500. Depending on how many you get and how much you put into your coop - that's probably pretty accurate. After that you will break even or come out ahead with eggs.

The diet changes from chick to full grown hen, but it's just a matter of getting starter feed and then egg laying feed. They also need grit mixed in (they don't produce saliva and they don't have teeth), so they need grit to break down feed. You can feed them scraps, grass, seeds, left over food, bugs...probably costs $5 a month per bird, if you use only use store bought feed.

Special stores, not really, I mean farm and fleet stores are the best - they have everything, but most home improvement stores or even Wal Mart will have a ton of stuff you need. You can buy it on amazon too.

Maintenance - depending on what you use, pine shavings (change out every 10 days or so, costs about $2-5 for pine shavings, again, dependent on size of coop, number of birds), sand one time cost, sift and wash out occasionally, or metal grid with poop tray underneath (factories use this - not a great life for the birds, but cost is just one time start up cost and empty the tray every week or so).

We're going out of town now for 3 days - they don't over eat, so you just load up gravity feeders, enough for how long you are gone. If they are laying eggs - you'll need someone to come grab them or they will get eaten - if it sits there 12+ hours, that seems to be the amount of time before one of them will start going after it.

[fastbilly1]

Amazing work on the coop.

If you want to expand in the future, go for ducks. Some breeds of ducks are known to lay over 300 eggs a year - Campbell Khakis for instance. That and they are usually not as loud.

[mjmjr25]

Fast, you don't have to redo your entire post that was lost with the server switch - but can you list those breeds of ducks again that you had mentioned?

Here are some pics of the coop last night - really looks neat at night, lit up, about 50' from our bedroom window:

[marurun]

Amazing work on the coop.

If you want to expand in the future, go for ducks. Some breeds of ducks are known to lay over 300 eggs a year - Campbell Khakis for instance. That and they are usually not as loud.

And thanks to this, I went out and read a ton about raising ducks for eggs. Now I have to rethink the kind of house and yard I'm looking for. Maybe I want room for a few ducks and a couple goats...

[mjmjr25]

Alright, still need to put up vinyl siding and hardware cloth around the food bin area, but here are the most recent pics:

Let the boy watch your birds?

[fastbilly1]

I didnt realize it was lost. Ill write up the rest later, but the info you want is below:
For Egg - Campbell Kahki - can lay over 300 eggs a year, some have done close to 400
For Meat - Peking or Muscovy

[mjmjr25]

As the homey noise already knows - our rooster Louis (originally Lucy) is a horrible serial rapist.

We didn't intend on any roosters - but it's a bit of a crap shoot and you really don't know for certain you have a rooster until it's too late and you're attached to him.

The first 3 months he looked just like the girls. Then the spurs, the the comb, then the crowing...then the sex drive. My, oh my, the sex drive. We read all about it and all that - but seeing it happen, up close, repeatedly...you just can't prepare for it. It is non-stop. It is brutal.

On top of that, he is a Jersey Giant, which is one of the largest domestic rooster breeds. He has a 5' wingspan and stands 40" when he extends. He is an absolute beast. Last we weighed him he was 12lbs and he is probably closer to 15-16lbs now.

He is wearing these girls out. Half of them have bald spots on their backs from losing feathers during the seks. It's sorta funny - you can EASILY spot his 2 favorites. You can also spot the one he has zero interest in. She is the one who has all her feathers.

He eats like a pig. Literally, like a pig. He has to keep that drive up after all.

But...we love him. He is a good rooster. He has scared away dogs and small predators. When we let them free range, the 7 girls just peck and play - he stands guard, neck on a swivel, ever on watch.

My wife made some vests for them to wear so they don't lose their feathers. Most keep taking them off so we need to make some enhancements.

Hoping the camera can pick up the size - it looks hazy in the coop - this is some effect of the red light we keep on at night and the flash of my camera:

[flojocabron]

I had chickens as a hobby when I was a kid. Pretty fun taking care of them. Not so fun when they became dinner.

There are breeds of chickens like that black one that change sex. Some are lesbians (LOL) that only do the act and never impregnate. You really wont know what type of chicken you have untill it reaches adulthood.

Growing up, if a female chicken turned male, we would have to kill it. My parents told me that it wasn't good for the flock.

Most of the time one rooster is good for all the hens, some roosters can tolerate having other roosters mixed in with them. But you can still tell where the chicken hierarchy is.

I had multiple pens and I would let them loose during the day. some chickens would spend one time in one coop and another time in another. It seems like my roosters were pretty lax.

If your really take care of your chickens, they do tend to recognize you. You're not just the "food bringer" but like pets they can become much more.

If you constantly grab the newborn chicks they have and take care of them. They can become easy to catch. When I was younger, I was pretty much able to walk up (or chase a bit) any chicken and grab them. People were surprized that I could grab them so easily without effort.

This was the sad part for me. We would sell off chickens and I would grab the one that would soon become someones lunch. Goodbye little chicken!

Also be careful if you let them loose all the time. They'll start to lay eggs in lots of hidden places. Pretty soon your one chicken will be a parent with about 8-10 chicks.

One spring, I found myself making about eight little coops because those eight hens came back with lots of baby chicks. They can mulitply quite quickly if you're not careful.

One last thing before I stop this chicken info (LOL!) The texture of the eggs laid really does change with the race of the chicken and what you feed them. When you crack some eggs to eat, some yolks come out really dark (or a strange color) depending on what you fed them over the last few days. Also size is important. Dont expect to have really large eggs like the ones they sell in the stores. Some eggs are laid brown and some are white obviously, But the randomness of eggs and their sizes and textures, you can use them in other food dishes.

well, that's it!

[Blu]

Hahahaha, this was a great read Mike. Thank you for the account. I always like your stories, they have a nice flow and don't leave out the neat details.

I hope your Rooster isn't aggressive at all, do your kids do well with him, or is he ever standoffish?