Capitol Hill Blue Forums Misc. Topics Food, Drink and Cooking What's cooking?

I hear they are a holy terror for any bugs in your garden. You WILL NOT have anything eating your veggies if you let the flock forage in there. And the cool thing is they don't bother the plants.

Unfortunately, they probably eat bees. So I guess you just let them in there in the afternoon, after the bees have quit for the day?

I wouldn't count too much on that. Chickens love some greens and they're liable to scratch up seedlings in their constant search for bugs. But mostly they nibble at the outer leaves of plants and leave the growing shoots alone. But, all in all chickens never did any harm to my garden. They wont eat beans or any plants related to nightshades like potatoes, eggplants, tomatoes, and peppers. If you want all your eggs to be homegrown you need two more chickens than your regular daily consumption(depending on the breed), and every few years you have to buy a few more as they slow down their egg production. Attrition and coyotes will thin their numbers so I never wind up with many extra birds. Most towns allow people to keep five chickens and no roosters, but if you're in a rural area it's best to have a rooster around to protect them from predators. The rooster will sacrifice himself to save his flock. And roosters are a hoot to have around.
A more manly man would perhaps stew the older birds but after they give me a thousand eggs or so I feel they deserve a dignified retirement. A chicken will lay almost daily(again depending on breed) for about three to four years then they'll slow down and eventually stop.

Does that involve a hatchet? Or do you send them off to The Old Chicken's Retirement Home, somewhere?

I just let them go on scratching and pecking. They still occasionally lay an egg. I had an Americauna who stopped laying for two years then she molted and started laying again. She was a good layer for another year. Then a coyote got her. That's what usually happens to them.

It's not that they are old, it's that they are slow!

I've read something about forced molting, with laying rejuvenated afterwards. My wife would love to have a flock of Ameraucanas. I asked her: "Should they be inside the fence so the dogs get them, or outside the fence so the coyotes get them?"

This is NOT a chicken-friendly property.

Americaunas aren't very good layers, three eggs a week I think. But the eggs are lovely! Pale green or light blue. And the hens vary in color so if you've a mind to treat them like pets it's possible to name them and tell them apart. The roosters are incredibly beautiful too.
Most dogs can be trained not to mess with the chickens. Baby chicks need to be raised indoors for a while, this is when the training starts. Baby peeps can't regulate their body temp so they need a warm environment and a heat lamp. A big plastic tote with woodchips in the bottom is perfect. It's really no different from introducing a kitten to a dog's household. You protect the kitten and the dog gets used to it being around. Once you move them outdoors they need a small wire enclosure and a shelter to roost and nest in. The dogs get used to seeing them and you smack the dogs if they act aggressively. Some dogs are just natural born killers and if this is the case you just make the chicken pen permanent. For the best eggs in this case you need to be sure the chickens are fed plenty of greens. A few cabbage leaves every day is all they need. Green veggies is what gives them the deeply colored, rich, and flavorful yolks. All my kitchen scraps go to the chickens. The free range birds don't care much for them but the ones in the enclosure devour them greedily.
Predators vs. chickens is an age old problem, but it's not insurmountable. We have a lot of coyotes, bobcats, and various other critters that will kill chickens and I lose a few on occasion but chickens are cheap and it's always fun to raise a new batch.
You have a perfect property for chickens PIA, do your wife a favor and get some!

She has always wanted those green and blue eggs! Unfortunately, we have some BIG natural-born killer dogs who seemed to be getting along fine with our cat...until they broke his neck. I guess I could build an enclosure, or we could just wait for my stepmothers little dogs to die and use their enclosure. Would an 8' by 8' by 6' tall chain link enclosure be okay? It has a roof, so coyotes can't get in.

I know you need a rooster to get fertile eggs, but do chicks grow up and start laying without ever seeing a rooster?

I would not recommend raising chickens in an enclosure, they tend to get pretty disgusting in that they will indeed eat their own poop and they contract mites which make it difficult to enter the coop to clean it or fetch the eggs. The mites get into your hair and clothes. It's awful.

I became so disgusted with chickens that I wouldn't touch eggs or even chicken for years after raising them. I hated them and would have killed the buggers except, I'm not much of a killer.

Free range would have been a better choice if I had the property to allocate. I gave the chickens away and burned the coop. Then I raised a pig. He was much cleaner and provided lots of good meat. I had someone else kill him and butcher the carcass.

Chickens don't need a rooster for anything. His biggest job is to strut around and make noise while they're in the nesting box. ostensibly "protecting" them while they are vulnerable. The theory is that hens are "happier" if they feel they have the protection of the rooster. Hens lay the same with or without a rooster.

An 8x8 enclosure would be fine for as many as 8 hens. When the dogs are inside you could even let them free range some. They'll go back into the enclosure to roost as soon as it begins to get dark and you can close the gate.
I've never had an issue with chickens being particularly nasty. Once in a while I put a bail of woodchips down or a few flakes of hay. When I rake leaves a wheelbarrow or two of leaves go in there and every now and again I rake it all out and dump it in the garden.
Mine roost on a wire shelf so the poop doesn't accumulate on the roost. Bugs live under the bedding on the ground and the chickens scratch in it and eat the bugs. Laying hens need a feeder with "Layena" feed which is fortified with lots of calcium to make eggshells, and a daily ration of scratch feed(mostly cracked corn and millet) thrown on the ground. And, if you want better eggs than the grocery store variety, they need some green stuff.
I've had chickens in Florida for around ten years and have never had a problem with mites, in your arid California climate I don't think you have them at all. I understand they are a big issue in the UK.
Once you get set up chickens require practically no maintenance. Check the feeder, toss in some scratch feed, gather the eggs and you're done for the day.

And once in a while this happens....