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As firm believers in fresh, self-replicating food, one of the main reasons we moved to where we are now was so that we would have the space to raise the type of animals we wanted for our own food production, as well as to sell and/or barter. What chickens do you depend on, and how are they a part of your self-sustaining plan?
I used to raise banty (bantam) chickens down South. They didn't need much weather protection, and they were fairly independent. However, when I moved to Nebraska, I realized that there were several differences - the main ones being more predators and much colder, windier weather for longer periods of time. Bantys would either freeze or have to have far more attention and wouldn't be cost-effective. So I did my research, and got Barred Rock chickens. These gals actually don't like warm weather; they are more active in the winter, they lay all year long except when moulting, and they are a heavy breed, which means not only more self-contained warmth, but more meat at butchering time. They also lay huge brown eggs, which are more expensive (for some weird reason) in the stores. Their skin and meat has a yellowish tinge that is not at all unpleasant. We keep them in a coop that is "solar-powered" - a single heatlamp and a heated metal water container keeps them warm. Chickens need a steady supply of water, and the cheap plastic waterers shatter or leak in cold weather. with a 4-gallon waterer, we still have to refresh the water every two days, winter or summer.
The real problem is the yard. Due to predators, we don't allow our chickens to be free-range - as charming as that sounds, dead chicken parts in the yard are not. The yard is 6-foot-long 4X4s pounded into the ground 8 inches deep, so that we can stand up in the yard and get eggs. The wire is attached to the posts two inches from the bottom, which gives us six inches of wire underground. This prevents digging under the fence by predators; every spring we find holes where creatures have tried to dig under the wire, but they always give up before they get under it. (I've heard that you can also lay six-inch strips of wire fencing next to the exterior perimeter of the fence under a thin layer of soil, but DH was adamant about loose pieces of fence lying about.) We also have predators from the air; hawks are very prevalent out here. So our chicken yard is also 'roofed' with a tightly-pulled and stapled chicken wire screen. We have walked out on occasion and seen hawks circling above the chicken coop, but have not lost a single chicken.
Because of our short summers, we start incubating eggs inside in March. 28-31 days later, the hatched baby chicks are kept downstairs in a warm basement until late May, when most freezing temps are gone and they are starting to have real feathers. Rooster chicks are picked out and raised in a small chicken tractor; less freedom of movement and separate food and water raise them to be plumper, less muscular, at butcher. We also move the small tractors between the garden rows to eat the weeds and bugs. In the high winds, we have ropes across the tops of the tractors that are tied to heavy metal anchors; once we place the tractor, we anchor it in place to keep it from being blown over. The tractors are small, only hold three chickens with a small attached yard that is fully chicken-wire fenced, and weigh about 150 lbs - but the wind can still blow them over! Because the Barred Rocks are not primarily a meat breed, they grow more slowly than, say, a Jumbo Cornish Cross - but they also don't develop the leg weakness that a fast-growing meat chicken does. They are usually ready to butcher by late July or early August.
Chickens eat anything; they are great waste disposals for kitchen waste, they like grass clippings and garden waste, eat garden bugs and even like the eggshells we feed them to keep up their calcium levels. I've heard it said that the eggs from chickens who eat onions and garlic will get that taste; I have not found this to be so, and we eat a lot of onions and garlic here!
I haven't started raising chickens because we are not full timing it yet having to fully clear out of AK first but I'd be very interested in the responses. I do know from having diggety (is that a word?) terrier type escape artist dogs that another way of making a dig discouraging fence is bending the wire into a 6-8 inch L shape on the bottom and place that L slightly underground on the dig side to prevent unwanted incursions or excursions as the case may be.
I'm battling a massive tick explosion right now (they seem to love me) and everyone has said that chickens or guinea fowl will clear those right out so I'd be wanting to free range at least during daylight hours. Will dogs discourage predators?
We have a great herd dog, but as for 'discouraging predators' - all too often I have found that a dog will become a predator, the flapping and squawking of a normal chicken's life gets them all excited, they chase, they bite - and then... Some dogs will not, but some will surprise you. Coyotes and skunks are sneaky and careful. We have badgers and the occasional mountain lion too. Honestly, our dog's cattle work is too valuable to lose to an irritated, thwarted predator whom he interrupts; even for a day from a skunk's revenge.
I also once lost an entire nestful of eggs to a 'chicken snake' who got into a (poorly constructed) coop of banties. There he was, curled up asleep, well-fed, and quite content, in the nest! While a chicken snake isn't poisonous, a bite is painful - and snakes like eggs. I prefer a sound protective coop and yard to the variability of a dog's 24-hour required protection. YMMV.
We don't have our chickens at the new homestead yet because I want to make sure I can properly house, feed and protect them first. But I have lived with chickens other places before, mostly mutt yardbirds, that were kept much as Granny describes. I have had experience with housemates and neighbors raising Cornish Cross and White Leghorns in batteries for maximum meat and egg production and I know I don't want to do that.
Since we have brutal winters, my primary concerns were (extreme) cold hardiness and (long) winter laying ability. Secondary concerns were good dual purpose breed with strong foraging skills and decent broodiness. I'm less concerned about getting a lot of large eggs or a lot of meat in short periods as I am with having a reliable source of both without excessive care and cost. Pleasant, pettable temperament was totally secondary to actually being able to survive up here, but still a desirable trait since I really don't enjoy being attacked by my own chickens! Egg, skin and flesh color don't matter to me at all. I also have a strong desire for heritage breeds, particularly those that are on the conservancy watch list. So far, my research and preferences point me to Buckeyes, Dorkings, Dominiques, and Chanteclers.
We intend to keep the layers in a fully fenced yard, like Granny's, and may need to add a few strings of electric polywire to discourage the weasels, lynx, foxes, wolves, wolverines and bears (no snakes, coyotes, skunks or raccoons up here -- yet). The broilers (cockerels and pullets) will be run on pasture in summer in tractors additionally protected by portable electric polywire surrounds. We'll be keeping the rooster(s) in separate bachelor quarters so as not to "accidentally" have chicks hatch in the winter when they would not survive.
We don't have earthworms here in the Interior, but I may end up farming worms in bins under the rabbit hutches and harvesting some for chicken treats in addition to re-"innoculating" the garden beds and compost bins with them every spring. We do have plenty of mosquitoes, beetles, and small rodents so we're hoping the chickens will get plenty of good forage and help control those pest populations. Buckeyes are known as being nearly efficient mousers as cats and are louder than most guard dogs -- fingers crossed!
We've had Americauna's, Barred Rocks, White Leghorn, Rhode Island Reds, and Black Australorps. All have been terrific layers.We don't generally use them for meat but we've used a few of the old hens for the soup pot. Mostly, the old hens live out their lives in gratitude for the years of egg production they've provided.
For meat chickens we either raise Cornish X's or buy organic free-range from a Hutterite colony. I prefer to buy them because I'm not terribly fond of raising meat chickens.
Though we have lots of predators including lots of bald eagles, we've never lost a bird to them except once when the coop was left open at night and a raccoon got in. Otherwise, they free-range all over the place during the day and return to be locked in the henhouse at night.
Now this may be a silly idea but I'd appreciate some comments. Does anyone know how it might work out if a few chickens were kept in a small greenhouse and just wandered around? There's room for nests, etc.
it would probably work out fine if you didn't allow it to get too hot in there and also keep in mind that chickens will eat some plants. I had to fence them out of lettuces because they would just devour them.
Happy - that's not silly at all. I know a couple people who use their greenhouses as their chicken runs in the winter. It might be too hot for them in the summer though if they weren't allowed to go outside during the day, but there really wouldn't be any harm (other than a few pecked plants) tucking them up inside at night and they'd probably keep the pests down inside the greenhouse.
... Otherwise, they free-range all over the place during the day and return to be locked in the henhouse at night.
I'd be too concerned about our particular predators up here (I worried about our cat when she was outdoors), but we've been considering building the layers' coop so we could periodically skid it to new locations and set up a "yard" with temporary fencing and electric polywire. It might be more reasonable to tote them out to a protected temporary run and bring them back in to the permanent coop at night instead, sort of halfway between a permanent run and allowing them total free-roaming.
I'd be too concerned about our particular predators up here (I worried about our cat when she was outdoors), but we've been considering building the layers' coop so we could periodically skid it to new locations and set up a "yard" with temporary fencing and electric polywire. It might be more reasonable to tote them out to a protected temporary run and bring them back in to the permanent coop at night instead, sort of halfway between a permanent run and allowing them total free-roaming.
What do you all think?
That would work.
We have a lot of the same predators you do (in lower populations) here in far northern Idaho but we do have livestock guardian dogs and that has been a huge boon in not losing livestock. Not sure why the raptors don't bother us. We live right on a river and have tons of bald eagles and ospreys.
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