My brooding hen is eating her own eggs????

feeds@yuku.com (Chris W962) — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 00:14:22 GMT

She's been brooding for 16 weeks now. I kept taking her eggs away but she kept sitting on the nest, no matter what I did. Eggs or no eggs, I haven't been able to get her off the nest for 16 weeks now.

So two weeks ago, after she'd been sitting on an empty nest for 5 days, I decided to give her another chance. I had a cage available in which she'd be comfortable and on her own.
I had given her 8 eggs to sit on.

On day 12 I checked her eggs and there...

How Do You Keep Your Birds From "Flying" the Coop?

feeds@yuku.com (Yotuck) — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 22:54:44 GMT

I have been trimming the feathers of my birds for several years to keep them in their runs........ some of them however are "great jumpers". Any idea of a way to keep them in short of a overhead cover, like aviary netting?

Hen missing feathers

feeds@yuku.com (gspieler) — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 14:10:55 GMT

Hi folks:

I have eight chickens that free range. One, a five year-old, and #2 from the top, appears to be losing feathers.

At first I noticed her pretty tail feathers thinning out. Thin I saw a patch of feathers missing on her neck.

She is eating and drinking. I don't see any of the others attacking her, and as I said, she is up there in terms of pecking order. She has been with her foursome a long, long time. No roosters around. She dirt bathes. None of the...

Newbie

feeds@yuku.com (wallacedw) — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 13:43:51 GMT

At my wits end!

feeds@yuku.com (clairepan) — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 13:31:37 GMT

I'm at my wits end with at least 4 of my 8 girls, picking on my Wheaten Marans.

Ever since my matriarch Bella died 8 weeks or so ago, things are going from bad to worse for my blondie. When I let her out in the morning she goes straight to the hedge where she will sit in relative safety as long as she shows no interest in anything. If she dares to come out with any degree of speed they are on her. They've never drawn blood but as we all know emotional bullying can at times...

My hen won't stop brooding

feeds@yuku.com (Chris W962) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 19:31:54 GMT

This is becoming stressful and I don't know what to do.
She is fairly young, maybe a year old.
Last spring she started sitting on some eggs. She was in the old coop where I have no way of separating the brooding hens so I knew that the other hens would kick her off the nest a few times a day to lay their own eggs there. Thus cooling the eggs and there would be no hatch. Been there, done that many times.
I removed all her eggs and the next day she was running around with the...

chickens best for killing pests?

feeds@yuku.com (poison1981) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 10:46:57 GMT

Killing things like spiders, roaches, earwigs, maggots, mice, frogs snakes? MY OEGB never seemed interested in this? Is it a individual bird thing? OR a breed thing?

Disturbing Rooster Behavior

feeds@yuku.com (Csuzanne) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 17:58:03 GMT

I have been witnessing some disturbing rooster behavior and I hope that someone can shed some light on this:

I have a small flock of 13 hens and 1 rooster. About 2 months ago my SS hen caught a cold or something, she was wheezing and kind of honking (coughing). Following the advice here I treated her with a a broad spectrum antibiotic and she seems to have made a full recovery.

I don't know how long before I realized she had this "cold" I noticed the...

My poor hen:(

feeds@yuku.com (Whitney9988) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 22:10:12 GMT

In September my dog attacked my chickens. Two had to be put down and the third survived. Since the dog attack she hasn't laid any eggs. She's a buff orpington and is only about 3 years old. Is she still in shock over the whole ordeal? Is she done laying for good?

so what breed of rooster doesnt usually crow 24/7?

feeds@yuku.com (poison1981) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 19:16:49 GMT

My old rooster OEGB crowed NON stop like any time he would see a person he would crow his head off and really loud! I Just got so sick of it anytime i was around it felt like i was going deaf! Does anyone know a good breed that doesnt usually crow every second?

HELP....chickens aren't laying!

feeds@yuku.com (tobin3) — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 12:17:25 GMT

Okay we have bought some chickens(leghorns) and they have not laid at all, we have sold the molting sex links and I went from 12 to slowly decreasing to 0 is it the heat or what we have a perfect area they can go in out I am stumped Help.

light in hen house? (won't go in at night)

feeds@yuku.com (kd1949) — Mon, 19 May 2008 19:33:06 GMT

My 8-week-old chickens have a nice secure chicken yard with a ramp up to the extra-secure hen house. I keep their food and water in the hen house and they go in and out all day long to eat and drink, but when night falls, I still have to catch them all (not easy!) and put them inside. Someone suggested putting a small-wattage light inside to help attract them. I bought an automatic door for the hen house but I won't install it until they are all going in on their own. Suggestions?
...

Help! I have a perch potato!

feeds@yuku.com (thkosan) — Tue, 13 May 2008 22:18:22 GMT

This is a bit embarrassing... but for the sake of the chicken I'm asking for help. I partook in a secret egg/chick swap and ended up with a bunch of gorgeous chickens who kept trying to kill the lowest on the rung. She (well, it could be a he...) was bloody every night and when they went in for the kill I had to remove the nearly dead victim from the coop. She's become a snuggle bunny and loves nothing better then to snuggle up under my hair on my shoulder. But she's HUGE --...

Garden & chickens

feeds@yuku.com (Machick) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:57:39 GMT

I am new to this and have had 15 hens for about 6 months. Is there any way to have a garden and chickens without putting up a fence? They are out for about 5 hours a day and are slowly taking it out bean by bean, eggplant by eggplant. Thanks.

seperating hens & roos

feeds@yuku.com (Carole AM) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 11:18:12 GMT

I just seperated some of my pure pairs for breeding on Monday. Some have laid one egg, but most have not laid one egg! How long does it usually take after a hen has been introduced to a rooster? They were laying when I had the hens together in one pen. Now nuthin'. What can I do (if anything)? They are in cages and may need to settle in first.

escaping, fighting and whatnot..HELP

feeds@yuku.com (psyman87) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 08:56:23 GMT

Hi, I'm new here. And new to raising chickens as well. I'm from Ohio and have a flock of 9 chickens of different sizes and breeds (2 silkies, 2 barred rocks, 1 golden sebright, 1 bantam, 2 plymouth rocks, 1 rhode island red) as well as 3 ducks. My problems are

1) The roosters are constantly fighting among themsleves and with the hens (from what I read this may be normal in a flock?), and the hens are constantly fighting with one another as well. the bantam is particlularly...

Broody Hen or something else

feeds@yuku.com (Csuzanne) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 05:06:03 GMT

If this post would be better answered somewhere else I hope someone will move it for me. I have a questions about the behavior of a broody hen.

Two days ago one of my Partridge Rock hens starting sitting in the nesting box on a clutch of eggs. I don't want chicks so I removed the eggs but put a wooden egg to appease her. She is quite aggressive and shrieks when I go near her. I have read about broodiness and she seems to fit the description. She stays there day and night....

I am curious to know....taxes/chickens

feeds@yuku.com (tobin3) — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 09:19:11 GMT

We were informed by our tax person that we can file on the chickens as a seperate income and all of the things that go along with them(building,feed,supplies) and the money we make from selling the eggs, so is this so, do any of you do this or is this asking too much? We get about 1 to 2 dozen a day but hopefully we are going to expand soon.
Jamie

Do I Need A Rooster/Help

feeds@yuku.com (tobin3) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 09:37:44 GMT

We are just starting out with 21 chickens but no rooster do we really need one, we were getting several more eggs but they have slowed down a little. I don't know if we are doing something wrong we are getting close to 10 a day.
Thanks
Jamie/Family

Chicken Behaviors

Rooster Worries