chickens - what should ido?

[barefootlinzi]

I have been offered some rescue chickens (3) to be collected on sunday.the trouble is i only emailed the rescue to enquire, i have no home for them or feed or anything! I wonder if i am wise to go ahead and get them so soon, but now i have been offered them i am really tempted.

so should i go ahead and quicklyget everything ready for them, or should i wait? and if you think i should go ahead, what do i need to get?

[farmerdrea]

If you have any scrap wood or wire, you can bang something together really quickly for 3 chooks. Pallets, netting, etc works well, and if you can get a short roll of poultry netting, you can simply put it in a ring staked in with bamboo stakes and give them a large plastic box on its side for a nighttime house and another upright for a nest box for now until you can make them something more flash. They can live on food scraps until you can get some grains for them, whole wheat, cracked maize, crushed barley, they love it all. If they have been battery raised, the concept of eating greens make take a little getting used to, but they will quite quickly.

Cheers
Andrea
NZ

[pumpy]

go for it. we are in exactly the same situation.

[Thomzo]

I'm picking up three chickens on Sunday as well. If you have a shed or garage, you can pop them in there overnight to keep them safe from foxes. Any old box will do then if it's indoors. Don't forget that if they are ex-bats they won't be used to walking around and being outside. They probably won't want to go out for a few days until they get over the trauma of being rehomed.

Why not ask around for an old kitchen cupboard. Cover it with plastic (old compost bags are ideal) it won't last long outside but would do until you could get something more permanent.

Good luck
Zoe

[MINESAPINT]

I would strongly recommend you go ahead and get them providing you can keep them safe in a shed/garage for a few days. The chickens will ultimately have a good life with you.

Their permanent accommodation depends on what you are prepared to spend and space you have available and probability of predators. Most chicken sheds are tongued & grooved timber (mine is) but critters hide in the crevices created (red mites). Plastic/GRP huts are available called eglu's or something like that. These will be fairly expensive but they do not have the places for these critters to hide and I guess they will be easier to clean. If you go for a tongued & grooved shed try to provide a nest box that is plastic or aluminium and removable so it is easier to clean. I will take a photo of my nest box later & post it here.

For now:

[barefootlinzi]

well unfortunatly we wont be getting some hens. at the moment we live with my mum (long story) and she has said no, we cant have chickens as they attract rats and we are un prepared. very annoying since she isnt actually here much and we are in the process of taking the house on so she can move out. but she suggested that we get a chicken book, read up, get their home and feed storage sorted,get rid of the huge shed to make more room and then get them. Sound advice really. oh and the chicken rescue lady said they ahve over stretched themselves on transport and it would be better if we went in the next rescue in september.

oh well!

[Thomzo]

Don't worry, time will fly by and you'll have your new family before you know it.

Do you need to get rid of the shed? I partitioned off a section of my huge shed to make the hen house. They love it as it's dry, warm and safe. I like it as I can sort out their food, water etc inside in the dry and I've just cut a pop hole to their run out the back.

The rest of the shed is used for storage, potting up etc and is a real bonus.

Cheers
Zoe

[barefootlinzi]

thomzo i do need to get rid of it; it is just too big for the garden (it takes up 1/4 of it) and i want the space it is in to grow veg. my garden is in the middle of a big change to take it from useless huge pond that takes up most the garden to ish heaven

[Ratty]

Thats a shame but at least you'll be fully prepared for the September rescue. We collected 4 girls today but I already had the coop (bought it 2 years ago!) and we bought new feeders & stuff from a local suppliers during the week.

[Thomzo]

I picked up three ex-bats on Sunday. Poor things were almost oven-ready. I'd made them a new house so that they could be kept separate from the other hens. It's a bit ratty so I'm already planning a superior model! The girls are very nervous but all three ventured out of the house for the first time today.

Zoe

[weatherwax]

If you need information on chooks there is a really good website that we used when we first got ours, got all the answers to all of the questions we had

http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/