So I am doing dishes and hear this loud squawk/honk sound coming from the coop. So naturally I run out there to see what's the matter, thinking that I would come up to a grisly scene of feathers and blood - only to find the hens sitting perfectly fine. Not a scratch or a peck any where. HMMM...
Turns out it was an egg song, how lovely! I was bale to capture an egg song the other day and I though I would share.
As you can see, she does her honking and then goes under the ramp to lay. For what ever reason, Ethel likes to lay under the ramp into the coop even though we have 7 perfectly good nesting boxes. Go figure!
Through the last 3 to 4 months I have been observing my broody hens and I thought I would share my personal experience with them. Maybe someone else that is finding themselves in the same situation would get some insight as to what might happen. This is my first rodeo, so I am by no means an expert on the topic of broody hens, however I can share my experiences and observations. If this is at least the littlest bit helpful to anyone out there then I am more then happy.
Puffing up their feathers and holding their wings out to appear bigger and hide the clutch underneath them.
First off the signs.
My two Ameraucanas were never the friendliest, they would always run if you tried to pick them up. They were never aggressive or defensive in any way. Never would peck or bite any bird or human, just sort of skittish. So it was a real surprise when I went to collect the eggs one morning and Joan bit me! I pulled my hand out and tried to come from a different angle, only to have her take a big chomp right on my finger. She didn't break the skin or anything, but it hurt and it was totally out of character. She puffed out her feathers and spread her wings out trying to make herself look bigger and hide the eggs from me.
The clutch of fertilized eggs
I also noticed that both Joan and Ethel would not come out of the nesting boxes when I threw scratch out into the run. In fact they stayed in the nesting boxes if there were eggs there or not. I only saw them come out for about 15 minutes once a day, to eat and drink.
Both of the hens were also very vocal, always making noises and clucking, when they were usually pretty quiet. This is also a sign of broodiness, as you can hear in the above video.
They were both really warm. I thought that maybe they were sick and had a fever.
So I had two birds that were warm, not eating, more aggressive, and loosing weight from the lack of eating. After a search on some message boards I figured out that they were broody! They had all the classic signs.
I read that broody hens will also pull out their breast feathers to make a soft nest for the eggs, ours did not do this.
Now, we know what we have - What to do about it?
I read about a few methods to break the broodiness, which is actually a chemical reaction inside the birds. Sort of like when an animal goes into heat. They get these hormones that kick in and they are compelled to sit on eggs until they hatch. I read about getting a wire cage and putting them in it and suspending it from the ground so that they get air flow under them and the drop in temperature would eventually break them of their broodiness. I also read about cold baths. Dunking the birds in cold water up to their vents to bring their temp down and that would break them. I also read that it could take up to three weeks of doing this before they would get over it. Ain't nobody got time fo' that!
I also read that you can just let them sit on eggs, but they will remain broody until after the chicks hatch, and sometimes longer. One person recounted that her broody hen mothered the chicks until they were pullets bigger then her!
We opted to let them hatch.
So we bought 12 fertilized eggs from the same place that we bought the hens and put some under one, and some under the other. Only to come back later to find Ethel abandoned her clutch and was trying to share Joan's with her. So we moved all 12 into one box and let both of them sit on the eggs. We candled the eggs and pulled out a couple of duds. A few ended up not hatching and one got eaten by the Bard (Jessica) so we started with 12 eggs and got 6 chicks, which is about par for the course from what I understand.
When hatch day came, we were very pleased to find that both Ethel and Joan were caring for the baby chicks, and were not fighting at all (which was something that can happen as well) they both worked as a team caring for the babies and were very protective. They also got stressed out and fretted and fussed over the babies. So typical mother behavior!
So far all 6 chicks are doing well, we are hoping to introduce 6 more to the broody hens to see if they will take them in, but for now here are the 6!
Broody mama is not happy when we look at her babies (...pssst, they are not really hers!)
Looks just like her "Mama"
I love these dark and light ones, I fear they are boys...
Love this yellow Easter Egger
We had some rectangular "horse fence" mesh between the coop and the run and decided to add some chicken wire to keep the chicks in, this is how it worked out:
Don't worry!! she was fine - as I reached to help she easily backed out. I suppose it's chicken and not chick wire, luckily this is the fence between the run and the coop and not outside - hardware cloth is the next project.
We ended up loosing a few of the girls over the last few months (to dogs and an unknown sudden death) and so we had been talking about getting more. However, getting chicks takes more equipment and resources so we never got around to it. Vague plans were made for some wondrous future when time and money were abundant to be able to pour into the idea for more chickens... yeah there is no such thing, that does not exist when you are homesteading.
Then we noticed that the green eggs had stopped. Three days went by with not a egg to be found, but every time I opened the nesting boxes, Joanie and Ethel were sitting in there. Hmmmmm
I reached in to pet Joan and she totally snapped at me! Ethel joined in too. They had never made attempts at biting before. Then they both puffed up and squawk. Very peculiar.
A quick Google search revealed that they were broody. Ah yes, it was about that time, they are just about 9 months old and I hear that is prime brooding time. It all made sense, little mama hens were protecting their egg! It wasn't even their egg! Jessica laid one and now Joanie and Ethel were competing over who would be the one to hatch it.
It was kind of a no brainier, it was decided that we would buy some fertilized eggs and let the broody hens hatch them. The hens would be happy, and we get more birds with out too much more work - win win!
We got a dozen Ameraucana (I think two or three are actually Easter Eggers) and put half in one box and half in the other. Right away they both went into one box and after some arranging, settled in on them.
Fingers crossed most will hatch!
Fingers double cross that we get mostly girls!!
Hello, it's been a while...
Our hens have grown into excellent layers and we now get between 4-5 eggs a day (since we are down to 5 hens). Unfortunately we lost one hen to a dog and we are now down to 5 - but we plan on getting more in the fall. On with some photos!
One of our Barred Rocks' layed her first egg and it was Tiny!
After installing almost all of the OSB and the main double doors I made the large nesting box door/lid. I started with only two hinges but ended up installing a third in the center after we finished painting.
The inside after the walls and door were finished.
I left a section open in the front of the coop for the summer time heat, and also cut a piece of OSB to cover it during the cold season. I stapled some heavy gauge wire in the window opening and in the
ventilation gaps near the roof. Next I installed the window with a
couple small hinges, and put silicon around the glass on the inside of the frame.
Next step was to raise the chicken run. For this I decided to lag some 2X4s into the existing 4X4 posts and
wrapping it with heave gauge lathing wire (since "chicken wire" is way
too thin).
I also raised the gate and added a second 'dutch' type gate above
the existing one. This way we can just open the top gate to throw some scratch and treats without the hens running out. I reinforced the top frame and ended up replacing the 2X4 header that is in this picture with a 2X6.
The kids couldn't wait to get their hands on that red paint! But first we painted a couple coats of white primer to help protect the wood and make the red more... red.
You can see in this picture - I added a small vertical-sliding door with a pulley system so we can open/close the door without having to go into the chicken run. Overkill? yea.
I built a small two-pole roost in the coop, you can also see in this photo, I installed the winter board to close up the front (sorry, it's a bit blurry).
I used silicon and expanding foam on the large cracks inside and then we all took turns painting
2 coats of primer and 2 coats of thick semi-gloss exterior paint on the
floor to keep the moisture from absorbing into the wood.
A view into the nesting boxes... Those are going to be some happy hens!
There are a lot of big hawks that like to hang out in our eucalyptus
trees so we decided to install some UV resistant, marine-grade aviary
netting over the run, in this photo you can also see the finished run gate.
This is by far one of the most enjoyable projects I have done and is one of many we have planned. There
were a lot of little things I still wanted to do like add white trim
boards along the edges of the exterior and around the door to give it
that barn look, but it really isn't worth the extra money.
Functionality is key... Instead I focused my attention on self watering cups fed by a 5 gallon bucket and a solar panel/battery/light system - I will write separate posts about how I installed both of those things.
At the time of writing this we have already had our chickens for a month and so far the coop has worked out perfect.
Feel free to ask me any questions about this project!
A few of the birds are starting to become easier to tell apart, so they are getting names!
Roll Call!!!
This big gal (who, I swear to Xenu, thought was going to turn out to be a rooster) stands out the most, with her alpha like mentality and flecks of white on her breast - I named Joan. After one of my most favorite actresses; Joan Crawford. (That chick didn't take no guff!)
The other Ameraucana (who, for what it's worth, lasted way longer then I had mentally predicted. She was a little mangy and was definitely the runt of the group) is a little chatty. She consistently vocalizes the most, and has a distinct bravado not unlike a vaudeville singer. This little spitfire, I thought should be named Ethel. Like Ethel Merman.
Of the Barred Rocks, there is one that stands out. She has more white then she does black and she is long and lean and the most skitterish of the four, hence the blurry pic. Winny named her Chickafella.
One of the other barred rocks has a crooked crown, it kind of goes to one side then flips and goes to the other side. We shall call her, Royal. (Crown Royal, get it? See what we did there)
The other two Barred rocks are indistinguishable so for now they will remain nameless. Unless we can find some way to tell them apart. Maybe like a bell or something? No, not a bell. Some string or an anklet maybe?
Here a chick, there a chick, everywhere a .... well you get the point
Looking at the Ameraucanas in the sun, I noticed how the black feathers had a green iridescent quality. They are absolutely beautiful. Other colors flecked throughout, purple in some light, these birds are nice to look at.
The hen house has been getting some modifications! We did a lot fine tuning once the girls got here. It did not help that the overnight lows were just a hair above freezing!
I felt bad not having a heat source, so I took some old terra cotta pots and put them in the oven. I made a little area in the corner of the coop with some cinder blocks and put the hot pots on top of the blocks to add some warmth. When the pots cooled, it went back into the oven (I did this in the middle of the night, mind you!) This little system was not going to work past one night, we needed a lamp.
We added more bedding, some garage door weather stripping, and went out and bought a heat lamp (with some chicken treats and scratch!) Those poor little dears were piled on top of each other trying to keep warm!
Next Noah made a little outdoor table/roost out of a pallet and some scrap wood we had laying around. The chickens absolutely love it. They are always under it, scratching around for bugs, or hopping up on the flat top and flapping up to the roost.
Noah installed a solar panel on the roof. He then installed the battery, charge controller, and switch right inside the door in the coop up high enough that the birds can not get to. Then he made this light fixture to run off of the panel. The system will be able to provide enough power to run the light, and with left over voltage so that when the heat of the summer is in full swing he can add a an in-ceiling fan to keep the girls nice and comfy. My biggest concern is the heat, which will be here before we know it. The summers here can be stifling. Dry and hot. However, that is a bridge that we will cross in a few months. For now we will enjoy the cold weather while it lasts, us with our warm blankets and heaters, them with their heat lamps.
We made use of the kids old play oven and put it in the run for the little chicks to enjoy. They like to climb in and sit in the narrow space on the bottom shelf, or hop up on top and get a great view of the yard.
Every morning they cant wait until the door is open to get out into the run!
So, now that the coop has been finished enough to actually house some fine feathered friends, we felt it was time to visit the chicken farm and ask some questions before we actually brought any hens home. We saw some Barred Rocks and Easter eggers still in the brooder.
There has been unseasonably cold weather recently and it looks like it will be here for a good week or two (frost on my aloe!) so we are just going to have to wait to have to wait (darn the luck!) for the barred rocks that we wanted to be able to come out of the brooder.
Frost on everything! I thought this was California?
We have not equipped the coop for any sort of heat source. The chickens we want are about 2 1/2 months old. So plans were made to come back in a few days and get those birds!
It took a bit longer then that.... did I mention that this is procrastination ranch?
Delays aside, we did it! We decided on four Barred Rocks and two Ameraucanas. They were all around the same age (hatched late Sept/early Oct) and were young enough that they would grow up around us. The kids could hardly contain their excitement!
Getting use to their new home!
Come on out ladies, we're here!
We emptied the bags carefully into the coop and watched as the little gals ran around. They took to the food and water right away, no problems!
I noticed that one of the Ameraucanas was the smallest of the group. Other then that I could not tell them apart at all!
The four Barreds all looked the same to me, but I figured that their personalities would come about as we all spent more time together.
Out getting some sun :)
This was it, our first step towards our little homestead. What we had talked about and planned for years was coming to fruition. It is a nice sense of accomplishment, we put our minds to something and made it happen.
Something that was surprising; the chickens were still cheeping! The little noises I had been expecting to hear coming from the yard was not the bok bok cluck, but rather a tiny high pitched kind of squeak! It was the. cutest. ever.
So.... Little is getting done, and my gung ho spirit up and went gung ho right out the front door! I guess life gets in the way a little bit while you are busy living it. I have a theory that lack of a disposable income lends a big hand to this. It's hard to do stuff while strapped for cash. So head down, doing bare minimum, getting by. We painted on the inside, and Noah fitted the winter wall in.
Little bits have been done to the coop, paint here, adding wire there, ect. Coming along, however slow, it's coming. Also, I have to admit it is a little daunting when I think about it. I have never really owned any type of farm animal. I have read many articles, blogs, books, publications on the subject but read and doing are very different. What if they all die? What if one gets sick? What if I have no idea what I am doing?
BAH!
See, I need to get over it. Also I need to make friends with someone that owns chickens...
The front is a slow work in progress as well. I am focusing now on the small lawn I want, seeing as how the glads popped and are long gone. So I put my birthday present to good use. Oh, did I fail to mention my super sweet birthday gift from my dear husband?
Pretty sweet, huh?
Anywho, so I have been pulling up as many weeds as I can (that stupid Bermuda grass is totally lame) and hauling them out with my wheel barrow. After all that is gone (almost there!), we are (and when I say we, I mean Noah) then going to place some drainage, and sink a well. Over the well we plan to put a false/decorative well. I might turn it into a planter or a fountain, not sure yet.
Then we are going to spread some seed (yes, seed!) and keep at it until it takes.
We have painted the outside, it started off this horrible pepto pink
color, but after a few coats, it ended up not being that bad. I know for
a fact that the coop is going to be done sometime in the next three
weeks. Then we are going to go pick out some birds!
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You can see in this picture - I added a small vertical-sliding door with a pulley system so we can open/close the door without having to go into the chicken run. Overkill? yea.
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This is by far one of the most enjoyable projects I have done and is one of many we have planned. There
were a lot of little things I still wanted to do like add white trim
boards along the edges of the exterior and around the door to give it
that barn look, but it really isn't worth the extra money.
Functionality is key... Instead I focused my attention on self watering cups fed by a 5 gallon bucket and a solar panel/battery/light system - I will write separate posts about how I installed both of those things.
