Hey.... Lets keep Chickens..!

doodlesmum

silverleaf79 wrote: »

He's been researching organic weedkiller recently and bought a huge bottle of white vinegar and a big bag of salt to deal with the weeds in the driveway. I told him that some chooks would clear up the dandelions pretty quick.

My hens wouldn't be "proper" free range as we have a lot of foxes round here and I can't see all the garden from the house (it's pretty big and goes round two sides of the house), but I'd let them out to scoff slugs and such when I'm outside to supervise. How many slugs would they clear in an afternoon?

Me, I just want some nice entertaining and interesting pets, a few good eggs and the knowledge that I've saved the lives of some poor miserable ex-batts.



Oh I would LOVE ducks! I hear good things about Campbells, and they look so cute. Sorry, but ducks are much prettier than chickens...

I'm so not worried about the garden getting wrecked - it's a complete mess, including my sadly-neglected weed-filled raised vegetable beds! In fact chooks could only make it tidier, lol! :rotfl:

Our two are white campbells they are really cute and very friendly , it is really funny when you let them out first thing they always come out quacking at you ,lol my garden is the same :rotfl: i am not a big gardener so it saves having to worry about nice borders,the chickens use them for dust baths .

Tony_essex

Hi, hope this is the right place to post this, and it is not meant as spam!

We got 4 ex-batts last year and the kids love 'em!

We get between 3 and 5(!) eggs a day still from our girls, enough for us and the neighbours

Any way, the people we got them from are re-housing some more this July, and I am trying to raise some interest for them.

This is an entirely non-profit making charity event, run by a couople of absolute animal lovers, who are trying to save as many chooks as possible!

All details can be found on henfest.co.uk and once again, my apologies if any sees this as spam.

Tony.

silverleaf79

steady__eddie wrote: »

Not only is this thread a veritable goldmine on how to care for our domesticated feathered friends but I am picking up quite a few tips on that old enigma, how the female mind works. Hopefully this will help me as I want some chucks but she who thinks that she must be obeyed says NO. I believe that this may stem from an incident that happened several years ago before I became a sleeping partner in our relationship. It was a hot sunny day, the bantams were freeranging and I was building a wall in the garden. The then prospective O.H. had made a couple of cups of coffee and was sauntering down the path with a cup of coffee in each hand when the c0ck caught sight of her, he charged down the garden and lunged at her posterior. Unfortunately, he snagged his beak on her panties and was unable to extricate himself. She stood there petrified, (fortunately having the presence of mind not to drop the coffees), screaming. I was up to my waist in a trench, unable to do my white in shining armour trick and trying desperately to suppress the smile that was begining to creep across my face and howls of laughter that were welling up inside me when I gazed across this truly incredible sight.
Working on the philosophy that I should express a desire for someting else which would make chickens a more desirable option, can any of you ladies suggest what this less desirable option should be ?
The only thing that I have been unable to come up with so far is an au pair.

Too funny!! I read it out to HI, and he said, "So the moral of the story is, if your wife has trouble handling your c0ck, threaten to get an au pair."

Angela

Tony_essex wrote: »

Hi, hope this is the right place to post this, and it is not meant as spam!

We got 4 ex-batts last year and the kids love 'em!

We get between 3 and 5(!) eggs a day still from our girls, enough for us and the neighbours

Any way, the people we got them from are re-housing some more this July, and I am trying to raise some interest for them.

This is an entirely non-profit making charity event, run by a couople of absolute animal lovers, who are trying to save as many chooks as possible!

All details can be found on henfest.co.uk and once again, my apologies if any sees this as spam.

Tony.

OMG
This rehoming is only about 10 mins from where I live.
I need a chook buddy tho.

rachbc

well my cunning planning to contain my hens has failed - my girls have a coop and built in run but when i want to let them out into the garden I have netting to keep them in - its 1.5m high and cos its net they can't hop onto the top then over - however they worked out before I did that if they hop on to the roof of their house its a short jump onto the 6 ft high wall and freedom....the house is about 1.2 m high - if I clip their wings will they be able to get up there?

mardatha

One of mine cleared the 7ft high netting the first day I got them. We had to put pond net over the pen ! lol

Gigervamp

Not sure. My legbars have their wings clipped, yet they can hop up onto the top of the compost bin which is made out of pallets and about 4 ft high at the sides.

rachbc

mardatha wrote: »

One of mine cleared the 7ft high netting the first day I got them. We had to put pond net over the pen ! lol

think thats gonna be the way to go tbh

ionahenor2

silverleaf79 wrote: »

Whew, it's taken a while to read this whole thread!!

I would love some ex-batts but Him Indoors has vetoed it. His reasons?

* Set-up, etc, is too expensive
* Too much work (which he think's he'll end up doing)
* "It's another one of your obsessions which you'll lose enthusiasm for,"

Today he says he's sick of hearing about chickens. I admit I've been semi-seriously spamming him with battery-farming-is-mean-to-chickens-and-they-deserve-a-nice-life comments along with wouldn't-it-be-nice-to-have-lovely-fresh-eggs-and-hens-to-cuddle-and-save-money-at-the-same-time comments for the last 3 days.

This is not a spur of the moment thing though, I've wanted them for years. I just shut up about it when he said no the first few times. Really not sure what direction to go in now. There's no compromise there at all.

I think you should start saying no! until you get some hens. :rotfl:

Or you could always give him meals without eggs..... bacon and a note saying eggs still in chickens.:rotfl:

ionahenor2

Folio wrote: »

I would so love some chickens and the only thing that stops me is what to do when we go away (2 weeks every summer and a week in either autumn or spring if we are lucky). We don't know the neighbours well enough to ask them unfortunately and have no family living close enough to help out.
carry on wishing I suppose

The Omlet site has chicken sitters a bit like a kennel/cattery who will look after your hens.

Do you have any friends that would do it for the free eggs?