- Our digital chicken coop -
4 Opinionated Hens
- Pam -
Plays nice with the others, consistent producer and an overall pleasure to have in the coop. This one lays brown eggs, just as the others do.
- Hank -
The leader of the pack.
- Nancy -
I don't know where the name came from, but Nancy it is.
- #4 -
We ran out of ideas for names. Kind of a loner. She lays while the others are free ranging. We've had great luck supplementing the standard Tractor Supply feed with mealworms. We're getting 1 egg from each hen just about daily.
- How we manage the Flock -
Feed
Housing Accomodations
Treats
Tractor Supply has a wide variety of feed. The bulk feed is the Producers Pride brand. We may play around with different options to balance the good production with overall health. They are healthy and thriving, but Hank can have bouts with pasty vent. They go through a 50lb bag in roughly 90 days. We remove the food in the evening so we don't attract rodents, and it's been working well. Water is a standard waterer. I will also leave out a small feeder with oyster shells. This is a great source of calcium for harder shells. As mentioned we've had some issues with "pasty vent," with Hank. Or more commonly referred to as "poopie butt." We're adding some probiotics to help balance out feed and we'll see if that improves the situation.
Treats
Housing Accomodations
Treats
The chickens LOVE meal worms. We get them in the 5lb bag and it lasts us roughly 40 days. We use them to lure them back to the coop from free ranging, or just an evening snack. Our production averages 3.75 eggs a day. That's almost 1 each. Winter time was a bit slower but still averaged around 2.75 eggs a day. That's great production.
Housing Accomodations
Housing Accomodations
Housing Accomodations
We have a flock of four so we decided to go with the Chicken Coop Company - Leghorn Cottage. It fits them really well. We expanded the run-in portion with one of our own design to increase outdoor space. When not confined to the coop or run-in they free range. We added an infra-red heater to the ceiling of the coop. It's definitely cozy in the winter. Another modification we made was to the back side of the coop. We cut out a section of the main body of the coop so we could add another two nesting boxes with a lid for exterior access. We don't use it as nesting boxes though. We use it for indoor food and water. Here's a link to the coop we have (we have no endorsement or affiliation).