Chickens!

[Spork!!!]

I promised the family I'd (finally) make them a chook run and a chook house.* I want to know if treated pine is safe to use for any or all of the structure. I don't want to be getting toxins via the eggs. :(

*and get some chooks to put in it, it's not "for my family".

[XXX]

:goodevil:What's a chook?

[Tca]

chook = chicken

vinnie, you gots to explain to these dopes what a chook is son :P

[Smash Bros]

rofl.

gotta love the chookens

as far as i know it should be fine. i know we used old doors and such to build part of ours. and then finished it off with corrie iron and some chicken wire fencing around it all. we had a nice solid cage done up.

when your feeding them try and give them mostly hay and grass. they love it and their eggs are alot better for the natural stuff.

[Smash Bros]

after looking on google yes it is safe. just so you know here are some places that have destructions on how to build one (1st site) and then 1 for sale.

how to build one (http://au.lifestyle.yahoo.com/b/better-homes-gardens/479/chicken-coop/)

1 up for sale (http://www.trademe.co.nz/Business-farming-industry/Farming/Poultry/Other/auction-152544883.htm)

[Drunken Monk]

My friend keeps his chickens in a massive cage..actually it's more like chicken wire draped all around a big section of the garden, with a wire covering on top as well. There's a tunnel (like a burrow), loads of plants, hay and grass, bird seed scattered all over the enclosure, and a large drinking pool. His chickens seem pretty happy and they seem to be giving him nice free range eggs as well. Never had any chickens myself, but maybe that could be one of the ways to go about raising them? :eh:

[Smash Bros]

it is a good way.

make sure they have plenty of room to move around so not too overcrowded. try and feed them only natural stuff although bought shit works aswell i guess lol. have a couple of containers of water so they dont dehydrate. make sure there is a spot out of the sun (inclosed) try and have it set up in there so that there is a comfy spot, piles of hay works well.

if you want to go all out get a chook feeder, they are a big metal cylinder that you put food into the top and it comes out at their level. i think they are expensive but they work wonders aswell.

and make sure your ready for the stench of fresh chook shit. although it does feel nice between your toes :D


and after a few months they will start to recognise you. they will run up to the fence of the cage when you are near waiting for you to come into their cage. great when animals are like that. they sort of take on their own personalitys then :D

[Drunken Monk]

it is a good way.
and after a few months they will start to recognise you. they will run up to the fence of the cage when you are near waiting for you to come into their cage. great when animals are like that. they sort of take on their own personalitys then :D


Yeah i love it when they're comfortable enough with human company to start being free and expressive...before my dog used to cling to me for security or used to go and sleep in a safe corner of the house, nowadays he jumps around all over the place, does his own thing and even knows how everyone is going to behave with him. Lovely creature :)


By the way, i think my friend i was talking about with the chooks, has a chook feeder as well :hehe: It's made of some sort of plastic if i remember correctly and it's got a nozzle at the bottom where these pellet like things pop out gradually..i was quite fascinated with it actually.

[Smash Bros]

thats the one mate. they are a great investment as it slowly lets the food out so that you dont have to worry about over feeding, and is safe for them.

[Spork!!!]

Thx for all the info. I have an acre and a half here and plan on making them a run of approx. 750m2 (thats approx. 7500 square feet for the metrically challenged). I have an old wooden aviary that I can easily make suitable for a couple of chickens until I build a "proper" hen house.

I've heard ppl. say they let the chooks into the vegie patch over winter to eat the weeds, but will they dig out my established strawberry plants? Would raspberry canes be safe from them? I don't want them to eat/dig up everything.

[Smash Bros]

they would prob eat them mate lol.

[Tca]

yes, chooks in a vegie patch, HUGE no no vinnie lol

basically, don't let chooks in anywhere that you want left alone :P

[Spork!!!]

bugger. Id hoped they'd weed, cultivate and fertilise my main veg. patch. Might be able to cover my strawbs with wire and fence the rasberries and herb patch.

[Smash Bros]

they will fertilise it for sure lol.

[Tca]

let us know how you go mate aye?

be curious to see what you end up with :)

[Smash Bros]

pics too would be good :D

[Spork!!!]

Thursday I picked up some treated pine rounds cheap, dug a dozen small post holes and 2 larger ones which I have concreted the posts into already. Hope to get more finished this weekend. Will certainly put pics in my album once it's done.

[Tca]

sweet

how many chooks you looking at keeping?

[Smash Bros]

how big you making the enclosure aswell lol

[Spork!!!]

Only plan on 2-3 to begin with. Using an old aviary which is only 1.5 x 1m x 1m. Similar size hen houses are advertised as suitable for 4-6 birds, but I don't believe in overcrowding. The run will be approx 800 sq.m - (24x34m) so big enough for a dozen or two, once I build a larger chook house. Would like to eventually have 10-12, some for eggs, and wife wants some "just pretty ones".

[Smash Bros]

nice sized run there.

we had about 10 in a space half that(prob less) and no overcrowding.

[Tca]

we have about 26 - 30 in a run about 2m x 2m by about 5m (enclosure) and they are quite happy, they have a pretty big run of about an acre though lol

[Smash Bros]

fuck they do have a nice run.

we had our fence going underground aswell. the amount of fucking foxes around tehre was fuckign amazing.

we used to go out every couple of days and check the rabbit snares and find foxes caught in them even ripped a foxes leg off in one after it was caught and tried to get away.

[Spork!!!]

The existence of foxes here in Tas. is still debatable. I think the evidence is that some are here, but not many and not enough to bother semi-rural areas like mine. Next door neighbour has chooks and hasn't trenched the fence, although I will have to in a couple of uneven areas just to stop gaps underneath.

[Smash Bros]

yeah it is worth it even to just stop them from getting out. we had our fence close to 10ft.

and i was in rural vic when we had teh chooks.

[Tca]

We get a fair few foxes

this year alone dad has shot 5 of them

gotta watch the hawks with chickens around though

[Smash Bros]

we had more problems from the foxes.

but i guess with the temp down there you wouldnt get many hawks.

[Tca]

where as, where i am, we get tons lol

[Spork!!!]

Most our hawks are only fairly small. The wedgetail eagles are freaking huge, but they are way out the bush. They look like a kangaroo standing on the road, until they spread their wings and take off.

[Flashman]

this thread is a joke right?

[Smash Bros]

no flash it aint a joke.

and vin the wedge tails out at my mums are fuckign huge aswell. beautiful birds though. just dont go near them in mating season. you get killed if you do.

[Spork!!!]

:o

[Smash Bros]

lol.

i havent seen them land.

only seen them flying around.

[Tca]

i've seen one

they're fucking huge on the ground

the one i seen would of been to about my waist, maybe taller

[XXX]

:goodevil:Is a boy one called a chooster?

[Spork!!!]

no, mostly they are called "shuddupyacunt".