Chicken

[lurcherman 887 12,679]

Hmmm

[lurcherman 887 12,679]

Might stick with the goldfish

[lurcherman 887 12,679]

Gave him a sewer burial mate

[low plains drifter 9,463]

8 hours ago, lurcherman 887 said:

Need to give them heat in the winter ? Cheers lads what size coup is adequate 

The mixed corn generates heat, small garden shed with a perching pole or two inside, removable droppings board underneath, pop hole near ground level, and a nesting box either in the shed or on the outside to suit your own set up

[Greyman 25,242]

8 hours ago, lurcherman 887 said:

Need to give them heat in the winter ? Cheers lads what size coup is adequate 

You can extend there laying by fitting a red heat lamp in the coop when the days start getting shorter and colder, if you buy ex battery hens get more than you need as quite a few of them just drop dead within days of being outside, and lastly the best allround breeds I,ve had were light Sussex and black rocks

[Blackbriar 8,568]

2 hours ago, lurcherman 887 said:

Do they shite alot ? Smell?

Not if you keep them clean !

[downsouth 6,832]

Great if you dont mind having a rat or two about the place.

[forest of dean redneck 11,190]

13 minutes ago, W. Katchum said:

Much easier to drive up farm an let kids collect eggs on nice days an in shit days go without, too much hassle there’s a good reason they ain’t in everygardem now a days

Convenice , you only got to look round supermarkets grated cheese in bags ffs

an now advertised on tv you get box delivered to your door with a recipe and pre measured ingredients to make the meal.

lazy sods

[jiggy 3,207]

Over stocking is the biggest problem for causing a mess. I kept about 50 at one stage free ranging around yard and locked in at night. They would come up and sh1t all over the doorstep in morning while getting the sunshine reflecting off the French doors. Attracted rats better than the pied piper which then the rats wouldn't touch the poison because the hen food was nicier. When the rat population got bigger you would notice the extra food going. Red mites were a problem and hard eradicate if kept in timber sheds or under felt roofs. 2 or 3 is enough to keep and I used to get loads of free loaves off bread man. In the coldest time of winter even minus 10 with snow they would stay laying daily if I poured a kettle of boiling water into their bucket of  bread. Warms their insides.

[Tyla 3,179]

Ex battery hens are my preference. Real characters as tough as you like having survived the battery shed. 

My missus likes the bantams but they are characterless i think. Tiny eggs and not many of them. And forever going broody. Fox finally finished hers off the other day so going to leave it til spring and re stock with ex bats

[Blackbriar 8,568]

27 minutes ago, Tyla said:

Ex battery hens are my preference. Real characters as tough as you like having survived the battery shed. 

My missus likes the bantams but they are characterless i think. Tiny eggs and not many of them. And forever going broody. Fox finally finished hers off the other day so going to leave it til spring and re stock with ex bats

My first 6 hens were ex-battery. Got 3 years of laying out of them, and it's good to know that I gave them a better life than they started with !

[forest of dean redneck 11,190]

2 hours ago, Tyla said:

Ex battery hens are my preference. Real characters as tough as you like having survived the battery shed. 

My missus likes the bantams but they are characterless i think. Tiny eggs and not many of them. And forever going broody. Fox finally finished hers off the other day so going to leave it til spring and re stock with ex bats

I prefer bantams ,more yolk to white ratio .

i had some brahma bantams cockerel was nearly as big as a ex batt and the hens eggs were nearly as big as a lf pullet. 

[Greyman 25,242]

6 hours ago, forest of dean redneck said:

I prefer bantams ,more yolk to white ratio .

i had some brahma bantams cockerel was nearly as big as a ex batt and the hens eggs were nearly as big as a lf pullet. 

I used to have the full size barhamas really nice birds very few eggs but mostly double Yokers had a cockerel as well he was huge like that rooster on the cartoons all really friendly birds unlike the road island cockerel I once owned that was mental and attacked everything that entered the pen 

[forest of dean redneck 11,190]

12 minutes ago, Greyman said:

I used to have the full size barhamas really nice birds very few eggs but mostly double Yokers had a cockerel as well he was huge like that rooster on the cartoons all really friendly birds unlike the road island cockerel I once owned that was mental and attacked everything that entered the pen 

I nearly bought Brahmas for the back garden ,when I was up monmouth.