[retribution]

We have our hen house turning up this week, am after some hints and tips, have read a few books but want some real liferecommendations. Want to make sure all is set up right before getting our girls. Thanks all

[New shoot]

Hi - what sort of advice are you after and what are you getting in the way of birds?  If you give us a clue we'll be glad to help 

[joyfull]

Plenty of run space (ideally at least 3 square meters of run space per bird), good quality feed available all the time they are awake and water, grit and oyster shell. Good house keeping - so regular cleaning and red mite treatment. One of the most important things is to locate a poultry friendly vet in your area before you have the need of one and get your hens registered with them. 
If you click on the search facility above with your questions you will find loads of advice, and welcome to the forum. 

[retribution]

Thanks, i have been looking through previous questions too. We have the layers pellets and corn for a afternoon treat, need to get a sand box. Do i still need grit with the layers pellets ? Also i am guessing its best to start with red mite treatment from the start ?

Cheers

[joyfull]

put the grit in a seperate container and also don't forget the crushed oyster shell. Is your coop new? if it is and it's treated you won't need to treat it with poultry shield but if old timber or second hand I would treat it.

[retribution]

Yeah its new, we have brought the cocoon 2500 250 x 120 x 155 we are getting 2 hens so should be plenty of room. Will pick up some oyster shell today. I have seen advertised some treament multi packs of loads of different stuff in it. is this worth getting or do you really only use the redmite when cleaning them out ?

[joyfull]

I treat my coops several times a year with poultry shield and also use diatom - which can be used as a powder or made into a paste to dry the little beasties out. If your hens get mites or lice then my vet gives me frontline spray, but as this isn't licenced for poultry I have to sign for it.

[Jeanette]

If possible get 3 chickens because if something happens to one of the girls the other will be on it's own and that is not a good thing they need other girls with them.
What sort of chickens are you thinking of getting ?
Are you getting hybrids for the eggs or a pure breed ?
Chickens are very addictive and you will soon want more. I started with 3 and now have 12 and thinking of expanding ( my hubby does'nt know that ).

[retribution]

i would like 3, i think we def have the space, told the wife 2 but hope to get 3. i am going to get a rhode rock, blue haze and a silver sussex. all hybrids

[Fisherman]

As a precaution I would treat them with Flubenevet for internal parasites and with Frontline (for kittens / cats) for external parasites as son as possible. Probably best to treat them with both products separately say 2 weeks apart. Flubenevet is the best wormer and takes 7 days to treat them.

In the coop use dust extracted shavings or better still a product like Hemcore which can be bought from horse supply shops. Hemcore can also be used in the nest boxes.

The perch in the coop should be slightly higher than the nest box if possible. Its worth putting an internal tray below the perch to help easy cleaning. Two trays of about 8 to 10" wide are are best butting up together directly under the perch.

Clean the coop out regularly using Poultry Shield and use Diatom especially on the ends of the perch and any crevices.

If you can move your run to various areas on green grass that would be best as they soon trash the ground. Winter time can be messy especially when wet so if you can cover the run that will help. A dust box 18" square with 6" high sides filled with compost, peat moss, coarse sand etc.. helps as they will dust in that instead of digging hollows'

Feed with layers pellets with an handful of mix corn late in the afternoon. Keep the supplied with greens i.e. cabbage, lettuce, kale, chard, spinach etc.. Obviously ensure they have clean water available taking care in freezing weather.

Ensure they have a good supply of oyster shell and grit.

I would definitely go for 3 hens and your choice of hybrids is best to start with. Once they start laying you will get about a dozen and half eggs per week in their first year.

That's about it I Think

[retribution]

I have just been doing some more reading and found somewhere that recommends that when we first get the girls we should keep them in the house for 48 hrs before letting them into the run. can anyone please confirm this or is it more of a suck it an see ?

cheers

[joyfull]

it is so they get to know that this is their home and for them to go in there to roost, however I never have.

[wolverine]

48 hours sounds like a long time to be left in the house. we left ours in the run with coop built in for about 6 hours after we got them ( while we popped off to the pub) then In the morning let them out to free range and had no real problems ever since. But these were my first hens and I am no expert. So I could be talking rubbish
 good luck

[themagicaltoad1]

We just put ours in the coop and left the door open so they could explore the run, they quite happily put themselves to bed when it got dark. If you're getting hens that aren't used to each other you might want to invest in some purple spray, ( I think it's gentian violets), as they will squabble while they sort out a pecking order and can get quite nasty. The spray is to hide the sight of any blood as it will make them even more aggressive. If your coop is new you shouldn't need to treat it for red mite. I've been lucky, had my girls for about 18mths now and never had a problem.
If you do a poo pick up every day they should only need a thorough clean out about once every 10 days or so. Plan your space for more birds than you start with because they are addictive and you WILL want to add to them later. Good luck.

[orchardlady]

What I do when I get new hens is put them in their new house with the pop hole closed. I leave the pop hole closed for an hour or so and then open it. If they want to come out they will to explore their new surroundings. I only allow them a very small area of about 6 foot square for the first couple of days and as their confidence grows I allow more and more space penned of from my original flock until after about two weeks they can free range with the main flock. Often new birds do not come out and so at the usual dusk bed time I close the pop hole and re open it at the usual letting out time in the morning. Again one or two may not come out but leave them alone and their curiosity and hunger will draw them out. If you have young children ensure they understand that the new girls are just like them in new places like school/nursery/preschool and might be feeling a little shy and worried and that the children should be kind, not shout or scream, and be very very gentle in both any handling and feeding.The children should move slowly and without any sudden arm movements or jumping about. I know this is often difficult for young children to do but it's worth it in the end as you will have calm un flapped birds that will become wonderful friends for you all.

Good luck.

OL