anybody keep hens ?
- Thread starter rapidboy
- Start date
Yes,i keep hens.Ive got a light sussex,3 black rocks and a generic brown rescue hen.Only 3 of this 5 are laying!Good fun and not to difficult to look after..What were you thinking of getting?
I haven't a clue, a neighbour of my parents has a few and i was talking to him yesterday.
He's just lives in a regular semi detached house in a street and he reckons it's no great trouble.
I have plenty of space and am out in the country so i was thinking it wouldn't be a lot of hassle and might be a bit of fun.
I ordered a few books of Amazon today so i will have to read up on it a bit.
He's just lives in a regular semi detached house in a street and he reckons it's no great trouble.
I have plenty of space and am out in the country so i was thinking it wouldn't be a lot of hassle and might be a bit of fun.
I ordered a few books of Amazon today so i will have to read up on it a bit.
Thats exactly what i done.Good thing you are out in the country in case you get a Cockrel.Good luck if you go ahead,you wont regret it.
Have done for about six years now,
mostly rescue birds kept for the eggs. We've been foxed a few times during the winter months which has dealt with the turnover of stock, so I don't really know how long they live.
The eggs they lay are far superior to anything you can buy from the high street, both in size and taste. They are fed on a mix of layers pellets, mixed corn and kept in a pen some 30 by 10 feet with a coop for roosting. They scratch the floor bare quite quickly and love a shovel full of fresh earth to browse for insect treats.
I'd recommend keeping a few birds to anyone who has a corner of garden you can give over to them. Each hen has its own character and you'll always have something to barter with and a still warm, fresh egg for breakfast just cannot be bettered.
ATB
Ogri the trog
mostly rescue birds kept for the eggs. We've been foxed a few times during the winter months which has dealt with the turnover of stock, so I don't really know how long they live.
The eggs they lay are far superior to anything you can buy from the high street, both in size and taste. They are fed on a mix of layers pellets, mixed corn and kept in a pen some 30 by 10 feet with a coop for roosting. They scratch the floor bare quite quickly and love a shovel full of fresh earth to browse for insect treats.
I'd recommend keeping a few birds to anyone who has a corner of garden you can give over to them. Each hen has its own character and you'll always have something to barter with and a still warm, fresh egg for breakfast just cannot be bettered.
ATB
Ogri the trog
We lost our six to a fox last year, hope to pick a couple more up this weekend. The eggs were fantastic.
We've got bantams. A Mille Fleur Pekin and a Red Saddle Yokohama. Our favourite, a Malasian Serama, got taken by a fox last week!
I can recommend bantams, they're great characters!
Jim
I can recommend bantams, they're great characters!
Jim
D
DrSin
Guest
I got three rescues in my small garden no trouble at all easy to keep and feed. Eggs are great one has just stop laying for some reason
daughter loves collecting the eggs too. even my dog enjoys going up and lying in the sun in front of their pen. would recommend to anyone. If you dont have close neighbours get a cock then you may get free meat too.
daughter loves collecting the eggs too. even my dog enjoys going up and lying in the sun in front of their pen. would recommend to anyone. If you dont have close neighbours get a cock then you may get free meat too.
I have black marrans, cuckoo marans, french marans with feathered legs, welsommers and light sussex. i have had trouble with foxes and lost all of my buff Orpingtons in one day. i use small battery powered Gallagher electric fence energisers and chicken netting. (http://www.farmcareuk.com/index.php no connection just good service) this year i am extending the fence to cover the lambs and turkeys so will be using a mains energiser.
i started with a few rescue hens and now have different breeds, geese and turkeys. its addictive and very calming. if you go into their pen upset and stressed from the outside world they will be fractious and loud. it makes you calm right down and feeding them scraps evens out your mind. I'v been told i am a much nicer person now i have animals.
once you start just remember to stay under 50 birds or defra will hunt you.
getting hens was one of the best things i have ever done i can highly recommend it.
dave
i started with a few rescue hens and now have different breeds, geese and turkeys. its addictive and very calming. if you go into their pen upset and stressed from the outside world they will be fractious and loud. it makes you calm right down and feeding them scraps evens out your mind. I'v been told i am a much nicer person now i have animals.
once you start just remember to stay under 50 birds or defra will hunt you.
getting hens was one of the best things i have ever done i can highly recommend it.
dave
I don't think a cockerel would go down well with the neighbours, we had one last year that was dumped out at the side of the road and lived in the small forest behind my place - one neighbour asked me to shoot it but i quite liked hearing him, in the end i think a fox probably took it.
Not that many fox's about now, i have taken a few and a guy down the road keeps them down because he has pheasants.
I really only want a few as a wee interest rather than a major hobby, i have the space and i have a load of timber that wouldn't take a lot to turn into something for them to live in.
There seems to be plenty of reading and plenty online so im going to read up on it a bit first and also try and find out about a local source for feed etc.
Not that many fox's about now, i have taken a few and a guy down the road keeps them down because he has pheasants.
I really only want a few as a wee interest rather than a major hobby, i have the space and i have a load of timber that wouldn't take a lot to turn into something for them to live in.
There seems to be plenty of reading and plenty online so im going to read up on it a bit first and also try and find out about a local source for feed etc.
I've got three hens, I haven't a clue what they are and I have a cockerel. They have the run of the garden and frequently head off over the back and sometimes end up around the front. I live in a block of masionettes and have neighbours to the left, right and above and everyone loves them I do pass out surplus eggs to keep everyone happy, it's hard for someone to complain about the chickens if they are getting something from them.
If I were you I'd go for rescue hens, you are giving them a new life. Mine were rescue, not from a battery farm but from a tiny little pen where the people who had them had no idea how to feed them.
If you are going the free range option, make sure you have an outdoors cat for ratcatching (mine bring one into the house at lease once a week... ickky but at least the rat isn't eating the chicken food, the chicks or eggs)
We don't have foxes around here, plus if we did there are plenty of rabbits to eat, I've not had a problem with them yet, but the cockerel will go for anything he thinks is attacking his hens, even me. He does keep the trespassers out of our gardens.
If you do get some, please let us know how it's going
If I were you I'd go for rescue hens, you are giving them a new life. Mine were rescue, not from a battery farm but from a tiny little pen where the people who had them had no idea how to feed them.
If you are going the free range option, make sure you have an outdoors cat for ratcatching (mine bring one into the house at lease once a week... ickky but at least the rat isn't eating the chicken food, the chicks or eggs)
We don't have foxes around here, plus if we did there are plenty of rabbits to eat, I've not had a problem with them yet, but the cockerel will go for anything he thinks is attacking his hens, even me. He does keep the trespassers out of our gardens.
If you do get some, please let us know how it's going
Hi,
I was / am thinking about hens and have got a lot of useful advice off http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/
I've still to get some once I have sorted my garden out.
I was / am thinking about hens and have got a lot of useful advice off http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/
I've still to get some once I have sorted my garden out.
Is there a minimum size garden that you would need for say 3 birds.
What do you do when you're away from home?
They need put indoors (cooped?) at night/let out morning and fed, right?
That's basically the reason I've not investigated this any further, but I love the idea?
Any workarounds I don't know about? (just leave coop open and a big bucket of food?!?!?!)
What do you do when you're away from home?
They need put indoors (cooped?) at night/let out morning and fed, right?
That's basically the reason I've not investigated this any further, but I love the idea?
Any workarounds I don't know about? (just leave coop open and a big bucket of food?!?!?!)
There are always hens at the BASC Game Fair at Ballywalter - it's next Saturday and Sunday. The owners are always happy to talk about keeping them.
we have 3,
nice white eggs come from the "white star" breed
our favourite hen is a "gold liner?" something like that... just an ordinary red hen
last one is a "rocky red" ???
but what we found is the rocky red pecks the smaller gold liner one. so i think its best to get chickens of all the same size
nice white eggs come from the "white star" breed
our favourite hen is a "gold liner?" something like that... just an ordinary red hen
last one is a "rocky red" ???
but what we found is the rocky red pecks the smaller gold liner one. so i think its best to get chickens of all the same size
I'm going to that on Sunday! If you see me and SWMBO with a wierd looking spotted collie/lurcher x puppy each then please say hello.
i,ve got four of the most chilled hens ever ,until a Wood Pigeon landed in the garden.They attacked it straight away so I had to run out and grab the poor pigeon before they leathered.Chickens are merciless buggers!
