Chickens in a housing estate.

Whispered

I've been thinking of getting a chicken or two. I know threads about chickens have been done before but I have some specific questions. (probably some stupid ones )

Would 2 chickens be happy with each other? Or do you need more? I'm not hoping to get enough eggs to stop buying all together, but a couple would be nice.

What are they like as pets. Ex battery hens would be my preference.

How much space would they need? The garden is not very big and I guess I'd have to give them a dog and cat secure area. Would I need a moveable enclosure? Or do they need free reign of the garden? Also what type of house would they be best with?

Are they noisy? Are they smelly? Do they cost a lot to feed? How long do they live?

Are they very very tempting to dogs , has anyone successfully gotten chickens with a resident dog?

Complete novice, and it's only a vague maybe at the moment. I haven't even mentioned it to my husband yet.

Bearpup

Hi Whispered,

I have 8 hens (6 ex battery hens & 2 bluebells). I have to say they are an absolute pleasure to have. I could sit and watch them all day long! They are so friendly, its hilarious to watch them run over to you when they think you have a treat! Ill try answer your questions as best I can!

2 Hens would be perfectly happy with each other- with both laying daily they should give you 14 delicious eggs a week 3 weeks ago I got 6 new ex battery hens, they were laying previously but havent started laying for me yet, they need a little while to settle in to their new surroundings.

They do not need much space- a movable coup would be perfect but bear in mind they will scratch and dig away all your grass. Our hens are let out of their coup all day, roaming around the place and are perfectly happy to go back in their coup at dusk and wait for their dinner!

They are not noisy at all really, coup can get a bit smelly but regular cleaning does the trick Cheap as chips to feed, we give ours scraps and layers pellets, A bag of pellets costs around a tenner & if you only have two hens will last for a month I would say!

We have 2 dogs and a foster dog at the mo, our youngest dog is almost one and she is the only one really who pays any interest, she might give them a little chase but once we give out to her she stops.

I would highly recommend getting Hens!

Eyeore

Hi Whispered,
We have 5 hens and a rooster, they have a run around 10ft x 10ft with a hen house in it. It cant be moved so the ground is totally scratched up with no grass left, but they are quite happy in there. We get 5 eggs every day. They get a mixture of rolled barley and layers pellets and I give them a bowl of kitchen scraps every day when I collect the eggs (I feel guilty if I just take the eggs without giving them something in return). The food costs around €8 for each bag and last us around 2 months.

I reckon 2 hens would be quite happy together as long as they have a little bit of space and a proper house to sleep in. I put some logs around the place for my ones so they have something to climb up on or hide under. I clean their house out once a week, as long as your prepared to keep it clean it shouldnt get too smelly. Also we have two dogs and a cat and they never take any notice of them although they arent let out in the garden at the moment so they have no direct contact.

HTH

Whispered

Brilliant info - thanks.

Do you have any pics of your set up?

Are there any regulations around keeping them?
Would they try to escape, can they fly?
Are they hardy enough to survive winter with just 2 for body heat? (can heat lamp be used?)
I've got an insulated dog kennel, for a large sized dog, it has no door, would this make a suitable coop if I was to put a door on it? (and a shelf?)
Does the coop need to be high off the ground?
Would a couple of hours a day out of their coop/run be ok?
Do they need to be fed from a dish or do you just feed them from the ground?
If I was to put in a non-movable coop, I know they will scratch up all of the grass, which is fine by me, but would they be happy in one spot? Can I spread wood chippings or something for them to give them more to root around in?
I have a dog, and the garden has their mess cleaned up daily or every second day, but if I miss one, will this be harmful to the chickens?

Sorry for all the questions!

Jagle

Whispered wrote: »

Would they try to escape, can they fly?

are you really asking that?

Eyeore

Not sure I can answer all of those questions but I'll try.
I think you should register your poultry alright although I dont know anyone who does or what the implications of not doing so are. I'm sure if you google it you'd find out.
They can fly but I dont think they are very good at it, some people clip their wings on one side but we dont. Our run is about 8ft high and they dont get out over it.
I would think they are hardy enough to survive winter as long as they have a suitable house for protection from the cold and wet.
Our coop sits up on two wooden pallets to keep it up off the ground, so no it doesnt have to be high up but I guess, just like you would for a kennel, just keep it up on something eg blocks to stop wet getting in and to keep some air flow.
We feed ours from a Chicken feeder but tbh a dish would be just fine. I throw the scraps around so they can have a bit of interest finding it. They MUST have water and grit too.
They will be happy in one spot as long as its big enough, like I say ours is roughly 10x10. We put down bark to stop the mud and they love scrathcing around in it. I sometimes throw sods of grass in and they will peck away at it for ages.
We only have ours for a few months so really dont know a lot but I hope that was of some help. They are great to watch and the eggs are yum too.

Themadhouse

http://www.greenhenworks.com/Loft%20Details.htm

Something like this loft is perfect. It can be moved easily, the hens are at a height at night and closed in. You can screw in 2 little hooks to the underside of the house and hang the feeder and drinker and they will stay clean for longer.

We scoop the house out twice a week and completely clear out the hay and paper maybe every 2 months and its fine.

They are briliant fun, very theraputic and they will grow on you. Hylines are supposed to be great layers. We have a variety of breed here but our rhode island red hybrid is the best layer, an egg a day. the welsummers give about 5 a week but are big and noisy. the aracuanas are small, with brilliant personalities but occasional layers, giving about 3 small blue eggs a week.
In general hens have lifespans of about 7-9 yrs but egg laying slows down yr to yr. I believe battery hens have shorter lives due to their egg production in the first yr or two. The best production is in the first yr which is why battery hens are turned over after that.

We get a bag of organic layers pellets for 12 euro, 20kg lasts about 2 months for 7 hens. They get black sunfower seeds and mixed corn as treats and lettuce and scraps, greens are very important for them. ALso flint and oyster grit, flint for digestion and oyster to strenghten the shells. both are cheap and will last forever. Over all they are very cheap to feed and once they start laying They will give you fantastic produce!

Themadhouse

SOme will attempt to fly off, some wont. We clipped a wing on 3 of them but left the smaller ones. No escapees but we did have an attempt with one of the welsummers in the early days of her being here. I think they are settled in enough not to try to fly off now tho. SIlkies cant fly, are small enough but are not big layers. They are great little pets tho and dont tend to need as much stimulation as the other breeds if you are not looking for big layers.

I wouldnt trust a dog with my hens. I have one and she hasnt shown much interest but i put a muzzle on her if she is out at the same time as the hens. I also have cats but they are kept seperate.

The 2 hens will be fine for body heat in the winter. I just added extra straw and the two that we have in the loft just slept together in the nest box.

lrushe

Sorry Whispered to gate crash your thread but I am looking to get some chickens for my Dad's birthday on Wednesday. Any tips on where best to get them in Dublin???

deisemum

Even if you only keep 1 hen you are obliged to register it with the Dept. of Agriculture. It's very straightforward, just download the form, fill it in and send it off. It doesn't cost anything.

The Dept. of Agriculture do not visit, they just want to know who has birds so that if there's something like bird flu they can notify poultry keepers on whatever the concern is.

joyce2009

I love this thread cos all the questions that have been running around my head have been asked:D,,,except one,,,,,what about if you were going away for a few days would you need someone to feed them and remove the eggs or can you get a feeder that holds enough, would they be ok ???

deisemum

When we go away our next door neighbour just checks them once a day to make sure they've enough water especially in warm weather as a hen may drink up to 1 litre per day plus top up their feed.

She'll also collect the eggs and when you offer free eggs I've found there's no shortage of volunteers to keep an eye on them.

If we're just going away for a weekend they can be left with enough food and water but as I've got a couple of cats my neighbour is in a couple of times a day to feed them anyway so she'll collect the eggs and check their food and water.

If you allow eggs to build up there's a chance a hen may peck them and once they get the taste of eggs it may become a habit. If you've got plenty of room in the next box then it's not such a problem.

Themadhouse

If You have a very secure run, one that your are sure no rats/cats/fox cat get in, its ok to leave them for a day or two.Add in an extra feeder or water bowl if you are worried. If the run is not secure i would have someone by to lock them into their house at dusk.

EGAR

http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/animalhealthwelfare/animalwelfare/registrationofpremisesanimals/

If you want a few chooks then let me know, I have a few spare (Pekins, true Bantams). Also, if you want to see arks etc, next time you're here I show you, as well as care, feeding, disease and parasite control etc.