HENS

Charliebull

many people run a few hens around the yard, young lads want to get a few, is there much work into them

used to have them years ago but mother always let them run free

weatherbyfoxer

The mother has 20 running around the yard here for free range eggs for the bnb.Have a feeder in the shed that takes a bag of layers pellets and a small water trough piped aswell so no work with them . absolute pains in the arse in the yard doe pulling hay n straw around the place and constantly on the hunt for loose cattle ration even pick at full bags of meal!

farmerjj

weatherbyfoxer wrote: »

The mother has 20 running around the yard here for free range eggs for the bnb.Have a feeder in the shed that takes a bag of layers pellets and a small water trough piped aswell so no work with them . absolute pains in the arse in the yard doe pulling hay n straw around the place and constantly on the hunt for loose cattle ration even pick at full bags of meal!

We,v some hens and biggest pain with them is feeding them twice a day,where can u get one of those feeders and would they set u back much?

moy83

Make sure the young lads do the cleaning and feeding and there won't be much work out of them . Make a run thats big enough so they wont make a **** of the ground and a small shed and they'll be grand .
Its a start to getting the kids into looking after animals and hopefully they will be able for the cows then before long

arctictree

We have a few hens in a big fenced off area in the garden. Very little trouble as I set up an automatic feeder which gets filled maybe once every 10 days. Young lad gets the eggs. Any surplas he sells to the neighbours for a euro a box! Takes me about 2 minutes to put them in at night.

weatherbyfoxer

farmerjj wrote: »

We,v some hens and biggest pain with them is feeding them twice a day,where can u get one of those feeders and would they set u back much?

Oldmacdonald.ie

farmerjj

weatherbyfoxer wrote: »

Oldmacdonald.ie

Ha thought u were been a smartass till i checked..thanks

Charliebull

what sort of an area does a hen need for a run

are they dear to purchase

Reggie.

Charliebull wrote: »

what sort of an area does a hen need for a run

are they dear to purchase

Hens are around 7 euro for the rhode island red and can be dearer for other types. I have my lot in a run of 10ft x 10ft and I have a rooster and 5 hens.

Charliebull

weatherbyfoxer wrote: »

Oldmacdonald.ie

good site that, thanks

Reggie. wrote: »

Hens are around 7 euro for the rhode island red and can be dearer for other types. I have my lot in a run of 10ft x 10ft and I have a rooster and 5 hens.

do you have a coop for them reggie

i could give them an area of about 20ft x 20ft and have another area of about 40ft x 3ft

fencing wise what do you use

Reggie.

Charliebull wrote: »

good site that, thanks



do you have a coop for them reggie

i could give them an area of about 20ft x 20ft and have another area of about 40ft x 3ft

fencing wise what do you use

Yeah ill throw up photos later. I use 10 x 10 security fencing in a square. And one on top as a roof.

As for your area you will amble amount there for 10 hens or more

Farmer Pudsey

we have a few hens. Made a run out of an old trampoline and the wire come around one of the small hen houses. We have had hens for about 18 years tried different system and houses this look the most promising. Can move the whole setup every couple weeks. Young lad feeds them one a day and collect eggs.

rushvalley

Have 4 hens that are let run around the yard. Get fed a small bit of layers mash and the scraps from the kitchen. They are put into a big steel box at night because we used to have awful problems with pine martins getting into the old shed through the walls and killing them.

Nekarsulm

Had a half dozen here, till a fox cleared the lot before Christmas. Piggery suppliers sell Plastic "wet and dry" feeders that will hold 50kg of feed, although we only ever put in about half a 25kg bag at a time.
Keep an eye on done deal & adverts.ie, you often get extensive egg producers selling off when they pass peak laying, but still doing 5 a week, or so. Saves a few from the soup route. Great fun for kids, and very easy petted. Too easy really, they would live in the kitchen if you let them..............

Floody Boreland

Kept them free range a few years ago but vet advised against when cattle raised lumps at TB test. Avian TB he said.

frazzledhome

Had them, fox got them, wont have again, dirty bastards

farmerjj

frazzledhome wrote: »

Had them, fox got them, wont have again, dirty bastards

I don't think hens are dirty at all especially if they have there own run, geese and ducks are a different story the amount of sh**** around after them is unbelievable.

whelan2

frazzledhome wrote: »

Had them, fox got them, wont have again, dirty bastards

same here, not sure if it was a fox or a mink,even took the heads off the guinea fowl, had 2 left , 1 of them died today she was 6 years old , so just have 1 now, she just wonders round the yard, will get a friend for her tomorrow

Reggie.

whelan2 wrote: »

same here, not sure if it was a fox or a mink,even took the heads off the guinea fowl, had 2 left , 1 of them died today she was 6 years old , so just have 1 now, she just wonders round the yard, will get a friend for her tomorrow

If the head was taken it was a fox.

Greengrass1

Reggie. wrote: »

If the head was taken it was a fox.

Was down the field the other morning. Seen 4 cubs playing in the field. The yelps out ogmf then when my dog ran for them

gozunda

farmerjj wrote: »

I don't think hens are dirty at all especially if they have there own run, geese and ducks are a different story the amount of sh**** around after them is unbelievable.

Hens will reduce grass to dust in no time
Ducks like to make mud wallows
Geese droppings are something else all right

Important to have right set up for what you have - Geese are primarily grazers so a dedicated paddock will keep the sh1te were it will do some good.

Make sure the ducks have a pond and a hard paved & fenced area to minimise damage in very wet weather.

Hens same & don't let them in the garden!

Geese and ducks are a bit hardier than hens which have a very long list of potential diseases.

Can't beat a good free range duck egg imo

Reggie.

Charliebull wrote: »

good site that, thanks



do you have a coop for them reggie

i could give them an area of about 20ft x 20ft and have another area of about 40ft x 3ft

fencing wise what do you use

Here ya are Charlie. Ain't the cleanest run but hey its home

Reggie.

The feeder

Reggie.

The inside

Charliebull

Reggie. wrote: »

The inside

the pallets on the floor a good idea,

GrandSoftDay

Charliebull wrote: »

the pallets on the floor a good idea,

I made a slatted floor chicken house of my leaving cert with outside nest boxes, removable slats and doggy flap style door. Got an A and all for it. Has long since rotted away though because I didn't treat it properly but it was some job. No need for perches with the slats and only had to bed the nest boxs which the never really pooped in anyway. Pity I can't find the old pics of it now All joined with mortise and tenon joints and dovetails.

Charliebull

GrandSoftDay wrote: »

I made a slatted floor chicken house of my leaving cert with outside nest boxes, removable slats and doggy flap style door. Got an A and all for it. Has long since rotted away though because I didn't treat it properly but it was some job. No need for perches with the slats and only had to bed the nest boxs which the never really pooped in anyway. Pity I can't find the old pics of it now All joined with mortise and tenon joints and dovetails.

could you knock another one together

GrandSoftDay

Charliebull wrote: »

could you knock another one together

I'm sure I'd be able but if I was getting. 2k a piece for them I still don't think it would be worth my while considering the amount of time I put into it.

A cow called Daisy

There was sign up in local shop couple of years ago saying "Roosters - free to good home". Rang the number and started asking questions about potatoes - were they dry etc.

He started to laugh and explained in a 'ya thick eejit' kind of way that it poultry he giving away and who in their right mind would give away potatoes.
I might be interested in them, I said, would they be suitable for breeding?
Oh they probably would, he said, is that what you want them for?
Definitely, I said, you see there is a barn owl here and I was wondering if i crossed her with the rooster would i get a c**k that would stay up all night:o

moy83

A cow called Daisy wrote: »

would i get a c**k that would stay up all night:o

Im sure someone here could oblige you if thats what you need Daisy

A cow called Daisy

moy83 wrote: »

Im sure someone here could oblige you if thats what you need Daisy

But they'd probably be looking for a pullet:D

Charliebull

A cow called Daisy wrote: »

But they'd probably be looking for a pullet:D

Jayus daisy are you a bulling,

Reggie.

Charliebull wrote: »

Jayus daisy are you a bulling,

God help the OH there tonight

whelan2

jeeny this conversation has gone down hill

Reggie.

whelan2 wrote: »

jeeny this conversation has gone down hill

Don't they always

Kovu

Reggie. wrote: »

Don't they always

Can't blame me this time!:P

Reggie.

.Kovu. wrote: »

Can't blame me this time!:P

Oh there's time yet

farm14

Nekarsulm wrote: »

Had a half dozen here, till a fox cleared the lot before Christmas. Piggery suppliers sell Plastic "wet and dry" feeders that will hold 50kg of feed, although we only ever put in about half a 25kg bag at a time.
Keep an eye on done deal & adverts.ie, you often get extensive egg producers selling off when they pass peak laying, but still doing 5 a week, or so. Saves a few from the soup route. Great fun for kids, and very easy petted. Too easy really, they would live in the kitchen if you let them..............

Wonder would their be good money in extensive egg production? Anyone know of anyone doing it & the profits?

gozunda

farm14 wrote: »

Wonder would their be good money in extensive egg production? Anyone know of anyone doing it & the profits?

Yes - good money hmmmmm ???
Profit - depends on system / setup / outlay

It's possible - but remember while it is extensive - you will still need proper housing + land to meet free range certification standards. Flock size will need to be of a minimum size to balance costs. Advised scale big enough to have a dedicated buyer - fresh eggs don't keep so this is important. Flocks must be registered and will be inspected.

Teagasc - do a good basic guide on set up

See
http://www.teagasc.ie/ruraldev/docs/factsheets/14_Free%20Range%20Eggs.pdf

Farmer Pudsey

farm14 wrote: »

Wonder would their be good money in extensive egg production? Anyone know of anyone doing it & the profits?

You will still need to feed hens to get them to lay at maximun capacity. Eggs production is based on getting hens to lay at there best for 60-80 weeks on this type of system. If near a large town or city and doing proper free range eggs it can be very profitable as a cottage farm industry. These type of free range eggs retail at 3/doz. A single hen laying 330/year will generate an income of 82.5. Multiply by 150 means a turnover of over 12K.

However it is not just a matter of setting it up an all will be OK. Half an acre divide into 4 runs with house in middle, a good feeding system would be required and an interest. If you increase egg production/hen by 12 eggs/year to 342 it will bring income/unit to over 85 and add 450 to top line.

The selling is the trick shifting 84 doz eggs a week will not be easy. However those that do this type of industry are slow to give it up.

gozunda

Re Free range systems an important consideration is the set requirements that hens have continuous day time access to open-air runs and the ground is mainly covered with vegetation.

Runs will quickly become denuded of grass where large numbers of hens are kept so it will be important to manage / rotate runs to ensure adequate grass cover. This means planning for extra grassed areas for managing free range access.

Mad4simmental

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

The selling is the trick shifting 84 doz eggs a week will not be easy. However those that do this type of industry are slow to give it up.

+1
Friend has 2500 of them & he reckons logistics is the biggest killer. Also be VERY wary of supplying restaurants, COD only to them. It's a very tough industry with allot of competitors.