(Part 2) Best products from r/chickens

Awesome. Congratulations on your new friends. My coops have four walls with a dirt floor and an vented roof. We dig corrugated metal into the ground for the bottom third of the walls (or the whole coop can be wood framed and the metal can be the walls and roof. Shipping pallets suspended by fencing wire for the perches. 3 square foot per bird, 1 nest per 3-4 birds. Straw/hay around the coop and in nesting boxes. We open the door in the morning and they run outside all day and go to bed by themselves at night. We do a head count, make sure no predators are in the coop, and lock the door with a pegboard display hook through a swivel hasp. A cinder block in front of the door works too, especially since that will hold it open during the day.

We use the deep litter method.

Where there are no trees we drive t posts in random places to deter hawks swooping down.

Chickens are fine with cold so long as you block the wind. They may need vasoline on their combs to prevent wind burn and frostbite.

They need oyster shell put out where they can get it if they want it. A good feed. Free ranging is fun for them. Treats are good scraps from the kitchen (watermelon, pumpkins, tomatoes, etc are my bird's favs).

I'd fence them in and then cover the area with bird netting. That's what we did with the 90' x 30' area that my girlfriend's chickens live in. It's a hassle to put up, but will keep anything from above from getting them. Plants will still grow through the stuff and it ends up sagging over time. Ideally you'd want to replace it every year or two.

You can see the netting in this pic

We used something just like this: https://www.amazon.com/BOKNIGHT-Netting-Poultry-Aviary-Square/dp/B076PYYLMH/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=bird+netting&qid=1556405241&s=gateway&sr=8-4

We also have that foil stuff up. No idea if it actually helps at all. The chickens don't seemed bothered by it at all.

Fun, for people:

Solar rooster light

Smaller solar rooster light

Bouncer rooster statue

Useful, for chickens:

Egg skelter

Pretty saddles for hens getting a bit TOO much loving from a rooster

No chicken person is EVER disappointed by a new incubator - I recommend this brand and these models in particular as reasonably priced but very high quality small incubators.

Source: I'm a crazy chicken lady who owns everything linked above except the egg skelter and having received most of them as gifts I can say that they're all fricking awesome.

My avian vet said that chickens lack the enzyme to digest dairy. It won’t hurt them, but they don’t benefit. She suggest probiotics for chickens that you add to their water. I had used a powder, but found a liquid that mixes better, and my chickens like it. https://www.amazon.com/Big-Ole-Bird-Probiotic-Southland/dp/B008M72DYE

A big box of diatomaceous earth:https://www.amazon.com/Diatomaceous-Earth-Lbs-Food-Grade/dp/B00KPXGNVC/ref=sr_1_1?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1479424248&sr=1-1&keywords=food+grade+diatomaceous+earth+25+lbs

Will keep the girls mite free for a long, long time.

A bag of meal worms is a nice Christmas treat for hens:https://www.amazon.com/1000ct-Mealworms-Reptile-Birds-Chickens/dp/B00IYNTSXK/ref=sxr_rr_xsim1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=2286650982&pd_rd_wg=waq6n&pf_rd_r=ZXKZ7N9D92QAVA2JT4QR&pf_rd_s=desktop-rhs-carousels&pf_rd_t=301&pd_rd_i=B00IYNTSXK&pd_rd_w=3XS3q&pf_rd_i=live+grubs&pd_rd_r=VPSCF21DPB8NDX2HANW1&ie=UTF8&qid=1479424367&sr=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0002G7ZQE/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1523302796&sr=8-3&keywords=poop-off+bird+poop+remover&dpPl=1&dpID=41tXs20X86L&ref=plSrch - I haven’t tried it on any dried up pieces from chickens but it works really well for dried Lovebird poop. It seems like it would work for chickens as well, since it also cleans for bugs and grain-based diets.

That really tripped me up at first also.
I went to Home depot thinking there would be an attachment for this type of thing. The only thing they had was a union. After some research I found out what I was looking for was a BulkHead Fitting. I did not even use silicon. There are no leaks and the [yellow nipples] (http://www.amazon.com/Poultry-Nipples-Sanitary-Chickens-Turkeys/dp/B006LAVDLI/ref=sr_1_cc_3?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1381852214&sr=1-3-catcorr&keywords=poultry+nipples) work pretty well. They still leak a bit, but with a gutter under the dispenser it seems to take care of it.

Make sure you know what percentage of amprolium it is, and research the dosage. I have Corid like
this - Merial 150197 Corid 9.6% Oral Solution for Calves Yellow, 16 oz https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M1UPA6G/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_dYmoDbK498V8N

But mine doesn’t specifically say for calves. But it is the 9.6%, and I followed this dosage instruction page: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/updated-corid-and-amprol-amprolium-dosing.818879/

definitely want to leave the heat lamp on at all times. is it light emitting, and you're worried about the light?

this is what i've been using with success (the lamp it fits in must have a porcelain socket or it will burn itself out prematurely): BYB - 150W 110V Ceramic Infrared Heat Emitter

I use this. It's pretty expensive but it lasts pretty long. It allows the skin to breathe while keeping a barrier to the skin.

Do the gifts need to be for the chickens? I have a small backyard flock and I may or may not be more than a little obsessed with my girls. With that in mind, I've been thinking about asking Santa for some cute sloggers to use out in the yard and maybe this chicken purse, or here's the coin purse, for Christmas.

https://www.amazon.com/Southern-Homewares-Skelter-Spiraling-Dispenser/dp/B06XDFZX3D/ref=mp_s_a_1_17?ie=UTF8&qid=1549221327&sr=8-17&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=egg+holder

K&H Pet Products Thermo-Peep Heated Pad Tan 9" x 12" 25W
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JHK375E/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_GplXBbVN1RY9R

It's one of those gravity-fed ones and it's inside a coop, so the sun won't be hitting it. We've got a heated chicken mat that we're not even sure works, but we thought that was maybe one possibility if we put it under the tray. I see there is a waterer warmer on Amazon, but I'm not sure if A) it works and/or B) using the mat would achieve the same results, not to mention the fact that no matter what I do I'm likely going to have to drill a hole through the coop to be able to run a cord out of it.