Chickens, 3

The outdoor waterer was moved and suspended within the
confines of the coop and a second pellet feeder got hung inside as well. My dear young chickens love their water, and
they love stepping in and spilling it almost as much as drinking it. With the weather getting colder, this was not
good as the wet wood shavings could harm their feet as well as being a superior
incubator for disease. Okay, how do I
outsmart a flock of chickens who love to perch on the waterer and spill it all
over? Off to Home Depot to buy 4 large
cinder blocks. My idea was to set the
blocks down and put the waterer on top.
It would be virtually impossible for them to tip it due to the weight of
the water. That problem is solved but when
the outdoor temperatures dropped significantly and the water started freezing
another challenge was presented. The
incandescent lamp didn’t throw enough heat to keep the water from freezing, so
still having the heat lamp used when they were young chicks, the solution
seemed obvious. The only issue was that
now I’m spending more money on electricity (the heat lamp is 250 watts!!) and I
thought this couldn’t be the only answer.
Ever see those gel filled first aid wraps? You can freeze them if you need to ice a
joint or heat it in the microwave to make a warm compress. I already had one of these so I figured it
was worth a try. Heat up the pack and
install in under the water supply, and put warm water in the waterer, I thought
it had to work for at least a few hours at a time. That it did, but I was away at work and
within a few hours the water iced over.
The thing is that chickens drink a lot of water, but not all at once,
allowing the icing over to occur. Then,
in their thirst, they’d peck their little beaks bloody at the ice trying to get
water. The requirements were defined: a water vessel not top heavy, but heavy
enough itself not to be so easily tipped.
The answer was an 8 X 8 pyrex baking dish. It didn’t hold much water and needed to be
filled several times per day but between using warm water and the heated gel
pack we got through the terribly cold weather.
I need to find another solution before next winter. On one of the blogs I read someone used an
aquarium heater to keep the water liquid.

We got through the winter with just one chicken “ buying the
farm”, as they say, and I have come to
realize that my chickens are very
spoiled. Other local farmers tell me
their chickens come out all winter long, and they do not supplement heat or light and
that’s that. I will live and learn and
perhaps I’ll do things a little differently next year.
I have ordered 6 Hubbard Golden Comet chicks from the local Agway and
will be welcoming them during the first week of May. I may get an additional 6 chicks, but have
plenty of time to decide that.
Life goes on. It
seems the chickens are taking a little rest as the egg output has dropped. It could be due to the fact that I’ve turned off the heat lamp in the coop as
the temperature in the daytime is in the 40’s.
One day it was 62 in there and I’m thinking yep, these ladies are coddled.

Spring is here and the ladies are bursting at the seams to
get out of the palace. After I was able
to get the door to the run open, I
SHOVELED a path to the chicken door in the run and opened the door. A few brave
girls ventured out to eat snow. I
shoveled off the 2 X 4 Tom put out there for them to stand on but still, few
takers. Mother Nature is going to have
to work her magic to get the rest of them out.
When I go out to freshen their food and water each day they are
literally falling out of the coop when I open the door. Of course, I call to them before I actually
open the door so they know it’s me and I’m coming with food. One little smart alec decided to escape the
coop and go underneath it. I can’t get
down that low – my knees won’t allow me to do it and get back up without
incredible pain so I had to let her take her chances until I found a solution,
which came in the form of a miniature dachshund named Mary. I went in the house to release the hounds and
after tethering Wallace, I let Mary run free.
She went directly to the chickens, as usual, and flushed out the escapee,
who loudly complained and threatened Mary with her outspread wings. I opened
the door to the coop and the wayward chicken went right in. HA!! I
win. Sorry, that sounds too much like
Charlie Sheen….I take it back. The
chicken was back in the house with her flock mates.