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YoungerPetOwner

Do chickens dig?

[/b]I am only 13 and thinking of getting one or two chickens my mum will help me to look after it and care for it, but my dad says are garden is a mess already will chickens dig holes. Also if you could give me some sizes for a coop and run that would be great, and can some peole give me some ideas of pearch and nest box sizes, and on my last point how much on average would a 16 week old black rock worth caus i heard they are one of the best hybrids and i want one.
YoungerPetOwner

answer

does anybody have any advice please i could use it soon.
bernie-woman

Hi youngerpetowner - whilst i do not keep chickens there are loads of people who do on this site, someone should be along soon to answer your query
live the dream

well in my experience chickens dont dig holes but they will make dust baths and scratch in soil and that could dislodge plants/bulbs. chickens can make a mess off the garden but with only 2 hens it should be ok. as black rocks are a hybrid you can pay between £5-£10. - im sure other people can answer the other questions Smile
judith

Hello there. I'm afraid chickens do dig. In fact they do two things. The first is that they scratch at the ground looking for things to eat, and they will make a bit of a mess of a patch of grass doing this. The second is that, if it is hot, they dig holes in the ground in order to dust bathe. Personally I think that this is so funny, that it is worth a hole in the ground just to watch them do this Very Happy

So what can you do about it? Well, if you move the run around every day or couple of days, it will give the grass a chance to recover. Another alternative would be to set up a run in just one place and put down straw for them to scratch around in. The dust bathing problem can be solved by putting down a box of sand, ashes or dry soil - they will use that rather than digging a hole - less effort!
live the dream

i forgot to add that you may be able to keep 2 hens but i always considered 3 to be a minimum number but since i havents kept less than four i wouldnt know. i dont think keping one is a good idea because hens are very sociable and should not be kept alone. - the more the merrier.
mark

remember foxes will try to dig into a coup to get the ckickens so make sure they can't!
live the dream

sorry, im sure Judith knows better than me Very Happy
judith

Perhaps your chooks have better manners than mine Very Happy
YoungerPetOwner

thanks for all your advice, and the reason i asked do they make holes was my rabbits dig holes and my dad does not want any more than we already have
Gertie

Hi YoungerPetOwner and welcome to the site, by the way! Very Happy

We have been keeping hens since March of this year and they give us a lot of pleasure, just watching their antics.

One of our little hens, Jo, loves digging holes in our garden, she digs them about a foot or so deep and then sunbathes in them (well, when I say them only one or two holes).

Perhaps your dad is just concerned that he is going to end up with no garden, which I can understand.

You could try putting your hens in an ark in the garden, this means they would not be roaming around your garden causing mayhem. Have you shown your dad any books or anything from the internet to give him more information on keeping hens?

Here's a good article written by our very own Treacodactyl. Wink


http://www.downsizer.net/Projects/Poultry_and_Livestock/Chicken_Keeping/
YoungerPetOwner

Arks

Ye i was planning to put them in an ark because we have dogs, i hope i dont sound stupid here but can u use a large rabbit run hutch with some adjustments to make it a home for a chicken and if not can someone give me some plans for a small coop.
Gertie

You do not sound stupid - hey, I am still learning and I am a bit older than you (I had my fingers crossed when I said a bit older than you!! Laughing - I am 47, but do not tell anyone!!! )

I do not see why you could not adapt something already made to suit hens - why not get your dad to sit down with you and see what you can come up with together.

My hubby made our hen house, but you see we have an allotment as well and we have six hens there at the moment.
Gertie

There are lots of good posts under the Poultry and Livestock section here - why not let your dad have a look with you, dads can be very useful when you need help.
tahir

Gertie wrote:
dads can be very useful when you need help.


Good job my kids don't look at this site, I'm training them to think that dad's are supposed to do nthing at all.
YoungerPetOwner

o.k. i will talk to my dad after he is done fixing are rabbit hutch and the reason i asked can i use a rabbit hutch and run is my dad has made them(guess dads can be useful after all).
Gertie

See - told you!!!! Laughing

There you go - youve got your hen house and hen run nearly sorted out.
Gertie

tahir wrote:
Gertie wrote:
dads can be very useful when you need help.


Good job my kids don't look at this site, I'm training them to think that dad's are supposed to do nthing at all.


Tahir!!! How could you!!! I can just imagine those lovely little girls of yours running around to your beck and call in about 10-15 years time - bless em (and your good lady!). Laughing
tahir

Laughing
YoungerPetOwner

Housing

I was thinking that me and my dad could make a chicken coop can someone give me some deminsions, also can someone tell me at what age chickens are aloud to live outside.
judith

Chickens can go outside as soon as they have their proper feathers, i.e. not the yellow fluff. That means from about 5 weeks old onwards, or perhaps a bit later if it is very cold and wet.

As for coop dimensions, you want to allow about 20 - 25 cm width for each adult bird. A box 1 metre square would be a generous size for four birds. You will also need a perch in there - this should be about 15 - 20 cm off the floor and, say 45 - 50 cm from the roof. You will need a door (sliding is good) and a smallish ventilation opening. You will also need somewhere for them to lay their eggs - either a special box on the side of the coop or have enough space inside for you to put a box (my hens lay their eggs in an old washing-up bowl Shocked)
YoungerPetOwner

thanks for your help i can start making plans now but i read 2 by 2 foot per bird works. also how big should the nest box be. also does anybody now the dimensoins of the eglu chicken coop and if anyone has it can you give me some info on it.
YoungerPetOwner

ark

can someone give me dimensions for an ark.
Treacodactyl

To the original question yes they do. Damage can be minimised if you are always out with them, which you probably will be with hounds about or foxes etc.

Chickens, well mine anyway, also like dust bathe in the same place. So a largish tray or a spare corner with dry soil in would give them a place to dust bathe and prevent the rest of the garden getting damaged.

I would also recommend getting hold of a poultry keeping book from the local library if you can.

Good luck and you should be able to get help if you need it.
YoungerPetOwner

got 2 chicken books 5 mins ago from my mum who went to the libray for me.
live the dream

http://www.eglu.com/ has all the information about eglus and some useful information about keeping hens. i have never actually seen an eglu except on the internet so i dont know how good they are but £385 for a complete setup just seems amazingly expensive when you can easily make a hen house for a fraction of the cost and a bit of spare time. just noticed they are selling rabit hutches and runs for £350 - and rabbits dont even lay eggs! Laughing
YoungerPetOwner

yes i know its a incredible amount for a smalll coop but they do look cool. by the way about the hole problem would putting bark down make a difference as there is a b&q near my house so i could probaly pick a bag up there, also does anyone have a black rock if they do can you tell me what there personality is like and do they make a good pet.
Gertie

Nice of your mum to get you some books from the library. Which ones did she get you?

We have a young black rock hen - I think they are a lovely looking bird, Poppy - our black rock - can be a bossy little madam when she wants but is not aggressive. We also have ex-battery hens (ISA warrens) and a speckledy hen (all hybrids) and they are smashing little characters. The speckledy is a very docile bird and all are very good at producing eggs.

Let us know how you get on.
YoungerPetOwner

unfortunately the books that I got are not that great but, thats not my mums fault caus there was only to there.
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