# My first two chookies



## Jibbajabba (Jan 31, 2011)

One Goldline (Lilli) and Copper Maran (Ichti)










Whilst the Goldline is quite tame - the Maran is quite scared ... needs a lot of work I think ... Should be laying in 5 odd weeks


----------



## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

I wouldn't hold out much hope of the maran laying bang on the 24 weeks ish mark. If it is a maran (looks black rock like to me) you would be looking at nearer 30 weeks if not more. 

Lovely looking ladies though.


----------



## SiUK (Feb 15, 2007)

Nice one  chooks are awesome I recently got chickens for the first time I love them, I started with two but have 5 now its kind of addictive


----------



## Jibbajabba (Jan 31, 2011)

Dee_Williams said:


> I wouldn't hold out much hope of the maran laying bang on the 24 weeks ish mark. If it is a maran (looks black rock like to me) you would be looking at nearer 30 weeks if not more.
> 
> Lovely looking ladies though.


Farm doesn't even have Black Rocks but yea - might take a bit longer to lay but that's fine .. They are pets to begin with - eggs are a bonus :2thumb:



SiUK said:


> Nice one  chooks are awesome I recently got chickens for the first time I love them, I started with two but have 5 now its kind of addictive


We are limited by space lol ... but who thought these are cheap and easy pets ... far from it lol .. but well worth it


----------



## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

Just so long as you are aware, we've had people complain before, purebreeds take longer to lay as they fill out first. 
Lack of feathery legs is what made em question whether a maran. 

As I said, pretty girlies though.


----------



## Jibbajabba (Jan 31, 2011)

Thanks .. Basically I forgot what it was lol ... 

Here's the link of the page where they display the available birds : 

Chickens for Sale, Cambridge

I wonder if it could be a "Nera" instead ?


----------



## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

"The Copper Maran lays about 250 darker shelled eggs. She has been bred from a French Copper Maran and a Rhode Island Red. A great option for someone looking for a little variety."

Tbh it is a bit of a misleading name as it is a hybrid not a maran. 
Still she is a lovely bird and will aly well no doubt.


----------



## Jibbajabba (Jan 31, 2011)

Thanks for clarifying  Thank God I don't intend to breed them


----------



## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

:lol2:
we said that. 
Started with 2.

Now have over 500.


----------



## Jibbajabba (Jan 31, 2011)

Dee_Williams said:


> :lol2:
> we said that.
> Started with 2.
> 
> Now have over 500.


Haha - no room :blush:



Yet :whistling2:


----------



## Jibbajabba (Jan 31, 2011)

Well thought the coop / run is a tad small so got them an extension and basically a whole corner of the garden 

Front netting can be lifted / locked (need to build a door of some sort this weekend)..










Not on the picture, but got some flappy-bright thingythings to stop normal birds divebombing the net


----------



## Graham (Jan 27, 2007)

I would be very careful about letting them out into the main run, foxes will have no trouble at all getting through that netting, they can even chew through so-called "chicken wire" given a little time, I would use nothing less than weldmesh which is totally fox-proof. Even then though you have to make sure they can't tunnel under it!

As it is I would only let them out when you are around.

My own run is weldmesh on two sides and solid featherboard fencing on the other two, the roof is heavy duty corrugated plastic, and the floor is covered with reclaimed paving slabs so nothing can tunnel in.


----------



## Jibbajabba (Jan 31, 2011)

The mainrun really is only to let them out when we are at home, so we don't have to watch them at all times and give the cat some freedom too. The "extension" is actually on pavement so no one can dig under it and the material is so tough I couldn't even cut it with my sidecutter.


----------



## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

We had a fox rip off the side of a shed on saturday to get to the birds. 

We use security fencing panels, they are pretty good (fox got under a gap in the field fence side that we hadn't noticed :bash


----------



## Graham (Jan 27, 2007)

I've heard lots of reports of chickens being taken from unsecure runs during the day when their owners were around and therefore thought they were safe, unless you actually watch them the whole time they will be vulnerable unless the run is properly fox-proofed.


----------



## LiamRatSnake (Jul 3, 2007)

I had a fox manage to get past strong weldmesh in the middle of the day. He killed 20-odd birds so it's not to be taken lightly. It was devastating and something that will happen to most poultry keepers sooner or later. I would have staked a lot on that run being secure but there must have been a single weak point.
I'd spent a good couple of years and a good deal of money perfecting that flock as meat birds.
Anyway congrats on the birds, I too started with a few, 9, and ended up with nearly 70 at the peak :gasp: I've since had to leave poultry keeping for now - absolutely gutted.


----------



## gecko lady (Jun 26, 2010)

This Mesh - Galvanised 6m x 0.9m x 13mm, 5397007007107 and a good strong wooden frame partially berried in the ground is good has worked for me for years you could also put paving slabs around the perimiter of the fence to prevent any chances of digging. expensive but worth it! Make sure you have a secure place to lock them in at night also i have a childrens wendy house. Ive never had any trouble until i left my parents in charge of locking them up at night and they forgot to put the roof back on then Mr foxy took his chance unfortunately. But we regually see fox's in our garden and havnt had any other problems.


----------



## Graham (Jan 27, 2007)

I think I went for a slightly heavier gauge mesh myself, 1.2mm IIRC, just to be sure!

Check places like Freecycle for paving slabs though, I got three trailer loads and used them for the chicken run and around the garden, cost me just the diesel to make three trips!


----------



## LiamRatSnake (Jul 3, 2007)

It's all well and good investing on good materials but I think maintenance is just as important. We reckoned the u-nails we used to attach the mesh to the wood had degraded as the wood had cracked and damp got in. The mesh was probably just pushed hard and the u-nails came out of the damp wood. Foxes are persistent little buggers. :bash:


----------



## gecko lady (Jun 26, 2010)

LiamRatSnake said:


> It's all well and good investing on good materials but I think maintenance is just as important. We reckoned the u-nails we used to attach the mesh to the wood had degraded as the wood had cracked and damp got in. The mesh was probably just pushed hard and the u-nails came out of the damp wood. Foxes are persistent little buggers. :bash:


absolutly, we have a major fix up every year of our run and it has been standing strong for over 10 years aswell as an anual creasote. Obviosly any bits that need fixing between times gets done


----------



## Graham (Jan 27, 2007)

Rather than attaching the mesh with U nails, the framework of my run is made from two layers of wood with the mesh sandwiched in between, there's no way the mesh could ever be removed from the frame no matter how persistent the fox, unless they have access to tools perhaps!

A decent roof over the run that overhangs all round will also stop the wood from getting wet and rotting, mine has been up for over 5 years now and hasn't required another coat of preservative yet.


----------



## LiamRatSnake (Jul 3, 2007)

Graham said:


> Rather than attaching the mesh with U nails, the framework of my run is made from two layers of wood with the mesh sandwiched in between, there's no way the mesh could ever be removed from the frame no matter how persistent the fox, unless they have access to tools perhaps!
> 
> A decent roof over the run that overhangs all round will also stop the wood from getting wet and rotting, mine has been up for over 5 years now and hasn't required another coat of preservative yet.


Aye that's how my other runs are. It was covered but I don't know whether the damp came up from the ground. I've sold off/eaten almost all my chooks and ducks now but when I get set up again in a few years I'm going to do things a lot differently I think. I made them very very secure at the bottom of the wire to prevent digging under and misjudged the bloody u-nails! I even bought the hooked ones so they couldn't be dragged out.


----------



## Jibbajabba (Jan 31, 2011)

Hopefully we are alright - I tried to get mesh down the ground but failed to dig up some soil - if my spade and 18 stones fail - I hope foxes will :gasp:


----------



## Graham (Jan 27, 2007)

They probably wouldn't bother digging as they can just bite through the netting, if they can chew through "chicken wire" a bit of nylon net won't hold them up for long, any weakness you can be sure they'll find it.

On a chicken forum I used to belong to one guy built a run using chain link on a steel tube frame with a base of paving slabs, he thought it was impenetrable, but the door was hung with thick leather straps which the fox chewed through one night!


----------

