Tag: West Virginia
Silkies For Sale – 9/24/17
How To Winterize a Chicken Coop Built From a Kit
It is never too early to start thinking about winterizing your coop. Most coops fall into two groups. One type of coop is made from existing buildings such as part of a barn or an ice house. DIY coops could be put in this category too as they were all probably insulated when they were built.
The other group of coops are the kind that are built from a coop kit. You can order these kits online or purchase them at DYI big box stores. They turn out to be cute, little coops that hold less than 10 chickens.
The problem is that these coops do not come insulated. You may have bought them in the spring when it was warm and now we are headed towards winter. What can be done to them to help them remain a cozy home for all your birds?
The first thing that comes to mind is insulation. I would suggest using reflective insulation. You can easily measure, cut and attach the insulation using a staple gun or with spray contact adhesive. Just cover the sides and the ceiling of your coop with the reflective insulation and tape the seams with aluminum foil tape.
I have found that the chickens do not pay a whole lot of attention to the shininess of the insulation. They will, however, peck at the pink insulation or the styrofoam insulation and eat it as well. That is why I do not recommend using that kind. The birds have never pecked at the silver insulation and it has worked well for us.
Make sure that there is adequate ventilation across the top part of the coop. You do not want drafts at the bottom where the silkies sleep, but you do want there to be air exchange inside of the coop. Moisture build up is not good for the birds and causes respiratory issues. If you see a frost build up inside the coop on the walls and doors, then you need to have the windows opened wider.
I would also suggest wrapping the run in clear plastic. The plastic cuts down the sharp, cold wind inside the run and keeps the snow out. Silkies do not like walking on the snow. You want your birds to have fresh air, so I don’t wrap all of the run. Make sure you do the north and the west side as that is where the winds are the strongest. I do not wrap the door. When spring comes, take down the plastic and save it for next fall.
You will need some way to keep the water dish from freezing. Some people use heated dog bowls. We use heated bases with galvanized metal waterers on top. You will need to run aheavy duty electrical cordout to the coop to run either of these water options.
Chickens generate a lot of body heat when they are together. Silkies tend to huddle up together to keep each other warm. Heat is also generated from the heated water bases. If your coop is small, this should be enough to keep things warm.
I do not think it is healthy for a chicken to go from hot to cold temperatures every time they go out in the run. Both places should be about the same temperature. If you use the insulation and the heater bases, these small coops should be warm even with a small number of chickens.
For tips and tricks for raising outstanding silkies check out our Chicken Learning Center at VJPPoultry.com . VJP Poultry is an NPIP and state inspected hatchery located 30 miles north of St. Paul. We hatch out silkies all year long so we always have stock available. Like us on Facebook to get weekly updates on what we currently have for sale.
Victoria J. Peterson
Does a Silkie Need a Christmas Gift? 12/05/16
I have always loved this video – VJP Poultry’s- Ballet of the Unhatched Chick- because it shows chicken’s somewhat playful side. Some people refer to this as “Chicken Football” because they are all chasing after the one meal worm that someone has in its beak. Do chickens play? Do they get bored? Do they require a gift at Christmas? These are all questions people have asked about their birds.
Well, Cyber Monday is over, but there is still time to order your chickens a few treats online before December 25th. Most of the customers at VJP Poultry consider their chickens to be family pets. They lavish love and attention on their silkies and I would bet that some of them are planning a few Christmas surprises in their chicken’s stockings.
Most gifts are the kind that silkies can eat or the kind that silkies can play with. Let’s start with the chicken toys. Most of the chicken playthings are balls that can be filled with treats. The chicken pushes the ball around and treats fall out. Some of the balls are more complicated and the chicken needs to work at it to get the treats out. An example would be Lixit Chicken Toy
The toy that I liked the best was the Chicken Veggie Ball .It is described as “an entertaining way to provide nutritious treats to a backyard flock”. You can put a head of lettuce or cabbage inside it and watch your flock kick it around like a soccer ball. This idea has been around for a long time. Oldsters used to tie a rope around a head of cabbage and hang it on a hook inside of the coop for the same effect. All of these toys are good boredom busters for your birds in the wintertime.
The most unusual toy was the Chicken Swing. The chicken hops on and is able to pump the swing back and forth. Probably not the best gift for a silkie as they may have a hard time jumping on , but other breeds seem to swing just fine on it.
Silkies always like special food treats. There is the Flock Block which lets them peck away and find treats of corn and seed. They are manufactured by many different companies and you should find it at your local feed store.
The treat my flock loves the best are meal worms. Real or freeze dried, they go crazy for them. I have, in the past, kept a meal worm farm going in my house. The live worms are a great source of protein and a wonderful way for you to bond with your bird. They will come running every time they see you if they think that you have worms for them in your apron pockets. You can also purchase freeze dried worms from Happy Hen Treats .
There has been a craze of late for putting chickens in sweaters and other kinds of outfits. You are not doing your chickens any favors by doing this. It will compromise their ability to self – regulate their body temperature. Best to leave the clothes off the birds unless it is Chicken Diapers for inside of the house. You can give them a little jewelry by giving them leg bands that have charms on them. If you are looking for a gift for a guy, check out Gifts For Guys Who Like Chickens. We also have Gifts For Silkie Chicken Lovers for anyone who likes silkies.
If you are interested in gifts for the Chicken Lady or for chicken loving kids or gifts for the home for chicken lovers check out our weekly silkie blog at VJPPoultry.com. We also have silkie basics at Silkie Supplies.
So, do chickens play? I think so. All animals play. I know that the chest bumping I see among juvenile silkies seems to have a very playful nature to it. Do Chickens get bored? Yes, often this will result in pecking to the extreme. Do they need Christmas gifts? That’s up to you. I know that my little silkies will be getting some nice meal worms come Christmas Eve.
For tips and tricks for raising outstanding silkies check out our Chicken Learning Center at VJPPoultry.com . VJP Poultry is an NPIP and state inspected hatchery located 30 miles north of St. Paul. We hatch out silkies all year long so we always have stock available. Like us on Facebook to get weekly updates on what we currently have for sale.
Victoria J. Peterson
VJP Poultry 