# Beginner....Help!



## jenznomi (Feb 21, 2014)

Hello all,

We've be considering having a small flock (no more than 6) for the past year. 
We were going to start off with chicks but my neighbor is getting rid of his hens and said he would give me his two year old Buff Orpingtons. 

This option is appealing because we'd have eggs right away. However he wants us to take them in two weeks. Thankfully we already have a coop & it just needs to be put together & predator proofed. We feel confident about that part. 

What concerns me is he's getting rid of them because of the rodents getting into his coop. He said he didn't use hardwire mesh when predator proofing. And that the mice have now invaded his house! Yuck!

My questions are 

Should I be concerned that the hens maybe carrying diseases because of their exposure to rats?

Is the best way to keeps rats & mice away to get a good feeder, like the Grandpas feeder? And keep their feed in metal containers in our shed? And put their water away at night?

We really don't want to end up with a rodent issue & want to do everything we can to keep them out of the coop & our house!

I've read up on the rodent issue and want to be sure we are covering all our bases. 

I appreciate your replies!

Thank you!


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## LittleWings (Jul 15, 2013)

The Grandpas Feeder would be a great start. A feeder that rats can't get into will help. Having one at the right height or one that is designed well will help with spillage. Rats will come in to eat the crumbles left on the ground. They will climb into feeders and eat also. Stopping the supply of food will stop the rats.

I used to have a bad rat problem. I kept feed available all of time in wall feeders and the rats would come in at night and feast. I started feeding fermented feed instead of dry feed to save some money, and it got rid of the rats too. Now there is no more feed left over in feeders or on the ground for the rats to eat. Within a week, there were no more rat holes under the coop. 

I have nipple waterers and the rats don't come in for the water.

Good luck with your new chickens and coop!


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## hellofromtexas (Feb 16, 2014)

jenznomi said:


> Hello all,
> 
> We've be considering having a small flock (no more than 6) for the past year.
> We were going to start off with chicks but my neighbor is getting rid of his hens and said he would give me his two year old Buff Orpingtons.
> ...


*Summarized questions and answers...*

Question 1 Are rodents a problem?

Yes but in different ways than your original question

They raise food cost
They get poisoned and chickens may eat them. This will lead to anticoagulant (blood thinning) poisoning in the bird depending on poison used and possible death. 
They carry disease to mammals (not many avian diseases in rats, that's wild birds)
They damage stuff in general
They steal eggs

Question 2 How to rodent proof?


Treadle feeder
closed watering system (like nipple bucket waterers or automatic pvc waterers. More ways than one to skin a cat just make sure it has chicken nipples)
Hardware cloth
egg collection at dusk when hens go to sleep
*Helpful resources at bottom of post*

*Reasoning and long explanations *

*Feeders*

Grandpa's feeder is a treadle feeder but I got mine a little cheaper. I went to the carpenter shop and he makes them for $65 plus shipping. It's a galvinised metal feeder that holds 26 pounds working on a counter weight similar to grandpa's feeder. It doesn't have to be grandpa's feeder but that one is a nice feeder if you can afford it. There are also plans to build them but I don't know any personally and I don't want to recommend a bad plan.

*Watering system*

As for watering, A closed system that uses nipples and is just out of their reach works well but within your birds. You can either make it or buy it. It isn't too hard to make if you can use a drill and pvc cement/sillicone caulking. Bucket system is easiest and there are some features to make it automatic. To make it automatic you will need a float valve and the best way to describe it is, it's the valve on the back of most classic toilet tanks that causes them to fill and it will look like a ball on a wire with a hose attachment. Be sure to get the one with the garden hose adapter. Float Valve Example

You could take the water in every night but there is a human error problem with this. If you forget to put it back out on a especially hot day it turns bad. I am a forgetful human being sometimes so mine is auto. It has a manual mode too in case of emergency. Also, a closed system has been scientifically tested to reduce disease in a study in 2008.

I bought mine because because the cost of buying new drill to make it didn't work out. I use the Chicken Fountain Mini and it is rated for 6-8 birds and works off a garden hose. For more northern climates I recommend a bucket unless you can keep the pipes from freezing and have a heated hose.

*General Predator Proofing*

As far as predator proofing. You can use hardware cloth on the coop and to prevent digging a hardware cloth apron around the outside of coop about 6 in. or bury it 6 in. so if they dig they hit a hardware cloth wall (not inside without padding, it leads to bumble foot a very painful foot problem that either needs penicillin or surgery depending on severity).

Eggs are a invitation for rats if left over night. The hens won't lay when it's dark. Their best hours are from 10 am -6-9 pm depending on daylight hours. I recommend egg collection twice a day (early afternoon and nightfall). You can get away with once at night.

*Breed Info on Buff Orpington*

Buff Orpingtons are a very good breed for beginners and it's like a golden retriever. But, they are very docile.

They don't go well with dominant chicken breeds sometimes however there are exceptions. They do mix well with other laid back docile chickens like barred rocks. What will happen with the more dominant aggressive breeds is they will pecked at the Orpington. It has a tendency to be the last on the pecking order. Nice guys finish last unless they are all nice guys.

My mother in law made the mistake of mixing rhode island reds with her orpingtons. Now they have separate coops for the rhode island reds and the barred rocks and orpingtons.

This is a helpful Breed Chart that will let you know what they are like before you buy. I'd go for the non-aggressive. Color not included in name and it's alphabetical. (example Buff Orpington is under Orpington)

*Helpful links*

*Nipple systems* (first one has a diy video too on heated bucket systems and bucket systems in general. Both shows how to winterize their systems)

avian aqua miser
chicken fountain

*Treadle Feeders*
Grandpa's Feeder
the carpenter shop rat proof feeder
(paypal info is [email protected] to pay for it. You have to go to paypal and enter that as the address. Payment has to include shipping and there's a link chart based on state under the feeders. I include this because it took me a while to figure out but he's very friendly and answers emails quickly. Let me know if you have trouble. Assembly requires moderate building skill.)

*Other resource*
www.the-chicken-chick.com 11 tips for predator proofing chickens
www.the-chicken-chick.com The advantages of poultry nipples


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## realsis (Jan 13, 2013)

Make sure you store food in secure bins and put food up at night. I would leave water. Also ask when he wormed his birds last and check them for lice and mites before taking them. You will see white egg sacks attached to the base of the feathers and the mites look like black pepper flakes very tiny usually the base of the feathers will have a grayish look to them on closer inspection you can see the mites. Make sure it's bug free BEFORE you take the bird. You also might consider worming the bird right away. Hope this helps

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## MuddyHillFarm (Sep 23, 2012)

We check on our chickens every morning and evening. As part of our routine we deliver food/water in the morning and pick it up at night. We use this feeder: http://www.aquabarrel.com/product_poultry_bucket_feeder_complete.php No food left out - period. For a nipple waterer we got one from the same store: http://www.aquabarrel.com/product_poultry_bucket_waterer_complete.php Our chickens free range so it is easy to put these in their yard or in the coop on nasty days


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## TheLazyL (Jun 20, 2012)

2 year old Buffs. Aren't they getting close to the end of their egg production? I get to butcher them and have to wait 6 month for the next flock to start laying.

I'd tell the neighbor thank you, but no thank you and start my own flock. No worries about diseases and postpones the butchering for a few years.


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## Fiere (Feb 26, 2014)

They may not lay as regularly as in their peak but they will still lay. Heritage breeds have a far longer lay cycle Han production bred hens. 

My coop is no rodent proofed by a long shot. The feed is in rodent proof bins, the water is always left out, the coop itself has plenty of nooks and crannies for mice and rats to come calling. That being said, my birds will attack, kill and eat any rodent that comes in their dwelling. The roosters start crowing in the middle of the night and there is a flurry of wings, a screech, and all is quiet again. 

Mice and rats generally will go where the food is. I can't imagine being over run with rodents in your house because you have a chicken coop out back. Unless of course he just happens to have them in both places and assumes they came from the coop, which wouldn't entirely be correct. I wouldn't worry about that at all. I had mice in the house here long before there was livestock feed out in the barn, and now I've barely any issue with mice inside.


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## jenznomi (Feb 21, 2014)

Thank you everyone for your feedback. We decided not to take his chickens, it seemed a bit rushed. We're excited to get our chickens soon!


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## TheChickenGuy (Jan 29, 2014)

Have you gotten them yet?


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## hellofromtexas (Feb 16, 2014)

TheChickenGuy said:


> Have you gotten them yet?


Secretly, we're all baby chick picture addicts. So, do you have them yet? Are there pictures?


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## Gd4sumthn (Jan 3, 2014)

If your neighbor has this problem, chances are you will too even if you get chicks. Buffs are great birds, I would take them and worm them and put diatomaceous earth all over them just to be safe. 


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