The Poultry Keeper

stormin97 · Joined: 01 Aug 2005 Posts: 5 Location: Norfolk, England

Hi Everyone,

I am a TOTAL newbie to the subject of keeping chickens (I don't have any yet but am in the planning stage) and would very much appreciate some help and advice.

My OH has suggested a location in the garden that would suit her (aesthetic) needs and I am quite happy that it would be suitable.

The allocated plot (a no longer required flowerbed), is 12 feet long by 3 feet wide, a size which should easily accommodate a coop and run. The difficulty with it's location is that it backs fully onto the house wall and faces due North.
During the summer it gets a little sunlight in the late afternoon, but none at any other time.

Will this be a problem for the birds? Living in West Norfolk, North and East winds can be very cold (coming as they do, directly off the North Sea).

Thanks for your help.

Deb_Moderator · Joined: 13 Apr 2005 Posts: 3661

Hi Stormin97 and welcome to our site.

How many birds are you planning on keeping? Size of the breed? And will they be allowed to free range at least a portion of the day? These questions need to be answered first, prior to commenting on the area that you have set aside.

The girls prefer shade. So the location in the summer time should not pose an issue. Especially if they are allowed to free range when you are home. In the winter, I would think about purchasing some tarps to line the outside wall of the coop and run, just to block some of the winds. Cold is not an issue....drafts and wet are.

When you get this sorted out. Then come back to find out the next steps. Very Happy

Supplies you should have on hand prior to the arrival, etc. Wink

Jump in and join the conversations, there is a wealth of information here underneath your fingertips and some truly spectacular people on this site. Wink

nigel · Posted: Fri Aug 05, 2005 8:22 pm Post subject:

The location of your chicken house should take into account the following:

drainage - the ground should drain freely and not get waterlogged, in winter this would quickly get very muddy

weather - shelter from sun in summer and winds in winter.

3' * 12' is fairly small so I would limit the number of chickens you keep. The run will soon become clear of most vegetation so I would add wood chip to it to stop it getting too muddy when wet. (Note, don't use chipped bark as these quickly become soggy and go moldy which can cause respiratory problems)

These are the first things that spring to mind. I'm sure some other others on the forum will have more suggestions for you.

Hope this helps.

PS Welcome to the forum

NannyP · Posted: Fri Aug 05, 2005 9:40 pm Post subject:

Welcome to the forum. I echo what Deb and Nigel have said, and feel you should be warned that chicken poo stinks!!! So, having your coop and run so close to the house, no matter how well and often you clean them out, it will probably be pretty smelly. Added to this, not much sun means it will take longer to dry out and be less smelly Embarassed

stormin97 · Joined: 01 Aug 2005 Posts: 5 Location: Norfolk, England

Hi all,

Thanks for all your V. helpful suggestions. The OH and I have now discussed the points you raised and as a result we have decided to change the location for the hen-house to what is currently my veg patch. This is a West facing plot against a coniferous hedge (15 feet by 5 feet), away from the house.
I am intending to have just a few (3 or 4) chooks and they will be free ranging round the garden, part of every (nice) day.
At the moment, I am undecided which breed to get. My garden isn't huge, so I am thinking along the lines of bantams and any advice re suitable breeds would be appreciated.

thanks

peterrockell · Joined: 06 Aug 2005 Posts: 2 Location: devon england

if you are undecided about what chooks to have. perhaps you could get some X battery hens. you can normally get them for free.We were given some and once they settled in they are good layers and the ones we had were very friendly. i believe they were gratefull for having space,which they have never had.
Cheers Pete

Deb_Moderator · Joined: 13 Apr 2005 Posts: 3661

nigel · Posted: Sun Aug 07, 2005 8:09 am Post subject:

I think what type of hens you get depends really on what you want from them.

If it's eggs bantams may not be the best choice as they lay fewer smaller eggs than large fowl. Bantams however are very friendly beautiful birds that look fantastic in a garden setting and are good with children.

For eggs though I would definitely get large fowl. Once you get on to the best, that's all personal preference. I like some of the hybrids (Black Rock, Bovans Nera, Whitestar) for their laying ability. The pure breeds I have are (in my opinion) much better looking but they don't lay quite as well - say 5-6 eggs per week from my hybrids compared to 4-5 eggs a week from the pure breeds.

I'm sure everyone will have their favorites though Very Happy

worldor · Joined: 14 Apr 2005 Posts: 111 Location: West Midlands

If you are set on bantams in my opinion you won't beat Wyandottes. Lovely colours, lovely temperaments and a reasonable sized egg, but then I'm biased.