Happy Spring!

Nothing says “Spring!” like Baby Chicks and Baby Bunnies. Well, I guess cute little kids (goats and human kind) come to mind. Today is the first day of Spring also known as the Spring Equinox, meaning the perfect time for Balance of Life and thinking about planting trees and flowers, putting in your vegetable gardens and Easter. Most southern farmers and gardeners don't plant until after Easter, even though the actual date for Easter changes every year. If you don't know this, Easter is the first Sunday, after the first full moon, after the Spring Equinox. It can be after March 21 to late April.

Our Spring here at Woodville Ace Hardware is hopping with lots of baby chicks and beautiful flowers, bedding plants, landscape and fruit trees as well as Bonnie’s vegetables. Our Garden Center is open with outside register on Saturday and Sunday, but always available 7 days a week.

Next week, Thursday March 29 we will have ducks, silkies and bantams, and lots of chicks coming in! Soon we will bring in turkeys and guinea. We offer lots of feeds for your animal needs as well as garden supplies.

Our big spring event! Chick Day, Tuesday April 10^th  (6:30 pm)  when Dr. Patrick Biggs will be here from Purina Nutritional Center. It will be an event you will NOT want to miss! His talk will be about Backyard Flocks and Keeping your Chicks Healthy.

In November 2017, I had the experience of a three day workshop in St. Louis with Dr. Biggs and the Purina Team, including a visit to The Farm. It was a workshop I will never forget, I was in my Chicken Element. We are so fortunate to host Dr. Biggs here for his “Flock Talk”, at Woodville Ace. His only Florida engagements will be here and in Jacksonville.

https://www.purinamills.com/purina-expertise/bio/patrick-biggs

Come on in and enjoy Spring at Woodville Ace Hareware!

no...we don't have bunnies

How much space do you need per Chicken?

How Much Coop and Run Space Do I Need?

 

http://naturalchickenkeeping.blogspot.com/2013/04/how-much-coop-and-run-space-do-i-need.html

April 18, 2013

By Leigh -

 

Coop:

 

• 4 square feet (sq ft) of floor space per Large Fowl (LF) chicken
• 3 square feet of floor space per Bantam chicken
• 1 square foot of ventilation per 10 sq ft of floor space
   
  Perch Space:
   

• 12 inches of perch space per LF chicken
• 9 inches of perch space per Bantam chicken
   
  Perch Type:
   

• Perches should be positioned at least 12” to 18” away from the wall for head/tail space.
• Chickens need a minimum of 18" to 24" of head space above the perch. Remember - they have to fly up there and you don't want them banging their heads each time they jump for the roost!
• 2”x2” boards with the edges rounded off may be used for bantam breeds
• LF do best roosting on the 4” side of a 2”x4” with rounded edges.
• Natural branch roosts may also be used (minimum diameter of 3”-4” (but not all types of wood are healthy for chickens, so check prior to using.)
   
  Nest Boxes:
   

• 12”x12” is the standard size for nest boxes, but your chickens won’t mind slightly smaller or larger boxes (provided they fit comfortably).
• Minimum of 1 nest box for every 3 laying hens
   
  Run:
   

• 10 Sq Ft of ground space per LF chicken
• 7.5 Sq Ft of ground space per Bantam chicken
   
  
   
   
  It can be confusing for those new to chickens to wade through the variety of information on proper coop and run square footage for their flock. Manufacturers selling small “doll house” coops often tout their structure as being able to house up to “X” amount of birds… and often those numbers are misleading or not appropriate for the birds or the buyer’s needs.
   
  In general, you should have a minimum of 3-4 square feet of floor space for each large fowl (LF) bird in your flock and 2-3 square feet for bantam breeds.
   
  Note I specify “floor space.” What this means is that it doesn’t really matter how tall your coop is – just how wide and how deep. Thus, a 4’x4’ coop that is 3’ high can house just as many birds as a coop that is 4’x4’ and 7’ high. 
   
  
  
  During the day, chickens spend most of their time on the ground. In the event of bad weather when the chickens don’t want to leave the safety of their coop, crowded floor space may cause tension and bullying.
   
  Imagine two scenarios. In the first, you are stuck in a standard-size elevator with 10 people… and one of those people a bully who has decided he simply does not like you. The more bored or stressed he gets, the more that bully picks on you. Yikes, right?
   
  Now imagine you are with those same 10 people in a diner. It is still a limited space, but if you stay in one corner of the diner eating your food, reading your book and minding your own business, the bully is less likely to move from his seat to pick on you. You can also move away if he comes near. More space means it will be harder for him to corner you.
   
  
   
   
  Yes – you can put more birds into a smaller space, but the more crowded your birds are, the more problems can occur, such as feather picking, over-breeding of one hen (if you have a rooster) and even cannibalism.
   
   
  
   
  As for run space, 10 sq ft of ground space per LF chicken and 7.5 sq ft per bantam is generally sufficient. This also depends on your ability to allow your flock to free range. If your flock is able to free range all day, every day, then you may not need much of a run at all. Yet even for those who free range almost all the time, there still may be times your birds need to be confined on a pretty day. Perhaps there is a hawk that has decided to make a nest in a nearby tree and feast upon your flock, or perhaps a stray dog has been frequenting your property. It’s a wise thing to have a “safe place” for your birds to be outside when they can’t free range.
   
  On the other hand, of your flock is rarely able to free range or only free range for a couple hours a day, you will want a bigger run. They need room to stretch their legs, scratch, find bugs and avoid other flock members when necessary. While the coop is like a chicken dormitory for sleeping, the run is the place they will be in for the majority of their active waking hours. 
   
  
   
   
  Providing plenty of perches, stumps, a dust bath and other “chicken furniture” can go a long way to alleviate boredom and stress-related flock issues.
   
   
  
   
  The last thing to consider when building your coop and run is just how addictive chickens are. If you can, build a larger coop than you think you will need… coops have a funny way of filling themselves up rather quickly!
   
  
   
  Happy chickening!
   
  - Leigh