Backyard Hencam

Sweetpea ruffles her neck feathers. She's not amused at being disturbed in the nestbox.

We are putting buckets in the nest at 4:00 p.m. each day after the hens have finished laying their eggs. After 21 days of “setting” we want Poppy to get back to roosting on the roosts with the others and stop being “broody”.

We used to call them “setting” hens when I was a girl. Today we refer to them as “broody”. Both terms refer to a hen that sits on a nest….. day after day after day. It works like this. Whether or not you have a rooster, a hen will lay a certain amount of eggs in her lifetime. Some breeds lay more, some less. If you have a rooster, the eggs will be fertile and if given the right conditions, will hatch into baby chicks. This is beginning to sound like Sex 101, isn’t it?

In their natural state, hens with a virile rooster will lay a clutch of eggs, then begin “setting” on them. In 21 days, if the eggs have been kept warm, they will hatch and the hen will protect them and show the chicks the ropes for their first month of their  lives.

Alas, as you know, we don’t have a rooster because they crow and might disturb neighbors. Our hens have never “known” a rooster (in the biblical sense) and don’t seem to miss one. Their eggs are just as healthy as fertile eggs, but will not hatch. Two of them have desperately tried to hatch eggs; their own and those of their flock mates. Sweetpea was the first to become “broody”. We took her off the nest several times a day to eat and drink. We also took her off the nest each night (when she couldn’t see in the dark and couldn’t return to the nest) and put her up on the roost with the other hens. In the late afternoons, when we were sure the hens had finished laying their eggs, we closed the door to the henhouse so she couldn’t get back into the nest boxes.

Poppy lets Petunia into the nestbox to lay an egg. Then Poppy will try to hatch it.

Hormones cause the hens to be “broody”. During this period of time, their temperature increases and they pull the feathers from their chests so their bare skin can “get down” on the eggs and keep them warm. By removing the hen from the nest, and putting her on the roost at night, we are hoping to decrease her temperature and break her “broodiness”. So far, nothing has worked with Poppy and there she sits. Day 15!

There is a drastic measure to break broodiness which we haven’t been able to summon the courage to try. That is to put the hen in a wire cage so that she can’t nest and her temperature will drop. It is referred to as “Broody Jail”. Supposedly it cures the hen in less than a week. I’m afraid poor Poppy, who has never experienced wire under her feet, and is a bit “anxious” by nature, would be traumatized. Then again, it would be a great relief to get her back to laying eggs, scratching in the dirt, and roosting alongside her sisters again.

Tulip Sees Leaf Outside Gate

Because I have six hens and love to garden, people often ask,”Are chickens and gardens compatible?” My answer is, except for cleaning up bugs and providing manure for soil enrichment, they are definitely not! Chickens eat about every vegetation they can get their beaks on. If the hens “free-ranged” in my garden, there wouldn’t be a leaf or flower left.

Tulip Grabs Leaf

The hens also disrupt the garden by dust batheing between the roses, pooping on the walks, scratching up seeds, and, in general, doing what comes naturally in the world of poultry. The hens are confined to the coop run during the day and the henhouse at night.

Tulip Eats Leaf. Yummmmmm.

Once in a while, the hens will escape their enclosure. Something will startle them (after all, they are “chickens”) and one or two of them will run out the gate that I’ve left ajar as I go about my clean-up chores. The excitement in their eyes quickly turns to concern. “Am I really out here under an apple tree all alone?”

To their great relief, I pick them up or shoooo them back inside the run where they rejoin their sisters, clucking and sharing the story of their brief adventure with their flockmates.

I would love to let the hens free-range.  They would be so happy running around in a large area. But we have foxes and hawks that visit our yard regularly and our hens are virtually defenseless against these predators. Someday, perhaps, when I want to garden less, we’ll extend the run and turn over more of the landscape to the “girls”. Until then, they’ll have to stay in their yard, and I’ll stay in mine.
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Brooke Petting Daily

It’s really heart-warming to see folks visiting our chickens for the first time. Some have never seen a hen close-up. Some have never touched or held a chicken. People are amazed that the hens are “pretty”, that they have such distinct personalities, that some are shy and some are friendly, and that some are quiet and some rather loud and demanding.

Move slowly around chickens.

Chickens are prey animals and always on the lookout for a predator that may snatch them up with jaws or claws. Survival instincts are sharp in chickens. They are alert to sounds coming from the nearby woods that I hardly notice. A vulture, hawk, crow, or noisy bluejay flying overhead has them running for cover. The term “he’s chicken” comes from the fact that hens have no defense except to run and hide. “Move slowly around the hens,” I tell first-time visiting children. As long as we move slowly among them, they enjoy our company.
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It has been fun observing the development of our hens, and yes, it appears a pecking order has been established. The one we used to call the “mean one”, Poppy, has settled down into a really rather pleasant hen. She would probably be considered the dominate one in our little flock. See her story: Poppy-A Problem Chicken. She was such a trouble-maker in the beginning. We  almost culled her from the flock. She is no longer a “pecker” now and was the first to bravely confront the two small dogs that came into our yard the other day. Although she was safely behind a fence, she came out scolding and cackling, ready to fight. Since there is no rooster in the henhouse to protect the girls, often the dominate hen will fill the role.

Rosie has a piece missing from her comb.

At the bottom of the pecking order is Rosie. She is chased away from food and is pecked when she gets too close to one of her flockmates. Rosie loves to sit on our laps but when another hen wants to join her, she is chased off. Every night when the hens go inside to roost, the others get on the top roost first (the most desirable location) then try to keep Rosie from finding a place next to them. It is painful for us to watch as she desperately tries to fit in. As you can see, her comb shows evidence of her abuse. A piece is missing.

Now, in defense of Poppy, Daisy, Tulip, Sweetpea, and Petunia, Rosie can be very annoying!  She is an absolute glutton! She runs to the treats first and hogs whatever is in the bowl before the others get their fair share. If I find a snail in the garden and throw it into the run, she ALWAYS gets it first. If I have something in my hand and she thinks it might be something to eat, she will fly (I do mean fly) 4 feet into the air to get it. I’ve had more than one welt on my hand inflicted by Rosie’s beak in search of a treat.

There doesn’t seem to be any physical characteristics that establish the pecking order in our six hens. It’s all in their personality.

People are looking for information on building chicken coops and want to know how much floor space is needed for a coop and run. I know, because, many visitors to this site and to my garden blog site click on “A Chicken Coop for a Garden” and “A Space for Chickens“. I think that building your coop is one of the most important steps you’ll take to ensure success in backyard chicken keeping and a little research before beginning the project, is in order. Due to space limitations, some folks are looking for a coop that will fit into their yard and garden, but still fulfill minimum requirements for healthy, active hens.

Ladder provides vertical space for hens.

Most books and articles advise you to have at least 3-4 square feet of floor space for each hen and 10 square feet per hen if restricted to an indoor environment. Our little henhouse is a compact 20 square feet. It was designed for four hens and we have six. Opps, I got carried away and couldn’t stop bringing home those cute little fluffballs. There are two four-foot roosts, two nest boxes which hens can enter from the inside, and a bar for them to hop up on to get into the next boxes. This tiny henhouse would not have adequate space if the hens had to be closed in during the day.

The outside run measures 8′ x 16′. We put in a ladder for vertical space, which the hens love. The hen spend the day outdoors. In this mild coastal climate, they need only be locked in from dusk to dawn, and only to be secure from predators. As I walk down the path at daybreak, I can hear their low agitated clucking, scolding me, for sleeping beyond first light. They scurry past my legs as soon as I lift the hatch. They are like children being released for recess.  The run is partially covered, providing shelter on rainy days.

There are many ideas and recommendations for building coops on the Backyard Chickens website. For years, people have been posting designs and pictures of their chicken coops to share with others. On their forum, you can post individual questions about coop design and you will have a group of chicken enthusiasts to give you advice.