Chickens for bug control and food recycling.

[catjac1975]

I'll take that cutie where ever he poops. Sans house.

 

[Beekissed]

Bee, I like to use "take a break" as a cue word. Got that from an old friend of mine when she had her first apartment and a Great Dane. I always thought it was obscure enough to use as a specific command for relieving themselves, and not so offensive as some cues I have heard if you had to raise your voice.

Excellent!!! I'll use this tip AND the cue word.

He goes in two places in the yard all the time....both are places my brother's dog went when she visited, even though I dug divots out of the soil to scoop her poop and had placed cinnamon powder on the places, he still seeks them out and poops there. I do the same with his poops...scoop the whole piece of soil so the scent is not left behind and then sprinkle the cinnamon all over the area.

I have an old dog crate but it's rather flimsy....I'd venture to say he'd have it collapsed in a few seconds, he's so strong. I'll try it anyway....it is worth a try, no matter what. I can't work on it until next week as every day I'll be traveling and my son will be puppysitting...I may have him try this while I'm gone. I don't think he'd mind.

Thank you so much, Thistle!!! So nice to have some experience on hand for helps.

 

[Beekissed]

I posted these to the BTE thread but I'll post them here for good measure....just to show how important these chickens are to my food chain.

Three wheelbarrows of weeds and garden waste went into the coop yesterday...

And two wheelbarrows full of composted chicken litter came out of the coop yesterday and was returned to the garden...then it rained all night, driving that nutrition into the soil, right where I plan to plant my winter greens.

Come spring I'll have even more of this to use for side dressing, starting seedlings and just general nutrition in the garden.

The chickens will be run through the garden in early spring, before I plant anything, just to see if they can unearth any pests early on. Right now they are doing the same, cleaning up dropped tomatoes and left over squash, scratching up grubs and bugs like crazy.

And also adding to my compost bin...how helpful are they? That's poops I don't even have to transport to the bin!

My gardening friends....

And their faithful guardians...

All working together to help me produce food for all. Love the symbiotic relationships here on the homestead!

 

[catjac1975]

I refer to my chickens as instant composters.

 

[Nyboy]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Four-Paws-K...y-24-oz-New-/381276434559?hash=item58c5d8b07f Never used this, spray place he is using and hope he moves to where you want him to go.

 

[Smart Red]

There is also something you would spray where you do want him to go. I suppose it is something that makes the site smell perfect for use.

 

[thistlebloom]

Or you could transfer a few of his turds to the spot you want and let him sniff them and praise him up. This would be after the other routine of feeding and confining.

 

[bobm]

Why don't you make her her own private gravel potty spot. Some dogs like a specific surface to relieve themselves on. She is probably used to gravel, so to her that's the "correct" spot. You could frame it in with some 2x4's and put it somewhere out of the way in your yard.

Our son's back yard consists of a concrete patio,large lawn, and a couple of flowerbeds. NO gravel whatsoever. So it is a puzzle as to why she will deficate ONLY onto our crushed rock walkway instead of bare ground or groundcover, or small ( 1"-3" ) river rock in our dry creekbed. ( NOT EVEN ONCE).

 

[Beekissed]

Or you could transfer a few of his turds to the spot you want and let him sniff them and praise him up. This would be after the other routine of feeding and confining.

I've BEEN doing that....over and over and over. He ain't gettin' it. Every single pile he lets, I scoop and take him with me to the proper place, throw it there and give him pets and sweety talk to let him know it's the right place.

He's just a little dense at times.

 

[Beekissed]

I've been breeding Plymouth White Rocks here the past few years and will be starting on my own line~one I can claim of my own making~ next spring. It will be called the Fox Run line, as this is the name of the area in which we live.

This is my new flock master, a 5 mo. old cockerel by the name of Dooley. So far he possesses all positive traits I desire...it will take time to see if he can pass those along efficiently and improve on my line. He was bred right here on the land and will live out his days here, hopefully producing little carbon copies of himself.

He's from a slow growing breed, so as he ages he will fill out to his adult size and conformation, but early indicators show he will be a very good looking male. He has the right stuff, though not perfect by any means.

The importance of all this is that I have a good, strong and intelligent male to work with while raising this flock of hens. The value of a good flock master in a flock that ranges cannot be over emphasized...he will help keep them safe, will breed heavy meat, good laying and tight feathering into the flock, he will help train the next generation on survival skills out on range and he will keep peace among the hens.

He'll be calm and gentle with humans~particularly the very small~while working alongside the dogs and me each day. So far this young fella shows all the traits needed to perform these functions well...he shows a gentleness and intelligence I look for in a flock master. His sire lacked a few key traits so breeding this one as a replacement is a joy to me! Truly a blessing from God to have gotten one good male from this bunch.