Raising Backyard Chickens
All content and images original works of kittycooks Copyright 2009 - 2017
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Kittycooks Chickens
December 5, 2012. Our silkie hens continue to lay us 8 - 10 eggs a week while all the others stopped during their molting process. We buy eggs occasionally from the grocery store. I love these little silkies, they are little laying machines! In November we put wind blocking plastic on the sides of the chicken run except for the east side, but snow is forecast for this week-end and now need to button up the rest of the coop for the winter. The weather has been exceptionally mild so far.
October 6, 2012. The hens are molting again and egg production has dropped. This molt seems more timely for growing warm winter feathers than last year in November! As the season changes to winter I expect we will not get a lot of eggs for several months and less next year. Our family is in discussion about getting new chicks or keeping these hens as pets, with the children having the last word. We have agreed everyone in the family has to agree before culling for a new flock.
June 10, 2012. All the hens except Bunny are molting and have stopped laying. We went from 20+ eggs a week to four this week! The weather has been very hot, I wonder if that triggers a molt?
January 23, 2012. Dottie laid is an extra large egg yesterday, first egg for the new year. Things are really picking up! Now we are just waiting for the buff orpingtons to start up again.
October 6, 2012. The hens are molting again and egg production has dropped. This molt seems more timely for growing warm winter feathers than last year in November! As the season changes to winter I expect we will not get a lot of eggs for several months and less next year. Our family is in discussion about getting new chicks or keeping these hens as pets, with the children having the last word. We have agreed everyone in the family has to agree before culling for a new flock.
June 10, 2012. All the hens except Bunny are molting and have stopped laying. We went from 20+ eggs a week to four this week! The weather has been very hot, I wonder if that triggers a molt?
January 23, 2012. Dottie laid is an extra large egg yesterday, first egg for the new year. Things are really picking up! Now we are just waiting for the buff orpingtons to start up again.
Dottie's extra large egg!
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Double yolk egg
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January 10, 2011. Bunny and the silkie hens have started laying again. Yea!December 24, 2011 We haven't had any eggs this week and only one last week. Last year they started laying again around the middle of January as the days got longer. My hens are on a natural daylight cycle and I do not provide lighting.
feathers everywhere!
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Bunny's November molt
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November 11, 2011 There are feathers everywhere! The buffs grew in their bottom feathers but are now molting the wings and sides. Bunny has lost her wings, neck feathers and tail. Dottie is not laying yet, but her molt seems to be done. The silkies are laying well.
October 29, 2011 We buttoned up the coop today with 4 ml plastic and put out the heated water bowl. Night temps are below freezing now.
October 29, 2011 We buttoned up the coop today with 4 ml plastic and put out the heated water bowl. Night temps are below freezing now.
Buff orphingtons 1.5 years old in partial molt
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Silver laced Wyandotte 1.5 years old
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silkie hens 1.5 years old
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easter egger 1.5 years old
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October 15, 2011 The silkies are done with their molt and look beautiful! They are laying well. The buffs are missing their belly feathers and growing new tails and wings. They have stopped laying. Dottie and Bunny are finishing their molt and beginning to lay this week.
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 A new tail! |
October 2, 2011: Dottie laid an egg today, first one since she started the molt! Another buff started molting, and Bunny is still missing her neck feathers.
September 22, 2011. The molt continues, Two buffs have lost their belly feathers. Dottie is still missing a tail, and Sweetie the silkie is growing all new feathers.
September 16, 2011. Another buff (or two?) is molting. The coop is covered in buff feathers today! Dotties feather loss is slowing and new growth should begin.
September 15, 2011. Dottie returned to the coop. She still has bandages but the swelling is gone and the incisions are shrinking daily. The flock accepted her back without a problem.
September 12, 2011. We noticed last week that Dottie had growths on her foot. An internet search turned up bumblefoot! We operated to remove the bumbles after several days of soaking. Dottie is recovering nicely.
 bumblefoot growths  chicken foot bandage |
 Classic patch for bumblefoot  recovery cage |
September 3, 2001. Egg production is way down since the molting began but should pick up as they complete their process.
Silkie chicken in molt. She is growing new wing and tail feathers.
August 20, 2011. Two chickens are molting, a silkie and a buff. There are feathers everywhere! The chickens get about 10 minutes of free range while I clean the coop each day. My kids help round them up when it is time to go back to the coop.
July 8, 2011. Bunny and a buff have gone into molt. Egg production is way down, although it is also very hot.
March 22, 2011. Dixie B ate an egg right behind my back! She ate a silkie egg while waiting for the scratch grain. Grrrrr.
March 16, 2011. The chicken run is starting to flood. I added three bags of pea gravel and six bags of sand to get the chickens out of the mud.
January 18, 2011. The hens are laying again! Six eggs today. I guess they think it's spring.
January 9, 2011 Only two eggs today from the silkies and one is pitched into the compost bin because it is frozen and cracked. Eggs are on the grocery list as of today.
January 8, 2011 Sunny has finished her molt and likes to cuddle again. She is the lead chicken, after all!
December 20, 2010 Bunny and Sunny have gone into molt. They are kinda cranky and don't want to be held.
December 18, 2010 Most of the hens have stopped laying, except for the silkies. They continue to lay every-other day. Once a week I am getting a large brown egg, but I'm not sure who's. They will resume laying the spring. I bring them meal worms on the coldest days.
October 15, 2010 We have four to six eggs every day. Not sure who is not laying, but guessing Sunny as her comb is not mature.
September 11, 2010 We have five eggs: one from Bunny, two eggs from the Buffs, and one tiny cream colored egg from a silkie.
September 5, 2010 First egg! A beautiful sky blue from Bunny.
July 8, 2011. Bunny and a buff have gone into molt. Egg production is way down, although it is also very hot.
March 22, 2011. Dixie B ate an egg right behind my back! She ate a silkie egg while waiting for the scratch grain. Grrrrr.
March 16, 2011. The chicken run is starting to flood. I added three bags of pea gravel and six bags of sand to get the chickens out of the mud.
January 18, 2011. The hens are laying again! Six eggs today. I guess they think it's spring.
January 9, 2011 Only two eggs today from the silkies and one is pitched into the compost bin because it is frozen and cracked. Eggs are on the grocery list as of today.
January 8, 2011 Sunny has finished her molt and likes to cuddle again. She is the lead chicken, after all!
December 20, 2010 Bunny and Sunny have gone into molt. They are kinda cranky and don't want to be held.
December 18, 2010 Most of the hens have stopped laying, except for the silkies. They continue to lay every-other day. Once a week I am getting a large brown egg, but I'm not sure who's. They will resume laying the spring. I bring them meal worms on the coldest days.
October 15, 2010 We have four to six eggs every day. Not sure who is not laying, but guessing Sunny as her comb is not mature.
September 11, 2010 We have five eggs: one from Bunny, two eggs from the Buffs, and one tiny cream colored egg from a silkie.
September 5, 2010 First egg! A beautiful sky blue from Bunny.
Store-bought white eggs on left, blue EE eggs, small silkie egg, brown buff eggs.
July 2010. Sunny is the lead chicken with Dixie B second in command. Sweetie is the first to greet us and wants to be carried while we are in the coop. The silkies have bright blue ears and purple tongues. Sunny and Dixie B are training to the leash and doing quite well. The middle pecking order birds are more shy and don't liked to be picked up. We have golf balls in the roosting boxes and this week they are arranging feathers in the back corner. Eggs should be coming soon!
Chickens July 2010
June 2010. We put colored zip-ties on the legs of the silkies and buffs to tell them apart. Now we have Sunny (yellow band), Dixie B (blue band) and Dixie. The silkies are Jackie (orange band), Sweetie (blue band) and Penny. We renamed Winnie to Dottie (Cause I like the name) and Ginny the easter egger is now named Bunny.
 Dixie B and Sunny 16 wks |
 Bunny 16 weeks |
 Dottie 16 weeks old |
 Sweetie 16 weeks old |
June 2010: Dottie (Wyandotte) moved to a new home May 30th because she was too pecky. Queen Cleo ended up being King Leo, as evidenced by the crowing that began last week. He moved to a new home June 5. While we are sad to see our favorite bird go, he will have a nice life as a free-range roo. He is 7.5 weeks old.
 chickens June 30, 2010 |
 Cleo is a roo! 7.5 weeks old |
 Dottie 6.5 weeks old |
 Ginny 6.5 weeks old |
 Winnie 6.5 weeks old |
 Penny 6.5 weeks old |
 Cleo 6.5 weeks old |
 Dixie 6.5 weeks old |
 Dixie chicks 24 days old |
 Pennys 24 days old |
The hens began spending days outside on May 1 and nights outside on May 17. First cluck heard on May 27. The Dixie chicks (buffs) hop up and take a nap on your lap. Cleo will be my visiting chicken as she is so calm. The Penny's (black silkies) are so sweet and very quiet.
 Daytime in the coop May 1 |
 Penny 20 days old |
 Cleo 20 days old |
 Cleo 24 days old |
We ordered 10 female chicks from My Pet chicken. They hatched April 12, 2010 and arrived on April 14. Three black silkies, two silver laced Wyandotte, three Buff Orphington, and two easter-eggers. Cleo is the lead hen.
 New chicks April 20, 2010 |
 Buff Orphington, Silver Wyandotte, black silkie |
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