Luzien wrote:This forum seems to be sleeping^_^
so i have to say something......we may get some chicken.....2fem and one male....miniature/ bantam, but breed i dont know
...not sure if this works alright or if we should get 1-2 more fem so the are more calm and he may not hunt the females to much...i once did read that 1male to 5-6femles one should do
when we get them atleast... they are or a more low price from family friend ...maybe
My question is ...how often do you vacinate your birds and deworm? one did say once a year and deworm every 2-3month? is this true? and can you keep such small chicken in an aviary with birds?
and what do you feed your small chicken? more fruit and vegi and greens and some chicken food...or just normal chicken food?
Do you give your chicken toys to play with??
Bantam breeds are usually lovely birds but can be flighty (and very good fliers!) I dont keep a rooster because bad experiences but generally 5-6 hens per roo is a solid ratio to distribute his affections, just make sure he isnt playing favorites to badly and is being gentle; a roosters spurs can tear hens feathers out or worse if hes constantly harrassing the girls. A good rooster is gentle with his hens, feeds them first, watches for predators, checks nests, and more.. A bad rooster isnt worth keeping imo.
Vaccinations are given as soon as chicks hatch and then never again to my knowledge. I chose not to have my chicks vaccinated because the risk of illness was very very low. I also have never had to deworm in 4 years of chicken keeping, although some do once or twice a year to be safe.. Ive never seen evidence of worms. Although, I have had to treat for lice twice. Wild birds, especially doves, are really bad about spreading bird lice. Its always good to occasionally look under the wings and around the tail for lice.
Im not sure what you mean by in an aviary? Chickens need lots of ground space and are usually very territorial and opportunistic, they can and will kill and even eat smaller birds. Standard sized chickens need 10sq feet of enclosure space and 3 sq ft of coop space per bird and bantams need 8sq ft and 2sq ft of space.. but.. The larger the better honestly. My 11 standard birds are in a 20ft by 30ft enclosure and I cant imagine any smaller. I was recently looking into a 15x20 for a group of bantam D’Uucles
Standards and bantams have the same diet. I offer my girls a good quality laying feed, extra calcium (egg shells, oyster shell), free access to my compost pile (lots of worms and other insects, sprouting seed, etc), and veg/fruit every day or do.. I keep a bowl on my counter and stuff goes into while Im cooking.. egg shells, peels, end pieces, cores, and more
If my bowl is skimpy I have no shame going outside and gathering them a salad of dandelion greens and such. I really want to set up a greens box for them.. a box that sits on the ground and covered in wire, grass and greens can grow up through the wire for them to eat without them destroying the plants at ground level. Any plants in a chicken enclousure will quickly be mowed down and eaten.
Toys wise I like lots of perches, tires for dust bathing, and things to hide under or behind.
I really think, though, that over all space is the most important.