Smelly chicken run

[Petshrinklj]

I have white Sussex and am getting a couple of rescue battery hens in a few weeks £3 donation each). I have a plastic hen house (eglu) which is very low maintenance no trouble with red mites etc and fox proof. The expensive bits is coop and feed etc. i havent found anywhere local selling feed and delivery costs from poultry websites are scary. I don't find my hens pen smelly at all. But I do keep on top of cleaning as I worry about neighbours complaining.

[sarahmc]

We have spent most of the day making a secure part of the garden for the chickens to be free range. My 2 chickens are very friendly and come when they are called, they know they get food.
I get their food from The Range or Pets at home sell big sacks which are cheaper. After initial outlay of coop and feeders not to expensive and 2 eggs a day are definitely worth it. Mine are ex battery hens, £3 donation each and the change since they arrived is amazing.
The children spend ages watching and feeding them. Definitely a good learning tool.

[newbie]

We have 4 brown hybrids and its the best thing I have ever done! The parents think its great and the mindees love collecting eggs in the morning. Since a fox visit, our chickens are in a permanent cage but it is huge and they love it .

[hectors house]

Love feeding them all my scraps every day,

Have been given an old wooden chicken coop just waiting for dh to build me a fox proof run - I was reading on internet the other day about how to keep chickens and the website said the Dept for agriculture said it is illegal to feed chickens household waste - I knew you couldn't feed them any meat scraps but I was hoping I could feed them veg peelings, cauliflower & broccoli stalks and stale bread etc - what sort of scraps are you allowed to feed them?

[Petshrinklj]

Raw potato is toxic to em so don't give them potato peelings. Don't give them meat lie you said. Mine love apple and pear cores. And they got nuts for sweet corn.

[hectors house]

I currently save carrot peelings, cauliflower & broccoli stalks, end of the cucumber, past it lettuce etc for a mindees Guinea pigs I guess I will be feeding all these to my chickens (when dh builds the run!). What about bread, broken biscuits, stale cakes are they allowed these in moderation or do they have no nutritional value?

[FussyElmo]

Im a little bit cautious of what I feed mine. One of mine got sour crop and died So they only have veg if its been boiled

However saying that if they get out of their bit they have no qualms about feasting in my veg patch

[jadavi]

I give mine everything we throw away - not banana or orange peel oruncooked potato peel but everything else (not eggs)