02-22-2017 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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 NEVER use heat lamps or heaters with hot wire filament, exposed filament heaters, exposed element space heaters, etc. as these can start fires!  OK heaters to use: oil radiant heaters (see picture to the right), Sweeter Heaters (http://sweeterheater.com/) o Light: Having adequate light to see and a normal day-night light cycle is important for health. Supplemental light is usually needed inside the coop and having it on a timer is a handy way to ensure adequate light cycles. o Size: 12 square feet of floor space per bird, ideally with added levels and roosts for them to explore. The coop will be both their shelter AND their exercise area so they need more room. o Enrichment: chickens are curious and easily bored in a coop. Google ‘chicken enrichment’ and give them new enrichment daily.  Summer shelter functions: The winter and summer shelter can be the same structure but they have different functions depending on the season o Temperatures: Chickens overheat when the temperature is >80 degrees F. Ensure they have access to plenty of shade, fresh drinking water and ambient breezes. o Size: Because they will only be locked up dusk-dawn, 4 square feet of floor space per bird is adequate. Roosts should accommodate all birds. o Birds should be locked up dusk-dawn and let out into their pen for the entire day, but have free choice back into the coop. If you keep them locked up until humans are woken up (which is often many hours past sunrise), monitor temperature in the shelter to ensure it does not get too hot on summer mornings. Fenced Outdoor Yard aka Run Chickens need to have access to outdoor space whenever weather allows (when it is >45 degrees F) for enrichment, foraging, and their health. It is also great for us as they eat many insects and aerate the soil.  Size: Generally, 43 square feet per bird of outdoor yard/run space means you may need to rotate the run every 4 weeks unless you plan to landscape for chickens inside the run (ie pea gravel, wood chips, chicken resistant plants,[see book Free-Range Chicken Gardens] etc) By increasing the square feet per bird, you may be able to skip rotation depending on the soil, plant types and landscaping.  Temperature: Chickens should be let outside when >45 degrees F and should always have access to shaded drinking water, shade, shelter, and ambient breezes for when it is hot outside.  Run construction: Chickens, like many small animals can be victims to urban predators, such as raccoons, opossums, fox, coyote, raptors, mink, weasel and stray dogs. Most predators will be excluded from the run with 2x4” welded wire, however they can climb and dig under these fences. Predators such as hawks can come in from above. Smaller predators such as mink and weasel can fit through 2x4” welded wire. To completely predator proof an outdoor run, hardware cloth (1/2” holes) can be used for fencing (or attached tightly to another type of fencing from the inside) and sunk into the ground at least 6”. Netting, such as knotted gamebird netting (cutlersupply.com) works well for the top of the pen but winter precipitation will cause it to sag, bringing your fence down with it, so remove every fall.