Written by Outpost Buildings on February 14th, 2018.
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Red mites are some of the most common mites that affect chickens.
Red mites are generally spread by wild birds coming into contact with your chicken coop. They hide in the dark spots of the chicken coop during the day and then come out at night to feed on your feathered friends. They’ll go hide again when the sun comes up.
To identify whether your hens have red mites or not, you’ll have to have a close look at your chickens feathers and skin. If you can see black and red small spots, then these are most likely red mites. The tiny mites vary in appearance, depending on when they last fed – a mite is only red when it has consumed blood recently and changes colour again through black to grey if it has been a while since their last feed. The best time to examine a hen house is at night, when the mites can often be seen with the aid of a torch, both on and off the bird.
How red mites affect your chickens:
If left untreated, the mites can cause your chickens to become anaemic and reduce their egg production. In extreme cases if left untreated, they may even cause death, so quick treatment is necessary! |
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How to prevent red mites:
Keep the coop clean, and make sure you have a good look in all the dark corners and joins in timber etc. Red mites hide in the corners of your hen house or nest box bedding during the day. If you find any tiny red crawlies then wash your coop thoroughly with high pressure hose or water blaster. Once dry dust with Smite.
If you are introducing new birds to the flock, check them for mites before you put them in your chicken coop to ensure they don’t transfer any mites to your existing feathered friends.
Chickens need an area for dust bathing, even if they’re in a coop full time. This is the best prevention for lice and mites. |
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Written by Outpost Buidlings on January 12th, 2018.
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Make sure your hens have some fun this summer with these great ideas.
When chickens have little to keep them amused, they will often turn to pecking at themselves and one another- an unhealthy habit that can cause feather loss, injury and animosity among your flock. |
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Straw, hay bale or lawn clippings
Putting a bale or pile of straw, grass clippings or hay in the chicken coop or run will keep your girls entertained for hours - they are not a fan of piles! Watch as they scratch and peck through the pile searching for insects, seeds and other hidden goodies until there is a pile no more. |
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Hang something for them to peck at
Use a piece of string and hang something for your hens to peck at. Some ideas to use are cucumber, cabbage, cauliflower or broccoli. Dodging and pecking at the hanging treat will be a fun game for your flock, and provide them with a healthy boost of greens!
Mirror in the coop
Add a mirror to your backyard coop is a great way to keep your chooks from getting bored. Your curious girls will happily keep entertained by pecking at their reflection and checking themselves out to make sure they are looking their best! |
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Give your hens something to peck at
If your girls are deserving of a treat, a Poultry Pecker is the answer. It will provide them with a mix of treats and nutritious ingredients alike, as well as giving them something to peck at rather than one another. Outpost sell Poultry Peckers for just $9.95 each buy online now > |
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Extra perches or a swing!
Chickens love to perch, giving them new perches so they can see a different view will make them happy. Adding extra perches outside will allow your girls to get a different perspective of the great outdoors. If you want to get really creative, use pieces of wood, branches or even ladders to make your girls their own jungle gym- or even make them a chicken swing! A chicken swing can be made easily with some rope and a small branch, just hang it up low enough so they can get onto it easily and wait until they figure it out! |
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Written by Outpost Buildings on November 21st, 2017.
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Outpost custom designed this “Hunter” style stable for a customer.
Hunter style stables from Outpost Buildings have a mono pitch roof line that is higher at the front for easy access. This makes it easier to get horses in & out of. The Hunter design is modular so can be extended to suit your needs by adding more stalls, tack rooms or covered areas.
The stable featured here has two generous sized stalls with plywood windows for extra ventilation. The solid timber stall doors are easy to use and there is an optional upgrade available to extra strong galvanised steel framed doors.
The covered area in between the two stalls is great for grooming or feeding. At the back of the covered area there is a tack room for storing feed and tack equipment.
There are clear panels in the side cladding and roof for interior lighting. The stable is designed to be built on a concrete foundation and the customer can add bedding of their choice such as stable rubber mats or sawdust.
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Written by Outpost Buildings on September 22nd, 2017.
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If you’re considering getting some hens then there are some things you need to know about hen houses to make sure your hens are happy.
Fresh eggs from your own hens are great but hens can be a bit fussy about when and where they lay. It's worth getting the coop right, otherwise you will be simply feeding your birds for no result.
There are heaps of designs for chicken coops online and if you have a bit of time and the ability to hammer a few nails, you will be able to find plans to build you own or you can buy one of the many kitsets available. Whatever you decide to do, here's a list of things you should make sure your hen house has to make sure you get your fair share of eggs.
- A dry, draft free place for your hens
- Perches for them to sleep on at night
- Next boxes for them to lay eggs in
- Access to food & water
- Ventilation & light
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Topics:
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Written by Outpost Buildings on August 1st, 2017.
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Fresh eggs is a great reason to have backyard chickens.
But your fresh eggs could be dangerous to eat if you don't collect, clean, and store them right.
Most chicken coops are not the cleanest places on earth. They're full of dirt, poop, and things your eyes can't see: bacteria.
If you don't clean and store your eggs right, they could bring nasty bugs into your kitchen and could harm your other foods and your health.
For that reason, follow this guide to make sure your eggs are safe to eat.
Collecting your fresh eggs from the coop
Check your coop at least twice a day for eggs. Once in the morning, and once in the evening. For larger flock, you may want to check at least three times a day.
But why that often?
Eggs are fragile and bacteria can easily enter the skin if there's the slightest crack on it. The longer you leave them, the higher possibility of your eggs becoming cracked.
But that's not the only reason.
Your own chickens may eat them.
Chickens, like humans, like to eat eggs (yes, even their own!). This can become a bad habit for your hens…they'll eat the egg as soon as its layed.
You also don't want your eggs to get poopy, even if you can clean them.
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Written by Outpost Buildings on May 24th, 2017.
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See us at Fieldays at Mystery Creek!
Site S11 14-17th June 2017
The Outpost team will be at Fieldays again this year. There will be 4 buildings on display; a Garden Shed, Hen House, Livestock Shelter & Bobby Calf Pen.
If you're thinking about buying a new shed or shelter for your animals then please come & see us to have a look at the quality of our buildings - you'll be impressed with their strength & design!
It was great to met so many lovely people last year at Fieldays, we had a great time & quite a few visits from customers.
We will be running a WIN a Hen House Competition! Simply come and see us at site S11 at Fieldays to enter your name in the draw.
There will also be some great Fieldays specials on many of our products so don't miss out - come & see us at site S11! |
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Written by Outpost Buildings on May 5th, 2017.
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Rearing calves is a great way to make a bit of money on your lifestyle block or farm.
You can usually buy calves from dairy farms or beef cattle farms. Most Dairy farms will have calves available between June & September depending on the climate in their location and their preference.
Calves will cost you somewhere between $80-$150 each depending on the season & breed of the calves you are buying. You can make a profit of approximately $70-$100 per calf at weaning time. There is potential to make more of a profit if you keep beef calves until around 18 months of age, presuming you have raised quality animals.
Here’s some information that will help you decide if you want to rear some calves on your block.
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Written by Outpost Buildings on March 9th, 2017.
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Chickens are affected by dropping temperatures & the change in day light hours during Autumn. Most hens will moult during late summer or early Autumn.
Keeping Warm
Chickens have a natural way of keeping warm and in general, most chickens tend to be cold hardy enough for NZ conditions. Chickens can actually handle the cold of winter better than the heat of summer. They have an instinct to fluff their feathers to keep warm. They also have the natural instinct to roost together.
Some people choose to heat their hen house over winter. Many argue that a heated coop is not only a fire hazard, but also not healthy for chickens. Their bodies may not easily adjust to the drastic temperature change inside and outside of the coop.
Also, remember that heating the coop can increase moisture. Too much moisture inside the coop can cause illness or frostbite to your flock.
We recommend that if you have an Outpost Hen House that you reposition it so that it is facing away from the prevailing wind during the winter months.
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Written by Outpost Buildings on January 26th, 2017.
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Chickens are great food-munching machines - they will eat almost anything and my hens love a bit of variety in their diet.
But, just because they eat it doesn’t always mean it’s good for them so it's important to know what to give them and what you shouldn’t give them.
It’s great to feed your chickens table scraps. I hate throwing things in the trash, so it seems logical to me that I can feed some of our half-eaten meals to the ladies in the backyard. However, there are some foods that you should not feed to your hens.
Here is a list of the most common foods that you should not feed to your hens.
Not safe for Chickens
- Potato Peels
- Raw Potato or green potato
- Chocolate
- Citrus fruits
- Candy
- Avocado skin or pit
- Dried lentils or beans
- Uncooked rice
- Onion
- Raw Eggs
- Salty foods
- No spoiled or mouldy foods
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Chickens should not eat green potatoes or green tomatoes!
Dried beans are known to create very serious illness and even death for chickens.
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Written by Outpost Buildings on January 5th, 2017.
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Check out our new display site in 533 Matakana Road, Warkworth.
There is a Horse Stable & a Garden Shed on display so you can see the quality our our buildings for yourself!
We don't have any staff at the display site so please call the Outpost Team on 0800 688 767 if you have any questions about our buildings.
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Written by Outpost Buildings on November 17th, 2016.
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Like with humans, water is the most important requirement for your livestock. But how much can you expect each animal to consume?
A number of factors can affect your livestock’s water consumption, including temperature, diet, pregnancy, lactation and animal weight.
Healthy levels of water consumption ensure that an animal will maintain its body weight, body temperature and overall health. Without enough water they will become dehydrated and malnourished.
The following chart can be used as a guide, but please note that these calculations are approximate only.
ANIMAL
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Litres of water per head per day
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| Poultry |
100 - 250mls |
| Sheep |
3 to 12 litres |
| Goat |
4 to 10 litres |
| Alpaca |
2 to 12 litres |
| Deer |
6 to 12 litres |
| Pig |
10 to 35 litres |
| Horse |
18 to 45 litres |
| Beef Cow |
30 to 55 litres |
| Dairy Cow |
30 to 75 litres |
*The higher numbers represent the amount of water recommended for lactating animals or hot conditions. |
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Written by Outpost Buildings on October 19th, 2016.
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What do chooks eat?
Kitchen and vegetable garden scraps can be given to chickens everyday, ideally as a supplement to good quality poultry pellets. Weeds also have high nutritional value, but avoid giving them weed types that are unfamiliar to you or that may have had pesticide added. Potato skins are poisonous to hens so don’t feed them raw potato or potato peels.
Chickens are not vegetarians. They love eating meat. Chooks will forage for insects, slugs and worms and they will strip the meat off bones, catch mice and eat dinner meat leftovers to get their protein.
Pellets are an efficient, cost effective food source which are easy for birds to pick up and swallow. When buying pellets remember that cheaper feed with lower levels of crude protein will not give your hens what they need to be top producers. Commercial poultry feed has a shelf life of around 12 weeks, so keep it fresh. Try not to use different feed brands, or you could upset their laying routine.
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