Friday evening was book club and so off I went to enjoy some wine and hang out with my girlfriends. Imagine my utter delight when I received a text from Dave with the above picture attached! Our very first eggs from our very own chickens!! I realize it is a common place occurrence that will soon lose the “newness” and excitement factor, but right now we are both over the moon.
Now the fun part starts, figuring out which hen is laying and how to use our eggs in recipes. The eggs are at least half the size of a large commercial egg and maybe a third the size or less of the largest commercially available egg in the grocery store. I am looking forward to the experimentation, even with a limited diet of baked good consumption.
I cooked the eggs for a breakfast snack for Dave this morning, of course I forgot to take pictures. The shells are thick and not weak, no splintering or multiple crack lines like the eggs we have been getting from the grocery store. The yolks were a lovely dark yellow.
Life is very good when the ordinary is extraordinary. Today, this homestead is thankful for beautifully green eggs and healthy chickens.
May you have a fabulous week on your homestead, be it large or small!! May your blessings outweigh your burdens.
We purchased our Omlet Eglu Cube Large Chicken Coop in August 2022 directly from the manufacturer. We watched many a review video prior to purchasing our second chicken coop in less than a month. The Eglu, whatever configuration you decide upon, is an investment as these coops are not inexpensive but also not the most expensive I have seen. That being said, we paid over a $1,000 for the coop, did we get out money’s worth?
Our Expectations
We had limited experience with chicken coops, our first coop is reviewed here, and with the cost of lumber at the time we realized we needed another one building one was out. Also, let’s be honest tackling building a chicken coop in the first summer in Texas while dealing with stress at the office was not going to happen. We had a very specific list of criteria we needed when we were looking at new coops.
Ease of cleaning the coop
Ease of retrieving eggs
Security of the coop itself from predators
Ability to move it around the yard
Room for the chickens to move about comfortably
Ease of feeding and watering
The Reviews
Every video we watched extolled the virtues of the system. Every aspect of the coop, from assembly to easy of cleaning was covered. The users, or purported users, all loved the coop and were happy with their investment. The overwhelming positives should have thrown a much larger red flag than it did.
Our Review
Ease of Assembly
The Eglu is the IKEA of chicken coops. Literally! Picture books instructions without words. The instruction book for our model was nearly a 100 steps in length. Every step had a picture. It was infuriating, especially if I had been the one assembling it because I need words not pictures to understand build instructions.
Dave did a monumental and copious amount of swearing the Sunday he assembled the coop. Sure, the heat and humidity of late August in Texas played a part in the swearing. But a much bigger part was the assembly instructions and fiddly bits and pieces that had to be just so.
We got the two additional run sections to attach to the coop, bringing the total length to nine feet. So, with each additional section of run attached it became more and more frustrating. For instance, covering the metal rungs of the ladder into the coop was one of the last things the instructions had you do. Mind you, at this point the coop is enclosed with the run, be it three feet or more in length, and unless you have a small child at home, an adult is going to have to crawl into the coop and attach the plastic to the metal. There is no room to stand up and do so, and so, expect to crab walk your way to the ladder to handle something that should have been at the very beginning.
Then there is the roosting bar we added onto the chicken run. It is a bear to assemble. It takes at least two people and again, awkward and a copious amount of swearing and sniping with frustration. Chickens love the roosting bar and I am glad we persevered and got it installed but it was exhausting and frustrating.
The plastic connectors on the steel wire are not holding up well. These connectors become easily stressed during assemble and the long, hot, humid days of Texas from spring until late autumn. These connectors will fail first and this is something Dave already has a plan for improving when the time comes.
Ease of Feeding and Watering
The Eglu comes with two “bowls” that hang off the side of the run. They are covered but open at the same time, so easy to fill and clean but problematic. It is also very easy for the water to become polluted rapidly and far to easily becomes a breeding ground for mosquitoes. In the winter, in cold climates which remain cold longer than a couple of days, I imagine it would be extremely inefficient or impossible to keep the water from freezing. The feed tends to stay in the dish which is a good thing from a waste stand point but discourages chickens from scratching for food.
We have recently upgraded both their feed and water system. We have moved to a 50 pound feeder and a 12 gallon waterer. They take up as much space as the ones the come with the Eglu but are better protected against mosquitoes and dirt. The new feeder doesn’t allow them to scratch feed either but we are less concerned with that than the amount of dirt and debris that was landing in either feeder. Nice thing is that the Eglu cannot be moved with either of these feeders in place and thereby eliminates the moving of the coop with full feeders attached.
Ease of Egg Retrieval
While our first flock turned out to all be roosters, there is a definite plus for the Eglu here. There is a separate door into the designated egg laying area to allow for egg retrieval without opening the much larger door in the back. We are hopeful that come this spring we will have a need to use this feature daily.
Security
The Eglu is secure. The chicken run can be opened with two doors which are individually locked down with a locking hook pins. The run to a steel mesh that has withstood our dogs slamming into it while playing. There is a skirting of the same material, around the entire coop, at the bottom to prevent a predator from digging under to get into the run. This same skirting can be further secured against strong winds with tent stakes.
There are three doors into the coop, the front, back and the egg doors. The front door is enclosed within the chicken run, which is the first line of defense. It can be manually opened and closed from the outside at the top via a turn knob. There is also the optional automatic door which can be installed separately on any Omlet coop or any coop with a similar size door opening. The automatic door is not inexpensive and ours took months to arrive. It is however, a tremendous time saver in that I no longer have to be up at dawn or stop what we are doing for one of us to go close the chickens in for the night.
Doors, locks, and automatic door controller
The back and egg doors work the same way. The close securely and if you pull on the door after latching it closed, you can easily double check yourself that it is sealed and secure. The twist and pull action required to open either of these two doors ensures they are predator proof.
Roominess
We added six feet of run to the three feet that comes with the Eglu. As owners of a Severe Macaw we understand how important space is to any bird. Does not matter that they are “livestock”, a healthy bird requires space to roam. The nine feet of run, which we have protected from the elements with covers, gives them space to forage even with seven chickens in there today. On windy and rainy days, they still have access to the outside in a secure environment that lets them be chickens without us constantly worrying about their safety.
The run is also secure from aerial predators which is important as we have a healthy raptor and buzzard population. The covers over the run provide shade and shelter from weather but also provide a screen against hungry aerial predators looking for an easy meal.
That same roominess is also a detriment to humans trying to keep the run clean. We don’t have children and thus there are no youngsters to send in to clean the run. Which I talk about in greater detail below.
Ability to move
We wanted a chicken tractor. Not only were we looking for “farm” fresh eggs from our chickens but we knew they would help us repair and restore the soil. The ability to move their coop around the yard was important to us. The Eglu moves easily enough. At nine feet it is long, heavy and cumbersome but the two tires at the rear of the coop do their job effectively. They are locked in place with a foot operated brake and when released you can move the entire system from one part of the yard to the other. It isn’t an easy task, especially if you fail to remove the full feeders hanging from the wire! I’ll be honest here, I leave the tractoring to Dave, he is taller and stronger than I and thus has a much easier time of it.
Ease of cleaning
Because the coop is made out of injection molded plastic it cleans easily. The bottom tray locks in place and slide out easily to be cleaned. The entire coop can be hosed down and scrubbed and left to dry without too much effort, something I truly appreciate on hot and humid days. There are drain holes inside the coop to prevent moisture collecting and causing problems.
The roosting bar is a nightmare to clean. Not going to mince words here, it is disgusting. The bar is wooden and thus holds onto dirt, poo, mud, and any other thing they drag up onto it. I need to clean ours but I haven’t talked myself into climbing into there and torturing myself quite yet. Now that there are seven chicks in there who are still too small to free range, it shall be quite the challenge.
The run is also a nightmare to clean without children. The nine feet of run can easily become cluttered with debris from scraps they did not like or did not finish. A rake only reaches so far back and climbing in with cranky knees and stooping over to clean is more than a chore. Moving the coop to clean out this type of debris may or may not be successful. Also, it defeats the purpose of keeping the coop in one spot until the chickens have “tilled” the soil. Our dogs often “volunteer” for this job but again, not ideal.
Pros and Cons
Pros
Ease of cleaning
Security
Ease of egg retrieval
Cons
Expensive
Difficult to clean parts
Heavy
Instructions are frustrating
Plastic parts
Conclusions
It is safe to say we have a love/hate relationship with our Eglu. We have never met anyone who is 100% satisfied with their chicken coop. I don’t think we are any different. There are aspects that are truly marvelous and for which we are thankful. Those aspects are balanced out by the negatives.
Would we purchase another one? Doubtful. The automatic door would be the exception. There are parts that we are truly happy with, the security and tractor function come to mind. The price, the plastic assembly parts, and the difficulty in cleaning counter-balance the positives.
Dave is already talking about the plans he has running through his engineer head for building a custom chicken house. Will those come to fruition? Stay tuned. Will that be the perfect hutch? Does such a thing even exist?
I have been compiling the end of the year review, and I am incredibly proud of Dave and myself. This was our first full year in Texas and it was a breeze compared to our last three on the East Coast. It wasn’t the savings bonanza we needed, the homestead simply needed too much work from the previous “loving” owner. We did make infrastructure improvements to the house and the land. We haven’t fixed all of the problems by any stretch, the original windows and roof replacement are the next big ticket items in the next few years.
We have both been creative in solutions and learned new skills. I pickled something for the first time in my life. While sauerkraut isn’t something we eat frequently, I still learned how to do so and can replicate it should we ever get a bumper crop of cabbage. Dave did a lot of back breaking work outside, from digging holes to planting trees to fixing fence line to keep Kahlua contained. Admittedly, the fencing still needs work but we are going to get quotes come the new year.
We planted a successful late summer garden, would have had a successful spring garden but for two puppies. We raised a flock of roosters, unintentionally mind you, and had them help us amend and revitalize the soil. We have a better idea where the sun is the strongest for planting this year, and what to plant when. Hard to believe that it is time to begin planning the garden already!
All the hard work and challenges have been good for us. They have forced us out of our comfort zones, into activities some days we would just rather avoid entirely, and made each of us stronger and healthier as a result. We will be continuing that journey in the coming year, more intensely focused on the healthier life choices and moving more.
2022 kicked our butts and made us stronger. It was a rebuilding year, just not the type we anticipated. It was a year we can be proud of upon reflection. We invested in ourselves and our future. We spent the time and money, even when one or both were painful. We made the choices necessary to make the future better, sometimes at the expense of immediate comfort and security. It was challenging, rewarding, heartbreaking, delicious, and joy filled. I wouldn’t change a thing, well maybe the Cedar Fever and stomach bug we have both been battling this week.
2023 will be here in a blink of an eye and personally I am looking forward to the challenges and joys in the coming year. I fully expect 2023 to kick us when we least expect it, to be filled with unexpected joys, and to present us new opportunities to invest in ourselves. Last year was a vast improvement over the previous three, and I am confident that 2023 will continue down that same path. I welcome the unexpected forks in the path and I know that with Dave by my side, family, friends, and God the path forward will always be brighter than the path behind.
Have a fabulous week on your homestead, be it large or small! May your blessings this week outweigh your burdens.
My parents have safely returned home and once again it is just our family. Love my parents but it would be a lie to say we haven’t enjoyed the absences of guests.
This morning Dave dispatched the rooster after he, the roo, became aggressive towards me. It was going to have to be done but neither of us was enthusiastic about the task. It was quick and painless, but it doesn’t mean this former city girl isn’t racked with guilt. He gets his own page for this week.
Have a fabulous week on your Homestead, be it large or small! May your blessings this week outweigh your burdens.
We bought our first baby chicks at the end of July 2022 from our local Tractor Supply. We bought four, which was the minimum purchase. Our receipt said pullets and when asked we were informed we got Welsummer chicks.
They were happy and healthy, and we couldn’t have been more pleased. We had lucked into a self-sexing breed and thus were reasonably certain that we had pullets. We knew we ran the risk of getting a cockerel, but still we were comfortably certain.
Fast Forward
Meet one of our pullets, that’s right it isn’t a hen that is a quintessential Welsummer Rooster. Oh but wait, it gets better.
That’s right, another beautiful Welsummer Rooster and another suspected Rooster of unknown breed. That is a seventy-five percent rooster rate. Our town does not allow roosters within city limits and now we are faced with that horrible responsibility I was always dreading in the back of my mind.
To date, not a single crow has been heard from any of them and they all get along peacefully for the most part. That leaves one pullet left, Mighty Mini Mai Tai.
Mai Tai is also of an unknown breed and she is most certainly not a Welsummer hen. We have searched and have found no matching breed that for her. She is the least vocal, the most docile, and the most picked on when there are disagreements. However, we have suspicions that she too, may be a rooster.
None of these are end of the world problems but it does raise the dilemma of butchering our own chickens or having it done for us. There are no takers for the suspected roosters and thus we have to dispatch them to be in compliance with local law. We are not upset with the local law and fully comprehend why roosters within city limits are outlawed. We are just blessed that ours so far have been relatively quiet and aren’t crowing at dawn.
We have decided to butcher them ourselves. We have ordered the kit and will process them over Thanksgiving. I am heartbroken if I am being honest with myself. I made the mistake of naming them and being a “city girl” it will be the first time I am ever going to be consuming an animal I raised. Oh, I know they will be delicious, I know the quality of food they have been given and the life they have lived. Doesn’t change the fact that, my heart will break.
The Future
With having to dispatch a minimum of 75% of the flock, we are facing a very tough decision about Mai Tai. Is it fair to her to be on her own, and beyond being fair, is it healthy and safe for a flock animal to be alone? If she is alone for the probably two to three months it will take for the weather to be warm enough to begin to move chicks outside, will Mai Tai accept them or will they accept her?
I have been searching for chicks for several weeks now to build the flock and replace the roosters once it became clear what they were. Tractor Supply stops selling chicks at the end of September roughly, the local hatcheries are not shipping chicks until early Spring 2023 and the same for many of the well-known large hatcheries. I looked at Meyer Hatchery last night and there were female chicks available for the November 28th hatching. I didn’t hesitate, I ordered six chicks which is the minimum order.
I placed an order for three female Easter Egger Day Old Chicks. I like that there is an estimate for sex for each hatching and if you are willing to risk getting a cockerel, the price per chick is reduced for a straight run order.
I also included three female Colorful Egg Layer Assortment Chicks. These hens will lay colored egg shells in a variety of color choices possible. There is no guarantee of what you will receive as chicks but there is a chick identification tool which shall prove to be helpful should we need it.
I greatly appreciated the Meal Maker Day Old Chick addon option at no charge when checking out. This was an easy choice to include and not because it is free, but rather it is a good way to help my community and give back. If you order layer chicks, then your meal maker chick will be a layer chick and a meat bird will result in a meat chick. It is a wonderful program that spreads food security with each order.
This is our first experience with ordering chicks via mail and chicks of this age. Our first batch of chicks was likely at least a week old, possibly two, when we brought them home. This will also be our first-time raising baby chicks in winter, it does get cold here but not bitterly cold thankfully. It will be a learning experience for us but nothing I am sure we cannot handle.
Conclusion
Animal husbandry is not for the faint of heart and it comes with the potential of agonizing responsibility. It also comes with the ability to secure your food sources, to be confident in the quality of those food sources, and make you truly appreciate where your food comes from.
Even if Tractor Supply were still selling chicks at this time of year, I don’t have the confidence I had at the middle of summer. We have no relationship with Meyer Hatchery other than placing the order last night. This isn’t a case of being paid to talk up one hatchery for compensated chicks.
In theory, I have learned my lesson and shan’t be naming the new chicks. But as primary care giver, the chances of me becoming attached are incredibly high and at the end of the day, I need to be able to live with the choices and responsibilities that come with raising livestock.
We hope this presents a lifeline if you are looking for chicks at this time of year. We are hopeful that these chicks work out and that we will be swimming in eggs in less than six months and that we will have excess eggs to share with our community.
Have a fabulous week on your homestead, be it large or small. May your blessings this week outweigh your burdens.
Behind the scenes was very busy this week, some of which will be shared this week should all go well. This weekend was spent doing a lot of freezer cooking to make life simpler through the end of the year. Didn’t document it in pictures however as most of us know how to make spaghetti sauce and chili.
Have a fabulous week on your Homestead, be it large or small! May your blessings this week outweigh your burdens.
Pecandarosa 