https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Thu, 09 Apr 2026 20:25:39 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926808 Tue, 19 Apr 2022 09:06:51 +0000 josina 2926808@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We have had chickens on/off over the years. When we free ranged them they were good about returning to the coop at night, BUT we did have some raccoons sneak in there right at dusk and run off with one, so something to be aware of. (Rats were bad also)</p> <p>I did end up not liking free ranging because they were constantly in my flower gardens or even on our deck. </p> <p>DH always goes overboard and will bring home 20 and then we get sick of paying for all the feed and eventually sell them off. If I could get him to stick to 2-4 I think they'd be fine, lol. 1 egg a day per hen is perfect for our family. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926802 Mon, 18 Apr 2022 22:38:14 +0000 bees_knees 2926802@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Lahela017: "his girls"! I love it!</p> <p>@Lilfarmer: 100 chickens! I'm thinking more like 6-7 hahaha. Will they not return to the coop at night without a light? In addition to being worried about fires, DH doesn't want to deal with running electric out there (which I totally get)</p> <p>@Mrs. Champagne: Glad to hear the deep litter method works for you! How often do you totally clean it out? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926798 Mon, 18 Apr 2022 18:36:50 +0000 Mrs. Champagne 2926798@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We have 4! We got 6 as day olds last may. 2 ended up being roosters so we returned them. </p> <p>We live on the lake in Canada. It’s COLD but we did the deep litter method and no issues! Going to expand their run this spring! It’s definitely something you can figure out as you go, In my experience! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926794 Mon, 18 Apr 2022 17:47:41 +0000 Lilfarmer 2926794@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We have over 100 chickens! They’re a blast, but make sure you buy pullets if you’re going someplace like TSC to get them. A straight run is usually all roosters. </p> <p>We have lights in our coop, helps the chickens return at night. If done right, it shouldn’t be a fire hazard. </p> <p>My favorites are the Brahmas, very friendly and they don’t go broody! Silver lace wyandottes are the prettiest though :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926710 Tue, 12 Apr 2022 20:38:05 +0000 Lahela017 2926710@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We don't have chickens, so no firsthand knowledge, but my father-in-law has 6 who he calls "his girls." He really enjoys them!! I know he ended up needing to keep them in an area with a cover because predator birds were a big issue. I had a friend that lost a chicken to a hawk and the evidence was very traumatic for her kids, so just be aware of that potential issue if you do free range. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926708 Tue, 12 Apr 2022 20:04:22 +0000 bees_knees 2926708@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ugh yes the raccoons. We have a little raccoon family that lives under one of our outbuildings and comes and eats out cat food every night 😒 DH wants to …ahem…. take care of them (#farmlife) but they’re so cute I told him not to. I might be singing a different tune if they get to the chickens! The gore had to have been traumatizing for your kids! :( </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926706 Tue, 12 Apr 2022 19:45:33 +0000 Lowell 2926706@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>No real advice…we rented a coop and some hens during first Covid spring/summer and just loved our girls!! I love the idea of pets that feed you!! The eggs were great. Sadly, the trauma of losing one to a raccoon (there was lots of gory evidence) and the raccoons constantly trying to break in made us pull the trigger on returning the survivors. If we could build a permanent coop and I was not constantly worried about them being eaten by a hawk/dog/Fox/raccoon, I would try again for sure. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926701 Tue, 12 Apr 2022 17:57:09 +0000 Jessiemuller88 2926701@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Following this thread! I don’t have any advice, but I’m planning on getting some in the near future as well. The Kindergartners at my school just incubated and hatched baby chicks, and now I totally have chicken fever 😂 we bought a house on 2 acres a few months back, so I’d hope to do mostly free range as well. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/chickens#post-2926687 Tue, 12 Apr 2022 12:54:23 +0000 bees_knees 2926687@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Anyone here have chickens? We're planning on getting some this spring. I'm reaching out to friends to see if anyone has any older laying hens, but of course, we also *need* chicks :)</p> <p>What are your fav chicken resources? We are in MT and get hot summers and cold winters. Our coop won't have power (it freaks me out as a fire hazard!) so def doing the deep litter method. Also we live on a large property so our chickens will be (mostly) free range. </p> <p>Our kids are pumped! Tell me all the things! :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924797 Tue, 31 Aug 2021 10:53:34 +0000 CObee 2924797@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@erinbaderin: yep, that’s what I read too. Just the third tip worked for us - our puppy was one that got more excited when we’d say ‘ow’ or yelp, and getting the kids to not pull away when there were puppy teeth on them proved to not at all be possible, haha. The puppy/kid relationship is so tricky, because at least for us, even if the adults did everything right, getting kids to be consistent and reinforce the right stuff was so hard! I think that made it take a bit longer. Worth the hard times though, my kids are obsessed with their fluffy little brother now that they’re not scared of him anymore. 😆 </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924794 Tue, 31 Aug 2021 10:40:53 +0000 foodiebee 2924794@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yeah, the nipping thing is very normal behavior. Their teeth hurt and this is how they experience the world (pretty similar to a baby). We always did the super loud "OW!" which would often surprise our dog enough for her to stop, then we immediately redirected with a chew toy. It was a phase that she thankfully outgrew. I will say that I think certain breeds have a harder time with this (I'm thinking of small breeds that chase and nip even as adults, like chihuahuas?), but hopefully you can get some good progress by the above advice. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924790 Mon, 30 Aug 2021 20:14:35 +0000 erinbaderin 2924790@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@CObee: We don’t have our puppy yet (Sept 17!) but I’ve been watching a lot of dog trainer videos and he says that when they start biting you should do a few things: say “ow” loudly, don’t try to pull your hand away (they think you’re playing if you do that), and encourage a behaviour inconsistent with biting - either give them a toy instead or get them to sit/lie down and then reward them for that. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924788 Mon, 30 Aug 2021 17:27:33 +0000 CObee 2924788@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Jess1483: we had the super annoying puppy biting problem with our pandemic puppy! My kids were 4 and 8 so your two year old might be too young to help with this, but we tried to have “training time” as often as we could where we’d have the kids run around in the backyard (doing what made the puppy crazy) with either a treat (8 year old) or a dog toy (4 year old) in their hand. (Otherwise we kept them separate too if they weren’t in a calm mood.) When the puppy came to nip at them 8 would tell him to sit or lay down (we worked on this separately too) and then give a treat. 4 would put the chew toy or ball in between himself and the puppy and basically put it in his mouth. He learned eventually that they would only run and play with him if he had a toy in his mouth so now he’ll go find a toy or ball and pick it up himself if the kids are running :) It’ll just take time but I so clearly remember these frustrations in the early months so I totally feel your pain!!</p> <p>Also.. what a cutie!!! ❤️ </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924787 Mon, 30 Aug 2021 16:05:37 +0000 Jess1483 2924787@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We just brought this little punk home and I won’t say we haven’t regretted it a few times :wink: </p> <p>He actually came home at 8 weeks and holds it all night (we took him out for two nights and he didn’t go. Then he slept through the 3rd). He’s fairly easy except (and I’m super open to advice here…)<br /> He seems to think that my younger two (6 and 2) are puppies and nips and bites at them much more than the rest of us. He gets into a frantic mood when they’re around and loses his mind. He doesn’t do this with our 8 year old or us. Or maybe he’s just super nervous around them (and them around him). We will probably reach out to a trainer soon, but for now we just keep everyone separate. </p> [attach=5159/21/qyo7xd.600x450.A1CCD860-58DD-4362-AA5F-960FBABCDAB6.jpeg] https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924784 Mon, 30 Aug 2021 10:15:55 +0000 LabradorLover 2924784@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@erinbaderin: Weighing in on a few things here that I wish we did differently with our 2 labs, whom we got 5 months apart as puppies (bad idea!!) :grin: We let them go onto our bed and our furniture/couches and to this day, we can never get them off. They are 5 and 5.5 years old and while I do love cuddling them in our bed, have 2 90lb dogs in your bed with you can be a lot when you are trying to sleep, not to mention the hair! If you can avoid it, I totally would. My husband and I agreed that any future dogs will not be allowed on the furniture! :happy: </p> <p>We crated both of them at night and found that if you put a blanket/towel over the top of the crate and essentially "cover" them, they tend not to whine as much at night. </p> <p>PS - she is so adorable!! Good luck! They are a lot of work but so worth it! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924634 Tue, 10 Aug 2021 19:22:24 +0000 karenbme 2924634@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@erinbaderin: Yes to regular peanut butter (and cheese), dogs love it, but be super careful with your kids that they don’t cross contaminate the human peanut butter with anything that’s been licked by the dog. A friend got REALLY sick (went to the hospital) when we were kids because she shared peanut butter with the family dog. 😬 Now it is clearly terrible but it made total sense to a third grader. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924630 Tue, 10 Aug 2021 14:28:34 +0000 erinbaderin 2924630@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@foodiebee: Thank you! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924625 Tue, 10 Aug 2021 09:14:35 +0000 foodiebee 2924625@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@erinbaderin: I would move it upstairs, because you’re going to definitely want to crate at night and you really need to hear her when she cries to go out. Also she’ll sleep better being close to you. She’ll howl all night downstairs alone. Our crate is downstairs now and our dog just has a dog bed upstairs in our room, so it’s not forever! I used it as my bedside table actually! We did crate our dog at night until she was firmly out of puppyhood to avoid her getting into things that could hurt her at night.</p> <p>And we just used regular peanut butter! She still comes running when we open the jar :silly: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924623 Tue, 10 Aug 2021 08:09:43 +0000 erinbaderin 2924623@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Thank you all, this is all great advice!</p> <p>@foodiebee: Crate question! We were planning to keep it downstairs in the living room, and our room is upstairs. Would you recommend having the crate upstairs for nighttime and then a playpen in the living room for her daytime naps and stuff? Having moved the crate from the car to the house yesterday it is HEAVY and I'm not sure I'm up for lugging it up and down every night. And towels are smart! I bought two crate mats so we can wash one but towels might be simpler, at least to start.</p> <p>And can she have actual (natural) peanut butter, or is there some special dog peanut butter? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924619 Mon, 09 Aug 2021 21:20:44 +0000 foodiebee 2924619@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@erinbaderin: Yep, like pp said, it'll be a bit like having a newborn with the waking to go out! I think the rule of thumb is something like they can hold their urine for one hour per every month of age. When you go out with her, even at night, always go to the very same place and say the same potty phrase to her. Something magical happens around 8-12 weeks and it'll start clicking for her, and she'll already have that established pattern to draw on.</p> <p>We kept our puppy in her crate right next to our bed for faster night trips. Our dog, now 11, still loves her crate and knows it's her room. Feed her in the crate to establish a safe and happy feeling for it from the beginning. Also, be sure you get one that will fit her when she's grown but comes with a moveable divider that you will put up and move as she grows. You only want enough space for her to be able to turn in a circle and lay down. We padded ours with towels until she was potty trained, then we removed the divider and gave her the whole crate and a fluffy bed insert. The towels will help make accident cleanup easier and the divider will ensure she doesn't want to have an accident in her bed and will ask to go out instead. Otherwise, she'll just walk over to the other empty side of the crate and go there.</p> <p>For teething, get a hollow puppy Kong and fill it with peanut butter, then freeze it. That'll keep her entertained for a while! Also, wet and freeze old hand towels in the shape of a rope to soothe her teeth. We trained our dog to go to her crate with a repeated phrase and a peanut butter frozen Kong from an early age because she always got it when we crated her before going to work. In no time she would RACE to the crate when we went to leave. </p> <p>Also, when they're very little, we mixed yogurt into her food with some water to soften it, but I'd ask your breeder or vet if they still recommend that and for how long (I can't recall).</p> <p>We also bought this playpen that we kept in our living room. <a href="https://www.chewy.com/mypet-plastic-dog-pet-yard/dp/111456" rel="nofollow">https://www.chewy.com/mypet-plastic-dog-pet-yard/dp/111456</a></p> <p>When she was very little and still didn't know the house rules or wasn't potty trained, we followed the rule that she had to earn free reign around the house. We took her in and out of the playpen of course, but when we were busy, she was in there with toys and her water and space to play. We then unfolded the pen and used it to block off access to certain rooms, expanding her access from room to room as she grew. It helped maintain her "destructive" area and let us ensure we wouldn't end up with pee and poo all over the whole house. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924607 Mon, 09 Aug 2021 12:30:10 +0000 JennyLayneAZ 2924607@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@erinbaderin: she is adorable! I think @KARENBME gave a lot of great advice! One thing I'll note, which I'm not sure why I didn't think of it before having puppies, but they'll need to go out to pee in the middle of the night. So, just be prepared for that lol we got our dogs pre-babies and I felt like I was up with them as much as I was with a newborn. </p> <p>Also, your vet will likely re-vaccinate even if the breeder says they did their own, FYI.</p> <p>Good luck :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924603 Sun, 08 Aug 2021 23:14:54 +0000 karenbme 2924603@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>So cute! I’ve had dogs my whole life including a couple of puppies, they are great! 😃 You really don’t need a ton of stuff—bowls, a collar, one or two beds are givens, but they don’t need a ton of toys besides things to chew on. You’ll want a crate at least for while you’re potty training, possibly longer (a lot of dogs like them). If your labradoodle expresses more of the lab side a ball and chuckit are great, too, especially if your littles want to throw further. Planning for potty and obedience training, exercise, socialization, and routine vet care will serve you really well at this point. If you’re new to dogs a good trainer is worth their weight in gold. They’ll teach you how to teach the dog so that you can be consistent. And you’ll probably want to do a vet check when she comes home to cover your bases even if she’s been checked by the breeder.</p> <p>Have fun!! You’re definitely going to need patience but I am a firm proponent of pets for kids! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924602 Sun, 08 Aug 2021 22:25:28 +0000 yellowbeach 2924602@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Oh man no experience with dogs at all but she is a cutie pie! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/getting-a-puppy#post-2924595 Sun, 08 Aug 2021 06:07:11 +0000 erinbaderin 2924595@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>So I know we’re late to the pandemic-pet-party but my husband and I decided last week to get a puppy - my parents got one about a year ago and the boys (5 and 7) have been asking ever since. This is the first dog for both of us, so I’m looking for advice! What do we need? What should we do? What should we NOT do? </p> <p>And just because I’m so excited, a picture - she’s a labradoodle, we’re going to name her Lucy, and we get to pick her up the weekend of Sept 18. </p> [attach=6329/21/qxipjz.600x334.E8461C67-7EA9-4CFC-89FC-564DBEB1BACC.jpeg] https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/bernedoodle#post-2916736 Tue, 23 Jun 2020 06:35:23 +0000 MrsJBeeG 2916736@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We used puppyfind.com last fall to find a breeder for a specific dog breed and it was a great experience as we found a small breeder who really cared about the quality of pups. I’d recommend looking at sites like it. Good luck! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/bernedoodle#post-2916706 Sun, 21 Jun 2020 22:39:54 +0000 Lilbear 2916706@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I don’t know about berniedoodles specifically, but I recently got a beagle puppy through greenfieldpuppies.com. It’s a website that connects you to breeders based on the specific breed you are looking for. My friend also just got a puppy through another similar website called lancasterpuppies.com Good luck in your search! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/bernedoodle#post-2916402 Fri, 12 Jun 2020 21:21:04 +0000 threeplusme 2916402@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Does anyone have a Bernedoodle? We are looking to get a mini bernedoodle but it’s hard to find breeders and availability. We were waiting till our boys turned 10 to look into adding a dog to the family and they just turned 10 but now covid is making it tough to find puppies/dogs. Any leads would help. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/whos-gone-corona-crazy-and-adopted-a-pet-or-thought-about-it#post-2914629 Mon, 27 Apr 2020 11:25:12 +0000 hellobeeboston 2914629@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>ME! I vowed to not have a pet again for a looooong time, and here I am wanting a new kitten or a puppy or chickens, lol. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/whos-gone-corona-crazy-and-adopted-a-pet-or-thought-about-it#post-2914554 Sat, 25 Apr 2020 11:23:14 +0000 Fawn 2914554@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs. Tiger: @Ajsmommy: Such cute puppies!! I love that so many people are adopting and shelters are low on animals! I am a little worried though that when people are no longer working from home they realize they dont have time for a new pet and send them back to a shelter. I'm assuming rescues are talking to potential adopters about that though and making sure people arent just adopting dogs on a whim.</p> <p>We have a 12-13 year old dog and a 9 year old cat. Neither are super thrilled with our almost 12 month old daughter and her amount of energy. I've never owned a kitten before as we adopted our cat when she was 6, but the rescue we got her from currently has 18 newly born kittens that will be up for adoption in a few months so I'm wondering if it may be nice to have a young cat that our daughter can grow up with. :happy: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/whos-gone-corona-crazy-and-adopted-a-pet-or-thought-about-it#post-2914522 Fri, 24 Apr 2020 16:31:20 +0000 PurplePeony 2914522@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our idiot cat decided to eat a couple of his toys and required emergency surgery a couple weeks ago, right after our state issued a stay-home order. 🙀🤑🤑🤑🤑🤦‍♀️ Needless to say, I’m not keen on adding any pets at the moment, though DH has been agitating for a dog for a long time now. No, thanks. </p>