First flock

Hi everyone. Just started my 1st flock a little over a month ago. It was the wife's idea at 1st, then I just rolled with it cause the kids wold really enjoy it and it gives me a chance to build something. I actually got the chick's before I built the coop so we put them in a dog crate for the 1st couple weeks and wow! The dust these things create! But I finally got the coop and run built. I looked into prefab coops, but the wood is so thin and cheap and they are so small for the price. I spent almost $300 in new materials from home depot, but I had a lot of materials left over from other projects as well. I started off by ordering some chicks from meyer since the are only 35 minutes from us and I can just pick em up. Got a leghorn, a cream legbar, easter egger, black copper maran, golden buff, and a barred rock. They have a half acre fenced in to roam, but I built a covered run big enough to walk into to clean and do whatever else I need to do. And the one family member we needed to worry about the most is our dog, a springer spaniel. Yes, a bird dog. She's trained very well at being a good pet, but lucky for us, she's a terrible bird dog. Lol! Got lots of great info off of this site and any advice or constructive critsizm is welcome.

Beautiful set up and doggy!!! Your birds are going to be very happy!!!!! Welcome to BYC and the chicken world... Not much is better.

HAHA! Your dog doesn't look too happy with all those chicks all over her, but that is GREAT that she is letting them. Enjoy your new little flock and welcome to BYC

glad you have joined us.

Congrats on getting your flock, wish you well with the new adventure.

Great job on the coop/run.

Welcome to Backyard chickens. I LOVE your springer . I used to show and breed Cockers many years ago, and the Springers were winning Best in Shows often., so I got to see them a lot.

You are so lucky to be close to the hatchery and drive the chicks home. Shipping causes a lot of stress and sometimes death.

It sounds to me like you are off to a terrific start! Being able to pick up the chicks without shipping them is really nice and I'm glad you built a coop instead of going with a pre-built (99.9999% who go that route seem disappointed at the size & workmanship, or lack of). And one of the best things of all...your dog is tolerant, yay!

Thanks for joining us, looking forward to hearing how things progress for you and your flock!

Hello and welcome to BYC!

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!

Cute pics!