The Middle Tennessee Thread

Looking for some new young laying hens about to start or just started to lay. We are looking for any Leghorn variety. We are located in Bedford County. Let me know if anyone has any for sale, Open to other breeds - looking for a good layer/hardy bird. Thanks
BBflock, hello! My friend CityGirl and I started this thread way back in 2011.
I am now in Bedford Co. I see on craigslist that someone near us is hatching Delaware chicks. You might check that posting; Delawares are very hardy and cold tolerant, and are a good homestead breed.
If this is your first adventure with chickens, Dels might be a good fit. Leghorns are much more high strung IMHO.
Good luck!

Jenski
 
BBflock, hello! My friend CityGirl and I started this thread way back in 2011.
I am now in Bedford Co. I see on craigslist that someone near us is hatching Delaware chicks. You might check that posting; Delawares are very hardy and cold tolerant, and are a good homestead breed.
If this is your first adventure with chickens, Dels might be a good fit. Leghorns are much more high strung IMHO.
Good luck!

Jenski
Thanks! We will look. We already have some RIR chickens so definitely not our first time … we will check out this variety .
 
Hello all! I’m not sure I am posting this in the right place on this thread, but I’m wondering if my fellow Tennesseans can help me.
Hubby and I retired and moved to Tennessee a little over a year. I used to have backyard chickens when I lived out west in the desert, just six girls, and I had to leave them when we moved. Broke my heart. ANYHOW, I am considering starting again but what holds me back most is the weather and how different it will be from the desert. Easier in some respects because I won’t have to deal with 115° days and wind that never stops.
I know that chickens generally do better in the cold than the heat, so I’m not overly concerned about the cold…for reference we live in Crossville, Tn…and I think I know how to keep them healthy in regards to keeping them from freezing because I basically research everything to death. Lol. What I am MOST concerned with is the humidity here as it’s not something I had to contend with in the desert, and I am wondering if that humidity causes more health issues such a mite infestations, etc. I know the wild animal issues will be strong here as we have fox and raccoons among other chicken eaters. But that’s all in the coop/run prep and we feel we can be fairly confident in building a strong enough home for them. But the possible humidity bug/health issues are giving me pause.

I am basically trying to decide if raising chickens here will be harder or easier in regards to health problems and if building a coop and run is an investment I want to tackle again. I only want about four girls so the coop will not need to be large, but hubby likes to build really nice things so the cost will not be nothing. 🤪

Any insights would be greatly appreciated!
 
I live near Chattanooga and didn’t grow up with chickens but have had them for several years. I do treat for mites/ lice and deworm consistently. Like twice a year. But not everyone does. I keep a flock of 4 large fowl and 6 bantams ( separate because I have 2 roosters) I never thought thar mites/lice would be more prevalent in humid places but makes sense. Did you deal with coccidiosis? That’s another to look out for in younger birds. I used to let my large fowl free range and would get an occasional fox ( birds disappear so I assumed) but in the last two years my neighbors dog has killed two flocks. So sadly free ranging is off the table for now so I keep my flocks small. Welcome to Tennessee
 
I live near Chattanooga and didn’t grow up with chickens but have had them for several years. I do treat for mites/ lice and deworm consistently. Like twice a year. But not everyone does. I keep a flock of 4 large fowl and 6 bantams ( separate because I have 2 roosters) I never thought thar mites/lice would be more prevalent in humid places but makes sense. Did you deal with coccidiosis? That’s another to look out for in younger birds. I used to let my large fowl free range and would get an occasional fox ( birds disappear so I assumed) but in the last two years my neighbors dog has killed two flocks. So sadly free ranging is off the table for now so I keep my flocks small. Welcome to Tennessee
Hello!! No, I never had any health issues with my girls when I had them. One had pasty butt when she was a baby chick but we got that fixed up. The only thing I really dealt with was the heat in summer. Summer was hard on them, but I kept them as cool as I could with sunshades, frozen treats, etc.
What do you use for mites/lice and deworming?
I used to put AC Vinegar in their water to help with internal things, but never had to deal with mites or lice on my girls. And I don’t WANT to deal with those things. 🤣😂
 
Hello!! No, I never had any health issues with my girls when I had them. One had pasty butt when she was a baby chick but we got that fixed up. The only thing I really dealt with was the heat in summer. Summer was hard on them, but I kept them as cool as I could with sunshades, frozen treats, etc.
What do you use for mites/lice and deworming?
I used to put AC Vinegar in their water to help with internal things, but never had to deal with mites or lice on my girls. And I don’t WANT to deal with those things. 🤣😂
I’d just keep an eye on it when if comes to lice/mites. My birds have feathered feet. I keep salmon Faverolles, bantam and large fowl. I used to use permithrin powder but I splurged and bought Elector psp. I will occasionally see raised leg scales and I’m like. “Ok time to spray it down” I use valbazen for worms. I give oral syringe to each bird, which is another reason I keep a small flock. Good luck with it all. They are fairly easy, just gotta keep an eye on them.
 
I'm not sure if anyone still watches this thread, but I'm new to the BYC community and just wanted to pop in to say hello and introduce myself to all of my fellow middle TN chicken fanatics :frow

I'm a Nashville native/born and bred city girl who decided last year (with some coaxing from my small-town boyfriend) to trade in my expensive little Green Hills apartment for 5 acres in Tennessee City, a small unincorporated town about 15 minutes west of Dickson.

Raising chickens was originally just an afterthought, but we fell in love with those goofy little creatures and they have completely taken over our lives. What started as a small backyard flock quickly turned into a modest hobby farm and is currently on the path to becoming a full-scale breeding operation.

My boyfriend and I are both drawn to unique/rare chicken breeds and have noticed that there seems to be a gap in the local market for more uncommon types of chickens (we've had to drive 6+ hours to obtain some of ours), so that's where we've decided to focus our efforts. Right now, we're raising Vorwerks, Appenzeller Spitzhaubens, Salmon Favorelles, Ayam Cemanis, Deathlayers and Black Copper Marans to breed in the Spring.

For any of you who might be interested in these breeds and want to follow our journey, feel free to to check out our farm page, S & S Hilltop Hens! I'm always looking to connect with local farmers/homesteaders and fellow chicken enthusiasts, so I hope to get the chance to meet some of you! Happy Holidays 😄
 

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