Everyone is discouraging me

I built a well-ventilated coop that can be entirely opened on one side. Filled the run with sand (with some DE and sweet PDZ mixed in) that I scoop daily. I am feeding them a varied homemade diet, and their poops are well formed and not smelly (same with pigeons I find...their diet really effects the mess level). Soon as I can, I'm going to add a permanent perch with a poop board that will be filled with sweet PDZ and also scooped daily. What I scoop goes into a compost pile. I find them to be easy to care for and not smelly. Good luck with your chicken venture.

Thanks guys! I have some eggs in the incubator now. First time with chickens and I decided to go for the full experience. I candled a handful today and they all had nice veins in them...fingers crossed!

That's how I started my flock. Made an incubator... "borrowed" some hatching eggs... then built the tractor, and the coop. Congrats on the wonderful start.

I totally agree with everyone else so far. Even though chickens are messy, they themselves are very clean and never smell. Keep up on the poop and you will be fine. The thing I wanted to say is that starting a flock is one of the best things I've ever done and I love it so much more than I expected. They change you, somehow in a good way. They are fascinating and so relaxing to watch. I feel most at peace when I'm around them and this is in spite of the many challenges I have had with my flock. In the end follow your heart about it and you won't regret it. Best of luck to you and your new chicks. Keep us posted on how you are doing! PS....the folks that discouraged you don't get any eggs! LOL.

I started out with and had best results with leghorns, American (green leggers) and Old English game bantams, then dutch bantams, now Americana bantams (ameraucanas just get mixes of colors of eggs, and colors and markings with patterns ect of/from each. most ameraucana are actually not so standard anyways). you can have twice as many bantams as standard and they lay med eggs still depending on breed ect (so get more egg for less hassle), and scratch up stuff a lot less, generally hardiier too. any commercial size rating for coops of standard hens should be tripled at least.. anything less is cruel and why they smell terrible along with disease caused by such small space, and advice by most others not on this site of what to feed and how often to clean up after (standard is every six months to two years!). i found a med/large dog house up on blocks with board slanted against (or those door flap things maybe) door to block rain and wind, with holes drilled in four corners of bottom, attached to med/large covered dog run (6'L-20'L will never need cleaning for half dozen chooks to med size as they turn around soil, if board covers used drying immediately rids of poo as turned under), work good for americana, games, bantams and all combinations of. my two leghorns needed a large one alone as very neurotic cagey birds that tear up everything all over and yell constantly as do it with needing extra protection in winter from frost. All around id say my American games were best every day getting a med egg at least from each med hen, needing nothing but dirt floor ect, and dog food crushed up (chick feed and layer was way too rich). perfect set up would be each week moving pen even length of space over, but also use deer deterrent netting (no wild bird netting as can catch and harm them or they can run right through) on thin poles put in ground to stand up and allow out more (currently too many males and they'll fight and try to gang up on ladies if allowed access to). i used that small pen setup to make perfect planting bed sections (i now find muscovy duck poo works especially better and doesn't burn existing or new growth, and no crowing clucking or quacking). I had forty something rescued and dumped mostly "game" hens and cocks (and one rescued baiter true rosecomb cock), in backyard of my cono off attached back porch, and never had any trouble from any actual smells or pests and actually close neighboring tenants complained and moved cause of stink bugs spiders snakes rodents ect (was on edge of large woods pasture bog and cattle horse and "game" cock breeding farm that is still legal in this state) that got so made months after i rehomed last of my games.

laughingdog said:

I started out with and had best results with leghorns, American (green leggers) and Old English game bantams, then dutch bantams, now Americana bantams (ameraucanas just get mixes of colors of eggs, and colors and markings with patterns ect of/from each. most ameraucana are actually not so standard anyways). .

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I just hatched a few brown leghorns and boy are they skitsy! Quite a difference from the orps & silkies! Will they ever get friendly?

I've heard leghorns are just flighty birds. You can handle them every day to make them as friendly as they can possibly be, but they'll probably never bee as outgoing as your orps and silkies

I have this coop and it is alright. I can move it every week or so and let the chickens free range for the most part. They aren't laying yet so I am not sure how the nesting area will work. That's where they like to sleep. It's small but they usually only go in at night.

We separated our Sussex when she got broody (which she does every 4-6 months) she hatched 3 in the spring which we integrated to the group by winter. The middle of winter, a RI red hatched 2 and we didn't know till they peeked from mom's wing. She raised them right in the coop with the other 6 hens and 2 roosters. No problem. Mom knew just what to do. Mom's are smart that way