19, an old guy from Texas got me into this ag biz. He was born on a chicken farm and was in the livestock biz his entire life. We linked up because I had the land and he had the knowlage. But we both had alot to learn since we had both moved to a forgien country. How to raise pigs in the tropics, was the big question. Lots of research, books, internet, and luckily I graduated from UF. Even though my degree is not in ag., the professors in the ag dept. have to help. They send answers and books and generally want to know how things are going. UF is the closest US ag school to the tropics.
Old George (God rest his soul), taught me alot, alot I learned from books, the internet, and from other farmers here, but one of the most important thing George taught me is "no one ever learned to play pool by reading about it in a book".
Point is 19, pull the trigger and stop asking questions you'll figure it out as you go. 80% of what I know about animals is from experiance, 20% books, internet, talking to others. Half the crap out there is crap, so get them going and learn from that. We are talking chickens not sky-diving.
If you had already started, you'd almost be done by now. Last bit of advice, if this is your first redeo, don't start with corn x, they can be tricky, and don't start with 50, pick a smaller number and pick a breed that is easier and get your feet wet first.
