I have only been around chickens for a about 1-1/2 years. My first intro was the neighbor's range chickens enjoying what our yards and gardens had to offer. We had just finished our own chicken coop and run but were delaying purchasing any chicks. Chicken I guess! Sadly, one of the range chickens was killed, leaving her only chick on its own. We captured it and placed it in our coop. We figured it was lonely because it peeped all the time so we went the next day and purchased 4 little chicks. They all became best friends. We added 2 more chicks because they are like potatoe chips, couldn't resist! The end.