A Scary Sight!

[florchica]

Quote:

Man, I get it. I SO get it. I never understood the appeal of chickens until this last January when I was practically forced to adopt Cricket, a house chicken. She was a gorgeous black bantam cochin frizzle hen that just oozed personality. She had a large cage in my kitchen and I let her free-range outside during the day. The plan was to transition her outside when the weather warmed so I got her a 10-week buff orpington pullet for a buddy and and the very next day Cricket was killed by a dog. I was DEVASTATED

(still reeling from her loss months later) and left with one lonely hen who was not a house-chicken and missed having bird friends. What to do???

Well, I ended up at the feed store and came home with chicks- a gold laced wyandotte so I'd have two full-size egg layers and 6 banty chicks that I hoped might turn out to be cochin frizzles. Beginners luck/miseducation- I ended up with 6 black silkies. (Yeah, I know all about counting toes now!

) So... up to 8 birds... Then there was a "local" poultry show and the grief was still intense so I came home with 3 cochins, one was firzzled. YAY

Grief subsided somewhat. Then... I was visiting with the chick buyer at another feed store and asked if she could look into the availability of frizzles just for curiosity sake and she went ahead and ordered a bunch! (You can see where this is headed right?) I now have 16 of that batch brooding in my kitchen, 6 are frizzled the rest are straight cochin but they're a lovely flock and I have aspirations of splitting them into breeding groups later.

So grand total? TWENTY SEVEN birds. Yes, I'm DONE buying and I do intend to sell/rehome a few. Oh yeah, did I mention that chickens are not (yet) legal in my city either?

(I am presently working with some other people on getting chickens legalized.) Not to worry regardless, I have a very solid plan B. I'm a market farmer and my inlaws land that we farm together is only 5 minutes from my in-town home. I spend a great deal of time there and most of these birds (especially anybody who crows) will live there when they're bigger. We're also working on buying land of our own where there will be NO issues with having LOTS of chickens! Before anybody panics and worries that I'm a rash animal hoarder, rest assured: I'm handy with power tools and enjoy building coops, etc. so these birdies are going to have nice digs, probably fancy large tractors and they'll be well-cared for and spoiled.

Chicken math. I get it. Dang they're addictive!!!

 

[BrattishTaz]

I am so glad that I am immune to chicken math!

 

[Elite Silkies]

Hey Grit,

I wasn't on for about 8 months due to College kicking my behind! I never found out what sex your 2 silkies were. I knew you thought one was a pullet and one was a roo, were you right??

 

[PineappleMama]

Pictures & Stories of My Chickens

A Scary Sight!

And yet... no pictures... bummer.

 

[aubreynoramarie]

there has got to be some kind of counseling for chicken math-aholics. I love my house but te backyard just can't sustain anymore chickens. I think it's time to tell my friends and family goodbye and move to the country.

 

[Tala]

Quote:
That's how I count mine too. I have to do a lot of adding if I want to know how many total

I have 2 white hens, 2 black pullets (BSL), 3 black hens (BCMs), 3 barred hens . . . . . that's how I count them to make sure everyone is there! I think it's somewhere around 22, plus the 23 in the bator! Yikes! LOL

 

[gritsar]

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Zazouse's photos immediately came to mind. That's what I'm striving for, except...without the guineas (I don't like guineas, no offense guinea ppl) and no waterfowl except maybe some call ducks. I really want some turkeys but our local ag. extension agent has advised me that blackhead is an issue here and I don't want the hassle, so I'll stick with chickens; the weirder the breeds the better.

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
Glad you survived college

Ellie Mae (the one we thought was a roo) is indeed a pullet. She lays quite well, 4 - 5 eggs a week. No signs of broodiness at 11 1/2 months.

Jethro finally hatched a single chick on her second try at broodiness. I supplemented her single chick with 3 store bought polish chicks. Jeth is happy as a clam with her little family.

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
Now pineapple, be nice.

Gritty has been walking around feeling like a bowl of corn flakes left in the milk too long thanks to a new seizure med (that I will start weaning myself off of today, just can't stand it any longer).

Just for you, I will see if I can get the brahmas to cooperate so I can take a pic this afternoon.

Besides breed and gender, I've also started keeping track by age. There's the "chickateers", the oldest of the chicks, the 7 week olders, the polish babies, the 2 week olders and on and on.....