Advice for a newbie: Chicks or Pullets?

[Madie'sOddFlock]

In my opinion, raising the chicks is one of the most rewarding experiences you can have(besides hatching them yourself). If you read up enough and ask enough questions, they should be just fine. As you pointed out, raising them yourself gives you a much stronger connection with them and often results in nicer birds. Not the mention it shouldn't be nearly as expensive to raise them yourself as it would be to buy them as pullets.
I bought mine as chicks(at the time I didn't even know that they sold pullets...). 2 years ago the first 36 came to the farm, and then my personal 14 came this past year. We're now up to 70ish. The first 36 were chicks, and my first 10 were chicks. We had to buy another coop, so I took the 3 "pullets" that the family needed to get rid of(they were free birds, how could I resist?) the buff turned out to be one of my beautiful roosters, and my aunt gifted me yet another pullet so I would have a pair of buffs.
The 2 pullets that came with the coop are... not very interested in humans to put it simply, the rest of my birds will tolerate me, but they don't want anything to do with me, it's not that they're rude or anything, but they don't enjoy spending time with people.
So from experience(what little I have), I would suggest chicks. I've found that I have my best connections with chicks that I've hatched as I'm the first face they see and I spend a large amount of time with them as they usually take up either a large chunk of the living room or a corner of my bedroom. I would never suggest incubation for a newbie, but thoughts for the future if you'd like.
Like I mentioned before, feel free to ask lots and lots of questions, that's what we're all here for.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Most things in the coop are free or cheap. I have plastic storage totes for nest boxes. The floor is a few free pallets and some free plywood. Roosts are cut down trees and large branches.

This is a good point. I built my coop out of an old fence and some siding I got off Craigslist. I only bought a few things. Most of my expenses came from the roof panels and hardware cloth. I think I spent less than $200, and it's quite sturdy. It's stood up just fine so far in heavy rain and 50 mph winds (that's the worst weather we get out here - I'm lucky). I wanted to start with a shed, but I couldn't even find an old one in my price range! Took me about eight very long days... the run, though, was really expensive because I let my husband talk me into a fancy, pre-built one. I was planning on buying a chain link dog kennel and predator-proofing it, which would have been much cheaper.

I am still working on it nearly a year later, making more like what I want. But what I want has changed now that I know more about what makes my chickens thrive. I see no problem with starting small and adjusting as you figure out what works and what doesn't. And aart is right: those prefab coops are very small. My 32 sq ft coop seems kinda small now that my 4 are all big girls now.

Just be sure your birds are safe! I don't know what predators you have in your area, but make sure whatever you use is secure!

 

[LythrumSalicaria]

What pre-fab are you looking at that TSC has? I can't think of a single one that I've seen there that will actually hold 4-5 chickens. I've been looking at them since I may need a temporary home for mine if I have to move my coop (it's under my back deck and we may be replacing the deck at some point) but they all look tiny.

They may be marked big enough for plenty of chickens, but that's not realistic once you look at the actual specs/room. Standard accepted space requirements are 4 sq ft per chicken inside the coop/house part and 10 sq ft/bird in the run. I've got 4 Easter Eggers, 2 Polish bantam, and 1 tiny OEGB with a 4x4 raised house in a fortified 10x10 dog pen, and wish they had more room. I had the house built to fit 4 large birds, then later rescued the 3 bantams. Most of the birds sleep on top of the house unless it's super cold or wet, so I don't worry about it, but know there's no way I can add more at this point.

It’s this one here: https://www.tscstores.com/COOPS-FEATHERS-XL-SUPERIOR-HEN-COOP-P55977.aspx

They claim that it will hold 8 chickens, but people who reviewed it say they would only keep 4 or 5 in there. Looking at the dimensions, you’re probably right about it being too small even for that many.

I’ll probably get bantams for this coop, and maybe just put 2 or 3 in there. It might still be a bit snug, but I can expand the run at least; that way they’ve got a more reasonable amount of room.

 

[ThracianHorse]

Go with chicks! Pullets might give you eggs sooner, but as others have said... it's one of the most rewarding things watching little bundles of fluff become chickens. If you decide you like the experience, the next thing better is hatching your own! Watching eggs develop is utterly fascinating!

 

[aart]

It’s this one here: https://www.tscstores.com/COOPS-FEATHERS-XL-SUPERIOR-HEN-COOP-P55977.aspx

That thing is tiny! The coop part might hold 2 chickens.

 

[Madie'sOddFlock]

In my experience with store-bought coops, they're too small, utterly too idealistic, and they're a pain to clean. I raised my chicks in one because I had no other choice at the time... By the time I stopped using it, they weren't even half sized yet and only 4 could fit in the nesting boxes(which we use instead of roosts(i know, I know, such a horrible thing... we've found it works just fine, so please refrain from commenting on that part))... it was not a good thing. Now I'd be lucky if even one of my hens could fit in those boxes... the specified number could really only apply to bantams.

Look somewhere else, please. My coop now is plenty big and only cost me a 5 mile drive and $150. You just have to look and know where to look in your area.

 

[Eggscaping]

Ahhhh!!! I shouldn’t have searched for “Pullets for sale in Ontario”...

There’s someone 3 hours away from me who has two gorgeous little Ameracuana/Polish Pullets for sale. They’re a little over 4 weeks old. One is black and one is blue; two of my favourite colour varieties on pretty much any animal. They’re so stinking cute! But the only place I could possibly put them until I can build a coop is my enclosed porch, and I might not be able to build the coop until May with how long it takes the snow to melt up here.
Oh well; I’m sure I’ll be able to find birds that I like just as much in a couple months. I’ve still got a lot to learn; better to be patient and learn what I can rather than be impulsive and make a mistake, right?

Well, I'm of two minds. You can be cautious (sensible) and take pride in doing things the sensible (correct) way, and probably have better results - OR - you can go "WHEEE! My favorite colors!", throw caution to the wind, and get chickens before you're ready - which if you read "What mistakes did you make when you first started keeping chickens?" you will see that lots of folks did the 2nd thing. They call having one chicken and wanting OTHERS 'chicken math'. I call it 'chicken-juggling'! Some folks have done it and had good, though chaotic results, others have had worse results. The end result though is that everyone learned from the results! As long as you're the one suffering (chicken juggling is tricky and exhausting, I think) and not your chickens, I say, if you want them bad enough, do it! Know what you're letting yourself into and jump into the deep end of the pool!
Myself, I tend to be impulsive, and though we aren't going to actually have chickens until we move down to Lakeside in LESS THAN A YEAR (!!!) I keep threatening my poor partner who has lived with me for 28 years and knows that I once came home with a new puppy under my coat after we'd agreed we should wait until we moved from an apartment into a house...by holding up our local feed store's list of soon-to-arrive-chicks and giving her puppy-dog eyes!
So - give it serious thought and do whatever is going to make you happy without harming any of your fluffy charges!
I'm sure some won't agree, and I'm fine with that, but hey...life's short. Have fun!

 

[rosemarythyme]

That thing is tiny! The coop part might hold 2 chickens.

I agree. The "coop" is the enclosed part. For 4 or 5 standard size birds you'd need that to be around 4x5 (20 sq ft) - that entire unit is probably barely that size.

What you CAN do if you choose to go this route (and I started off with a few birds and a prefab too, so it's not the worst way to go) is to alter the unit so that the entire thing can serve as a coop, and then reinforce it to make up for any weakness in the materials. Yes that takes extra time and money. You'd also have to add a run either way (as these things never come with a usable size run) or plan to free range.

 

[LythrumSalicaria]

Points taken.

Unless I find something acceptable on Kijiji I’m just going to wait until next spring to build the coop. As it stands the only thing I can find is a 8x4 chicken tractor, and it’s practically on the other side of the province so it’s not really an option.

 

[FlyingNunFarm]

You can always look for a prebuilt shed that you can modify. I’ve even seen them used for fairly cheap.

Three ways you can do it, Fast - Cheap - Good
Pick two
If it’s Fast and Cheap it won’t be Good.
If it’s Good and Fast it won’t be Cheap.
If it’s Cheap and Good it won’t be Fast.