I have 4 birds, 2 are parakeets (keets) and the other 2 are hens.
Gurtrude is our first chicken, and she walked in to or garage soaking wet in Oct 2016. It took us 10 mins to catch her, and she hasn't regretted a minute since. She is an Easter Egger.
Lizbeth is our youngster, only 9 mos old, and a banty gold laced cochin. She shares the kitchen with Gurtrude, but they have their own pens right next to each other because Gurtrude likes grabbing Lizbeth's comb, so we want Lizbeth to have her own safe space. Gurtrude is also a small standard hen, so Lizbeth is only 2/3rds her size.
They are both good layers, so we get the equivalent of 9 eggs per week (Lizbeth's are half size). Surprisingly, it's not that expensive to keep them. We get the large bags of feed and keep it in an airtight container, and they get crickets and superworms daily, so about 2000 bugs each month for just under $80/month. Fresh fruits and veggies are pretty easy too, just get one or two of whatever, stick it on a skewer and set it up through the wire in the corner of their pens and they're happy little things.
I'm glad Gurtrude found us, she showed me how empty our menagerie was without chickens.
Gurtrude the night she found us.
Still learning the perks of her new life.
Lizbeth as a young peep.
