April Hatch Thread--Come Join Us!

[PugBug]

This is my hobby..(and I have spent the last 13 years getting out of debt and saving all of my money so that I could eventually be able to spend some of it on my likes I dont buy shoes, or go shopping for outfits... All of my stuff comes from 2nd hand stores or goodwill... no going out to eat, no extras at the gas station.... no smoking, and only minimal drinking..... I figured it up one day and hubby smokes a pack of cigs a day and a 6 pack of beer.... this adds up to 3000$ a year!!!! so I threw a hissy fit and said it is unfair for him to spend this when I have no hobbies and make 80% of the money!!!!
so the last few years I invested in fruit trees, and irrigation, and dirt

as my hobby
now I have all of my trees and will be making $ off them in another few years..... as I have 300+ fruiting trees/vines/shrubs for a pick your own organic orchard (many started from scion wood exchanges)
and now I am really getting into the poultry as my hobby.... and of course I am planning on eventually selling my eggs from the more expensive breeds... and already sell free range eggs for eating and it 100% pays for the food for all of my poultry

I guess I am penny wise and pound short

but in my mind you can spend an extra 50-100$ a week easily on .... for lack of a better word "crap" haha stuff you dont need or even really want and it just gets shoved to a back shelf and forgotten about or eaten.... (this is how hubby is always spending 5-10$ here and there on "crap") I just save all of my money for large purchases all at once ...

But then I am VERY good at saving and not dipping into it for ANY reason other than the reason it was set aside.... and I think that is the hardest part! haha Hubby cant save 5$ to save his life! and if he ever complains I bring this back up that I do NOT spend as much as him on his addictions, by any stretch of the imagination! and his addictions are very bad on his health while mine will make us healthier and eventually start to make some $ back!!!!

$$$ gets spent, no matter how much you have.... but how much of that $$$ can you still see in 6 months or a year? with chickens you have eggs, beauty, meat, insect hunters, yard irrigators, companions, .... and potential to make $ back.... for years to come.... better than the 60$ jeans that will be out of style in 6 months! haha

(he is big on name brands

) hehe can you tell Ive used this speach on him before! haha

YES LOL too funny! Thankfully my husband is like me, no addictions. We actually think a lot alike. He is all for my birds. And since the chicks, we've added rabbits, ducks, guineas, and hopefully turkeys if my eggs hatch & I got back into raising pygmy goats again too. Also have 2 horses, 7 dogs, 2 cats and a potbelly pig. As you've prob guessed we are homebodies! We grow a large veggie garden, have fruit trees. That is what we spend our money on. I would not change a thing- other than having better hatches

 

[Arkansas81]

good for you anna! thank god I don't have a husband anymore, that is all I would hear is blah blah blah about me wanting to have chickens, about doing this, doing that. as you might tell I ddnt have a good marriage and he DIDNT/WOULDN'T support anything I did. so I know if I were still married I wouldn't have the life as I have now. I don't see any issue having a good hobby that in the long run can/does make good money. I am very happy in my life and decisions.. and I'm glad that I decided to have chickens!

it's good girl power!!! I am so glad that I have such wonderful support as I do on here..everyone thinks im nuts but I don't care/cause I know I am. I am so excited about having more eggs to set on thurs/fri. I really enjoyed the last set..i think it went really well, I am hoping for the same this time around. I hope all goes well for everyone's hatches...keep the updating coming! It's nice to see the enjoyment that everyone gets out of them

april

 

[TheCrazyChick]

These last few posts really hit home. This is my HOBBY. Hence, NO ONE else at home or grown, has to like it. It's MINE. We spent a ton, literally zillions, on a boat hobby a decade ago. This chicken/egg hobby some days ain't cheap, but all in all it is cheaper than a boat, cheaper than a boat's gas, and cheaper than boat booze. Taking care of these chickens makes me happy, happy, happy. Period. My DH enjoys cold beer, lots of cookies, the sofa, and bad TV. Fine, let him have those things. But stop questioning me six ways from Sunday about what my chicken plans are. It doesn't matter what they are. They're MINE, and they just are. Period.

Whew! I feel better.

Seriously though, DH was instrumental in making the coop. He grumbled 100% of the time, but every so often I can actually get him to grab a drink and sit out by the coop and watch the chickens with me. He called me "crazy" the other day, but then said he loved my crazy ... a lot. So I will only complain a little after this. As long as he sits down and stays quiet.

With that being said, my second batch of eggs arrived today. Incubator was on sale at TSC and I emptied my spare change jar to get it.

Silver Pencilled Plymouth Rocks from SunnySideUpFarm, Light Sussex, Wheaten Marans, and a couple of Mottled Houdan for fun. Soooo excited for these. The first batch is a test run, but these are ones I REALLY want!

 

[annabell254]

you go!!! and dont let him push you around... many guys forget about their habits (or dont even consider them haha) and I am only too happy to remind them that I still spend less than them so BACK OFF my hobby of happness!!!! hehe

and I also get ALL of my support on here so THANK YOU to ALL!!!!

everyone in my family looks at me like I'm crazy when I say I still want more chickens haha but let them... they make ME happy and it is MY life... and people on here understand me, so I know Im not alone!

Here is a Cheer to all of the people out there that pursue their dreams and their hobby's despite conflict and lack of support from friends and family.... You have your chicken family RIGHT HERE!!! So hatch your fluffy butts and BE HAPPY... You Deserve IT!

 

[chickydee64]

Whoa.....busy thread.makes it fun..............

Wanted to tell you that my down day yesterday was topped off by finding my Serama hen hatched the sweetest chick..........
Just beautiful.............white with a cinnamon saddle.(so far)
Did not think they were going to hatch. March 31 was day 21............
Going to try to get the DSL set today so I can post pics...............
Later...................

 

[TheCrazyChick]

you go!!! and dont let him push you around... many guys forget about their habits (or dont even consider them haha) and I am only too happy to remind them that I still spend less than them so BACK OFF my hobby of happness!!!! hehe

and I also get ALL of my support on here so THANK YOU to ALL!!!!

everyone in my family looks at me like I'm crazy when I say I still want more chickens haha but let them... they make ME happy and it is MY life... and people on here understand me, so I know Im not alone!

Here is a Cheer to all of the people out there that pursue their dreams and their hobby's despite conflict and lack of support from friends and family.... You have your chicken family RIGHT HERE!!! So hatch your fluffy butts and BE HAPPY... You Deserve IT!

LOL. Don't get me wrong, though. I'm blessed to have a DH who loves me. Just wish he enjoyed this as much I do. To be fair, he was raised on a farm in the 40's, 50's, 60's (yes, he is a lot older than myself), and back then chicken raising was not the same. He does not have happy chicken memories from childhood. They were confined to the coop and their job was to lay eggs. Period. No warm and fuzzies on that farm. So he is still coming to grips with the fact that chickens are smarter than he ever thought and actually have different personalities. And that they aren't actually filthy and stinky. He'll come around sooner or later. Or not.

 

[Arkansas81]

AMEN sista!! I'm happy-you're happy, we're all happy

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So anna what are your plans with your birds? Are any of your birds laying? What do you have...pure, mix, show quality? Are you going to show, are you going to sell your chicks, eggs? What kind of breeds do you have or want?

Right now I just have my mixed layers, but I am getting into some pures. I'm going with a pure pen for my polish-blue and gold laced, crele. Then a pure pen for my silkies-blue, black, splash. I plan on selling the chicks and eggs from my pure pens for more $$ and my layers are going to be for eating and selling. They are what is funding my pure pens right now...I might even make a pure pen for my basque and for my easter eggers...not quite sure yet.

In my future I would like to have ducks, and peacocks, goats, horses, and milking cow. I want to be as self suffiecient as possible. We are fixing our orchard and getting our garden ready for planting of all kinds of things. I wish I had the guts to raise chickens for meat too...I would have a local butcher do the culling but I know I couldn't raise something then eat it. Plus my daughter would be crushed..she gets really attached to everything.

I know she would love to have show rabbits, quail...etc but I really don't see the need for those right now. We will have plenty going on for quite awhile.

 

[annabell254]

quick question..... I had two sussex go broody (found them this moring guarding the eggs I was collecting for breakfest haha).....can I put my goose eggs under them... Well I already emptied the still air and put eggs under one of them.... but I have my 4 good ones in the brinsea and one hen still broody on fake eggs hehe (I switched them out as soon as I knew she was broody and until I can figure out what I will put under her

I had decided to hatch my chicks (this saterday) in the brinsea despite the goose eggs... but now Im thinking broody hen will be safer for the goose eggs than the brinsea considering the hatch this weekend??? am I right in thinking this... is a hen good for goose eggs... will she raise them as well?

 

[annabell254]

I have SShamburgs, marens, Ssussex, EE's, silkies, seabrights, old game.... in the bator I have BLRW, Lavender Orps, Isabel/lavender silkies.... coming in a few weeks I have sultans, coronation Sussex, citron Hamburgs, two isabel brahma eggs and then after that is peacocks......

Currently all adult chickens are hatchery and all free range and I sell eggs for eating

All eggs in the incubator and that I have coming are from very nice individuals

I plan (for this year) to have hubby make me breeding runs and coops.... 10x100-150 covered runs off a house built for 6-10 chickens...(though I could devide them in half for 6 10x50-75 and only 2-5 birds per area as I only have 6-8 eggs of each ordered so I will be luckly with just a pair) I would like to offer them in pure breed eggs in auctions starting next year....

 

[Arkansas81]

anna-i've heard they (hens) will hatch and raise anything given to them-as long as they are good and broody. so I say why not, now if it were me I would watch them very closely to make sure the hen is staying put. I've never had a broody experience..i had a hen and occasionally still do that wants to sit on eggs..but the time I let her sit the eggs never hatched. I can't wait to be able to go thru this experience with a broody.

i'm just waiting on the weather to stay nice long enough to keep eggs outside without freezing, plus I need to set up another spot for her if she does sit. we have one nest box that is the favorite...everyone wants to lay there! I put 6 in there for 13 hens and they basically will only use 1...stupid birds! but it does make collecting very easy!!