Are Chicks just for "Chicks"?

[Keleka]

Yet, another male here. The "Easter chicks" were a gift for my daughter from a friend last year. I have taken much interst in them and love the fresh eggs. There are a few guys I work with that have chickens also. My wife still isn't real thrilled about them, but she is an animal lover so I can see a twinkle in her eye sometimes. She just wishes they would stay little fuzzballs. We started with three and now have a dozen, with 5 being new chicks this year. I had her agree to two and just couldn't resist more. Anyhow, whoever mentioned that 12 step program is right on, and I think I need help.

 

[ivan3]

`Nother roo here.

Have to confess, I came by this avocation from the far side.

“And still the weaver
Plies his loom.
Whose warp and woof
Is wretched man.
Weaving the unpattern’d
Dark design.
So dark we doubt
It owns a plan.”

(some Sufi mystic, or other)

In the summer of 2004 during my last conversation with my maternal grandmother, three months before her death (passed two weeks shy of her 100th birthday), I asked about her fifty years living on the farm and whether she missed that life (gave birth to six of eight children at home and no indoor plumbing until the 1965). She replied, in her soft, slow, Middle TN. drawl, “Well, Johnny, I guess I miss having some chickens in the yard.” I would have completely forgotten this had anyone else said it. My grandmother, however, was the only person I’ve ever known who could sit next to the Buddha and not look out of place. Never raised her voice, never became flustered, always DOING without pause or hesitation. And she possessed peculiar talents for answering the phone before it rang (made the hair on the back of my young neck raise up) and for knowing when a relative had died – before they did (if she turned and told you she had `seen’ you walking across the front porch/or sitting on the glider, then it was time to put your affairs in order).

In the spring of 2005 I went in to Orschelns (concentrated essence of Tractor Supply)
to pick up a couple of dimmer switches. There was a large flat of chicks, glowing, under heat lamps, near the entrance. As I walked past, I had the feeling I was being watched. I turned to see what it could be. In the center of the sea of mostly yellow cheeps, were three Broad Breasted Bronze poults looking directly at me. I blew this off, picked up the switches, and bugged out. However, we had our grandsons the following day. As we were returning from town Cass said she wanted to check at Orschelns for mud boots for the kids, ha! Cass and the grandkids didn’t get any resistance from me (so long as the poults were included – had to save `em). Cass picked out the chooks (resulting in one roo and 9 hens!).

Accident/Design?
I’ll just put it down to serendipity, or third order synchronicity (after factoring out any sex specific variables…). and my grandmother would be pleased with our backyard…

Spring `05

 

[soonerdog]

Lovely story! Reminds me of my granparents! Remember going to their home when I was small and my granpa had a yard full of chickens. I remember granma mad about his chickens eating her strawberries. Lovely memories of good folk!!!

 

[Mahonri]

When I walk into the backyard the hens just come running.

My wife says I am a chick magnet.

I guess I am.

 

[kstaven]

Easy to pick out the men on this forum. Long time members with a low post counts.

We just don't have as much time to cackle as the hens.

 

[ThreeBoysChicks]

Ed Lind - A Man - My tag line says it all. "God has blessed me so good. I thank Him for all that I have; 1 Wife, 3 boys, 2 horses, 5 dogs, 1 cat, 6 Ducks, 4 Geese, 5 Guineas, 2 Goats and 27 chickens and I love them all." I love all animals and especially my chickens.

ivan3 - Your story about your Grandmother is awesome. I thought I would share about my Dad and his involvement with my life and chickens. He passed away 2 years ago this month and I prepared and delivered his eulogy. Here is a small part of that eulogy.....

"As a kid and to this day, I love animals. I had mice, I had a guinea pig and I had chickens. A family friend Louise Grabill had some Japanese Bantam chickens and I wanted some. Dad hemmed and hauled, said no, I kept on, he said no, Louise poked a little, he said no, Mom pushed, and then one day out of the blue, I had an old rabbit hut and 4 peeps. Dad built me a pen next to the shed that housed them for quite a number of years. We had peeps, I raised a single chick in the house until Dad said she was too big, she needs to go out into the house with the others. Through that experience, Dad taught me how to care for and love animals. I would be sitting on the couch watching TV and he would remind me that the chickens needed to be taken care of and I would go out and do it. I know there were many nights that he just did it for me.

Oddly enough it is chickens that bring me closer to current day. I grew up, I married, had three wonderful boys that my Dad loved too. He never came to the house empty-handed. He always had kit kat bars, chocolate bars, cheese and peanut butter crackers or tootsie rolls. Did you know he liked tootsie rolls? Back to the chickens… 4 ½ or so years ago, Karen and I moved out onto Jimtown Rd., we had land and again I wanted chickens. I designed my chicken house and called Dad. Of course he told me I was crazy, nuts, needed my head examined, but the following weekend he was there with the lumber and labor to help me build the chicken house. It has electricity, insulated walls, a shingled roof and a little storm window (Dad’s idea, he had it back in the shed). A very nice chicken house. That was one of the greatest times because it was with Dad. You know I could have probably built the chicken house without him, but it would not have been the same. I needed to hear his advice and stories one more time. His favorite saying, “If you are not going to do it right, don’t do it all”. "

So yeah, I am a man. I love chickens. And I am proud of it.

 

[Chickenfortress]

Ok, i'll bite. I'm still male, despite my ex-wifes attempts at remediating that. She dislikes the birds, and doesn't even want to look at the ones the kids try to show her. I plan on building a decent coop in the spring. Our current coop is a remodel on a pole barn that housed 2 horses before we bought the property. Theres not a plumb, level or square line in the place. With the new one, I'll get to build as I want to, instead of making do. So, the chicks have the added benefit of giving me an excuse to build things. They are also getting me off my rear about clearing more land in the back. They always need more space to run.

As to names, not many get them. Only those that show strong personality, and are more useful than their meat would be, get named. I don't go for feminine naming schemes, so we tend toward scientist names. Buckminster, after Buckminster Fuller, developer of fullerenes, buckyballs, and other nano carbon structures, and Curie, after Madame Curie, coiner of the term "radiation" and discoverer of radium, among other early physical studies. We also had "Escher", named because of his markings. He was a silver sebright bantam, and reminded me of the work of Escher. We should have named him after escherium coli because he was insidious, beautiful, and destructive.

 

[youdontknow32]

Ok so when I was young I got flogged hated chickens, hubby came to pick me up at work in august of this year and his little sister was with him, she's like guess what matt bought well here it was 6 little peeps and he had 25 more on the way, I wasn't too happy with him!! So the chicks get here still don;t like them I am scared to death of them, they are 4 months old now and I am more addicted then my hubby, yea he got me into them but now I can't stop!...lol but my hubby loves his chickens he spends more time with them then he does with me!!

haha
-Nicole

 

[Just-Like-Hatching]

Another man here. I grew up with chickens and always had all kinds of poultry until I joined the military. Then for 20 years I moved around to much to have critters. Submitted my retirement paperwork and bought a sportsman in February. Hatched several hundred chickens this year and will retire in 69 days. I am fortunate to have a great friend and chicken breeder (BamaChicken/Julie) down the street to get quality eggs from. Now I have chickens everywhere. And yes, we have named a few chickens.

 

[Scrambled Egg]

Any men want to step in here and speak for the male species, or is this just a "woman thing"?

They are all busy getting crowing tips from the roosters.​