Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?

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danceswithronin said:
I am getting my first chickens the first week of June too! I'm getting four silkies and a mystery chick, they are already ordered along with my brooder supplies. I haven't built my coop yet either, but I have faith I can get it built in time. After all, the chicks have to stay in the brooder 4-5 weeks at least, so that should be plenty of time to knock it out. :cool:
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Wow! so you are getting baby chicks. I would love to get then that small but next time. I am not ready for little babies yet. But will be maybe next year. mine will be Red and Black Sex Links and a Red Sex Link Rooster.
 
drumstick diva said:
You are getting 10 week old chicks, those are good sized and nowhere as needy as day old chicks. I don't know where you live but, expect winter is many months off. So don't fret about it now.:welcome
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I live in Ontario, Canada and it gets really cold here. We will be insulating the chicken coop.
 
Cryss said:
Relax, this fun! I've been doing this since November. Try starting a flock in a New Jersey winter! It's been invigorating, lol.
First, have a secure, well ventilated, draft free coop. Next have a secure run. Food, water, pine shavings...you're on your way!
Second, ask questions. This site is a veritable University for information.
I have a question. I didn't want a rooster because I was just starting and wanted to learn a bit before taking on rooster 101 and breeding for beginners. Why did you want a rooster right away? I'm not saying it's a bad idea. I'm just curious. Actually I ended up with a surprise rooster hahaha! We believed he was a pullet. Oops. I'm learning to teach him to trust me, that I'm not a threat to his harem.
Honestly you are going to have fun with all that you learn. :highfive:
Welcome:welcome! Enjoy the ride!
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We wanted a Rooster as we live in Ontario, Canada and right in the bush. We are on 15 acres of land that is mostly pine and maple trees. There are lots of Hawks and eagles here as well as wolves and bears, deers and fishers. We also found out that chicken feel more comfortable and safe with a rooster present. And we want our little feathered friends to feel safe here. They will be in a totally enclosed run about 10 feet long with the metal fence going down into the ground about a foot deep so the animals cannot get into the hen house. The hen house will be about 4 by 8.
 
Evolvinglady said:
We wanted a Rooster as we live in Ontario, Canada and right in the bush. We are on 15 acres of land that is mostly pine and maple trees. There are lots of Hawks and eagles here as well as wolves and bears, deers and fishers. We also found out that chicken feel more comfortable and safe with a rooster present. And we want our little feathered friends to feel safe here. They will be in a totally enclosed run about 10 feet long with the metal fence going down into the ground about a foot deep so the animals cannot get into the hen house. The hen house will be about 4 by 8.
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Nice! Wish I had more land, I'd have more chickens for sure!
When my surprise rooster revealed himself and I told my breeder I decided to keep him rather than trade him back he basically told me the same thing about a rooster keeping hens calm.
Sounds like you are planning a very secure living space for your flock. Those plans sound great. I have hawks and bears, no wolves.
You are smart to want your birds to feel comfortable and safe. To that end you will want to rethink a bit of your dimensions. You said the run is 10 ft long but you didn't mention how wide. Assuming width to be less than length you will be needing to expand that. For the run itself the minimum chickens need is 10 square feet per bird. You have 11 now. So 11x10=110 square feet. That translates to 11ft by 10 feet depending how you lay it out. Example, It could also be 8ft x 13.75ft.
The other thing is coop size where they only need 4 square feet per bird. You are planning 4x8. That gives 32 square feet. 32÷4=8 chickens. For 11 chickens its 4x11=44 square feet needed. That translates to extending the coop to 4x11 so just add 3 more feet to the length, or the width by 5.5.
All that being said keep in mind chicken math!:eek::th The dimensions you need for your current expected flock do not take into consideration future additions. Yeah, I said I only wanted 4 hens. That was November. By February I had 6 plus a rooster. I'm expanding everything with an eye on 3-6 more birds but making it big enough for 13 more. Chicken math happens to everyone. Plan on it. Never build smaller than you need. It causes nasty interactions leading to beat up birds. Build bigger than you need, build bigger than you imagine.
Oh, and, have fun!:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy:jumpy
 
I'm sort of new. My first chicks are now 2 yr. olds. There's still so much to learn about them, though. So many experiences we haven't had yet. We have been through a few injuries, illnesses, and broody hens. We had our first broody hatch this month, which was awesome and nerve wracking at the same time.
 
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