Arizona Chickens

[City farm]

No I moved to Pennsylvania in November but like this thread better than that one.

Yeah, we are all fun here, tehe.

 

[City farm]

View attachment 2152621View attachment 2152622T
The gang and Lily’s first egg!

 

[SedonaMidwife]

Welcome to chickens and Arizona! I was surprised to see that Sedona is actually so much higher and cooler than Camp Verde, I used to live in Cordes and now back to black canyon. Anyway, I agree you can have pretty much any bird where you are due to your elevation. I've had a few different breeds from Privetts and some from Hoover's, and, FWIW, I got andalusians from both. The ones from Hoover's were much calmer and one even follows me around like a dog, vs the Privett andalusians were more like you'd expect a mediterranean bird. So, Anything you get from Hoover's should be quite calm, or at least much calmer than you'd expect just by reading the breed's literature. I had some of their amberlinks which were very calm. They needed a bit more help in the heat of Cordes than the sapphire gems, but were even calmer. The sapphires were also great, with just a bit less docile than the ambers. The sapphires had the larger eggs but the ambers had a much darker shell. Both those breeds (sex-links actually) laid most every day, 290 eggs per year. They all started laying about 18 weeks of age (hatched 11/14). Been wanting to try the midnight majesty marans, which appear to be a dominant black CZ, D109, and the calico princess which appears to be a chzech dominant red barred D459, they should also be calm birds that lay big eggs every day. Anyway, that's my two cents, and my wish list thrown in. Best of luck with whatever birds you end up trying!

**adding*** I also generally note, when there's a heat wave, the temps between Phx, Sierra Vista, Cordes, Prescott all get closer together. i.e, prescott doesn't enjoy a 20 degree cooler day during a heat wave, for your use in planning your coop/run and shade/cooling options. Similar, when we had the record cold/snow winter before last, Cordes was nearly as cold as Prescott where we usually would be 10 degrees warmer.

Thank you !! Such good info yes it doesn’t get quite as hot here as in Verde Valley - but it does get over 100 and it also snows here in the winter! I will do some more research into the breeds you mentioned and also into Hoover’s!

 

[Parront]

How perfect!!! Thank you!! I'll let them finish the chick crumble bag then switch them over.

To switch some birds can take a while. Before you are out, just mix about 1/3 of the new food in with the old, the 1/2 & 1/2, then a few days later only 1/4 old food, and make sure that they are eating the new pellets before you are out of the food that they grew up eating. Birds can be very particular about what they will eat sometimes!

 

[Parront]

Welcome to chickens and Arizona! I was surprised to see that Sedona is actually so much higher and cooler than Camp Verde, I used to live in Cordes and now back to black canyon. Anyway, I agree you can have pretty much any bird where you are due to your elevation. I've had a few different breeds from Privetts and some from Hoover's, and, FWIW, I got andalusians from both. The ones from Hoover's were much calmer and one even follows me around like a dog, vs the Privett andalusians were more like you'd expect a mediterranean bird. So, Anything you get from Hoover's should be quite calm, or at least much calmer than you'd expect just by reading the breed's literature. I had some of their amberlinks which were very calm. They needed a bit more help in the heat of Cordes than the sapphire gems, but were even calmer. The sapphires were also great, with just a bit less docile than the ambers. The sapphires had the larger eggs but the ambers had a much darker shell. Both those breeds (sex-links actually) laid most every day, 290 eggs per year. They all started laying about 18 weeks of age (hatched 11/14). Been wanting to try the midnight majesty marans, which appear to be a dominant black CZ, D109, and the calico princess which appears to be a chzech dominant red barred D459, they should also be calm birds that lay big eggs every day. Anyway, that's my two cents, and my wish list thrown in. Best of luck with whatever birds you end up trying!

**adding*** I also generally note, when there's a heat wave, the temps between Phx, Sierra Vista, Cordes, Prescott all get closer together. i.e, prescott doesn't enjoy a 20 degree cooler day during a heat wave, for your use in planning your coop/run and shade/cooling options. Similar, when we had the record cold/snow winter before last, Cordes was nearly as cold as Prescott where we usually would be 10 degrees warmer.

Prescott can get hot! Over 100 for a few days last summer. We have snow, too. But it melts pretty quick. A nice change for me from the CA desert, we used to live in Palm Desert which is much like Phoenix. I never wanted chickens there, but when we moved here, I started to need some chickens!

 

[AngBantamLuv]

To switch some birds can take a while. Before you are out, just mix about 1/3 of the new food in with the old, the 1/2 & 1/2, then a few days later only 1/4 old food, and make sure that they are eating the new pellets before you are out of the food that they grew up eating. Birds can be very particular about what they will eat sometimes!

I should already have known this, my parrots are the same way. They just switched from chick mash to chick crumbles, and they just stared at it. They finally started eating after a few, but I forgot to mix their last bit of mash.

 

[Parront]

I should already have known this, my parrots are the same way. They just switched from chick mash to chick crumbles, and they just stared at it. They finally started eating after a few, but I forgot to mix their last bit of mash.

Parrots are more verbal about what they want! All are bird brains, Dylan just gets my attention better -- if I giver her some new, un-acceptable, food, she throws it on the floor and says, "Want more". More of the food that she likes, that is. When I got her she came with a bag of Walmart bird food that was not OK with me, she still took some time to switch to pellet food. The Zupreem, no. Harrisons, most expensive bird food on the planet, YES! No throwing, switched in about a month. Chickens are easier than that, but they get used to the food that they grew up with, for sure. You might not get eggs as soon if they go on a hunger strike when you switch to layer feed!

 

[AngBantamLuv]

Parrots are more verbal about what they want! All are bird brians, Dylan just gets my attention better -- if I giver her some new, un-acceptable, food, she throws it on the floor and says, "Want more". More of the food that she likes, that is. When I got her she came with a bag of Walmart bird food that was not OK with me, she still took some time to switch to pellet food. The Zupreem, no. Harrisons, most expensive bird food on the planet, YES! No throwing, switched in about a month. Chickes are easier than that, but they get used to the food that they grew up with, for sure.

Oh yes... she wants pretty bird small pellets.. which no body sells I was rehabbing an African grey who would give you his breakfast order.. and if you brought something else, he would yell, no no no! And throw it! So yes, so far these guys are way easier!! And I think non household bird owners who happen to be chicken owners do not realize how messy and dusty other birds are i kind of laugh at the dust comments. so far, only dust is the food.. but that was mash. Hoping itll improve w the crumble AND the new feeders. I do need to get some plexiglass cut for the bottom though.

 

[Parront]

his breakfast order

Sounds like a normal Grey to me! When mine wants out of her cage, she says, "Come here!" If you do not do as ordered, she starts banging her toy against the cage bars. She learned that from my husband, who runs something over the cage bars to make a noise. She does it back to him, to get him to come. I, on the other hand, am better trained and come when she tells me to!

 

[Parront]

Oh yes... she wants pretty bird small pellets.. which no body sells I was rehabbing an African grey who would give you his breakfast order.. and if you brought something else, he would yell, no no no! And throw it! So yes, so far these guys are way easier!! And I think non household bird owners who happen to be chicken owners do not realize how messy and dusty other birds are i kind of laugh at the dust comments. so far, only dust is the food.. but that was mash. Hoping itll improve w the crumble AND the new feeders. I do need to get some plexiglass cut for the bottom though.

Chickens are also smart enough to train their owners, like our parrots do. A lot of fun!