Arizona Chickens

[AlsoFrazzled]

Not to get off-topic, (or on topic?), but I'm in Scottsdale (not the "snooty" part). I've only two Red Star pullets at 7 weeks-old, but am getting a hoot out of having chickens. Been waiting nearly 40 years to raise (and spoil) chickens and am so glad I did! (Wanted Sebrights when I was a kid - back then, all we had was the Sears catalog. I would be going nuts if I was 9 years-old looking at chicken breeds)

Now to get off-topic - anyone know where to get organic layer feed? Starting to ask now, because I have a feeling it may take awhile and some debate as to which is best and where to get it. We also wants the added Omega's in the eggs. Of course my husband is having to explain to his friends at work that 7 week-old chicks can't lay eggs and I'm having to explain to him that 2 chickens aren't going to being laying enough eggs for him to be passing around at work AND for us to eat

Thanks

 

[Smiles-N-Sunshine]

I was thinking about Delawares as well. The bantam brahmas I have now have been great, desert-wise, but took forever to mature and don't lay that much.

I've also been thinking (twice in the same day - scary!): does anyone know what kind of chickens the original white settlers brought to AZ and raised successfully? Or any native varieties? I've heard of Dominiques making the journey, but I'm wondering if they mixed with native birds.

 

[AZKat]

I asked this same question of a gentleman who works at the Sharlott Hall Museum, and he said that he didn't know for certain. He said that his best guess was that it would have been Dominiques, Javas and the other common barnyard breeds of the 19th century. He also speculated that they were more likely to have been mutts and barnyard crosses, rather than pure breeds. He also mentioned raised leghorns around Tucson, but they got into the poultry business in the 1920s.

 

[rufus]

The most popular chicken in the 19th century was the white faced Spanish. They look like minorcas, but the face is larger.

They fell out out of vogue.

Free range chickens tend to become mutts eventually. The Spanish had introduced chickens to the southwest. So some chickens were here already.

I think the only chicken breeds native to the Americas were the Auracanians of Chile and Peru. Some people think they originated in Polynesia though.

It must have been very difficult to cross the plains and mountains and keep poultry alive at the same time. Not to mention herding the cattle, goats and sheep.

Rufus

 

[H2OKarensa]

Hey Phoenix folks!

I'm south of Tucson, but my DH is going up to phx this weekend.

Where is the cheapest organic feed in Phoenix? I want to compare to the ONE place in Tucson and see if it is worth it for him to pick up a bunch while he's up there.

Thanks!

 

[LarryPQ]

I don't know about organic, but some of the feed stores will give you a discount if you buy feed in large quantities. I would call a few places and ask management--they can't tell you "no" if you don't give them the opprotunity.

 

[Heelers&Chickens_OhMy]

Quote:
I buy my organic feed from Scottsdale Feed. It's $.50/lb. This is also the feed that was full of bugs. I think there is one other feedstore that sells organic, but it's in Glendale.

 

[CheerfulHeart2]

Quote:
Congrats! How very exciting!

 

[AZKat]

Thanks! It is really exciting. They are continuing to be healthy and are eating and drinking well, and some of them are already starting to get feathers on their wings. They grow up so fast, *sniff*.

I've been giving them a few hours of supervised free-range time in the backyard. It has to be supervised, as every cat in the neighborhood, including ours, has come around to look for a snack. My six year old really enjoys sitting out with them and being the 'chicken guard'. They seem to really enjoy it, and are already eating ants and other creepy crawlies.

 

[CheerfulHeart2]

How fun. I too live in Mesa. I am in an older area and count myself (and my chickens) fortunate that the only predators are the neighborhood cats. At full grown size, the cats leave my babies alone. But of course, supervision was critical when they were younger!