Arizona Chickens

[pastrymama]

Thinkinboutchickens,
I have to say that my stupid beagle gets the award for the best bird dog. He has chomped down a baby chick right out of the brooder and tried to swallow it whole(he couldn't), stole one of my easter eggers as she stupidly snuck out of the run and grabbed her and took off, fortunately he passed her off to the cattle dog and she lived, and then there was the astralorp who flew over the 6 foot fenced run and he got her. so close to laying age too. i was on the mcmurray site the other day and played a video of little peeps and the dog went mad looking for the chicks. I am VERY careful now, well, as careful as I can be. I clip their wings, keep the dogs in when they are out in the yard, do a beak count before i lock the run....can't change a bird dog.

the dog was here first, so i just do what i can to keep them safe.

Noskivees,
you inspired me(or shall i say TEASED me) with the favorelles. i placed a mcmurray order for the 1st week of march! what am i going to do with 30 little peepers?

 

[5pinkarrows]

Quote:

Glad you are here! I am further south in Rio Rico. I don't know which breeds would be more quiet. Our silkies are pretty quiet, but the hen lays tiny eggs. We are the only house on the street, so I haven't really cared about how much noise mine make. As for the heat, it hasn't really been an issue for us. We put a board over the pen for some shade. On the really hot days, I go out and hose everything down during the worst part of the day. My daughter puts ice cubes in their water, too. As for the dogs, they might surprise you. I have 3 big dogs. Only one can't be trusted alone with the chickens. She has killed 2 in the past. She is really good under voice control, so when I am outside with her, I just fuss at her if she looks at them. Now our polish cockerel walks right up to her and gets in her face, and she just looks at me wondering what to do. A little training can go a long way. That's the case with anything involving dogs, I suppose.

 

[ThinkinBoutChickensInAz]

@5pinkarrows ---3 big dogs here, also not a big yard and I've got a doggie door. Dogs have already done damage to outside aviaries when left alone to their vices so I'd really hate to buy or construct a coop and have the furkids destroy the wire and eat my egg factory. Like the other poster had written, my dogs were here first as well, and I truly doubt I can teach my old dogs to leave them alone after they've demonstrated their high prey drive already. <there are no longer any birds in my wood/wire aviary or my california breeder cage which is situated in a dog run>

There really isn't much shade to speak of in my yard, no trees on the property unfortunately, I'd either have to use shade cloth or rig up a drip system. I had been thinking about bantams but heard they could be noiser than standard chickens.

@pastymama --- I feel your pain, been there, done that. Unfortunately all 3 of my furkids are larger (and stronger) than your Beagle. They have tried to pull the wire fencing from the dog run when I had birds in the california breeder (and that cage is on 3ft stilts). Since I've seen what damage they can do, or should I say the aftermath of the damage, there is no way in good conscience at this point in time, I could get chickens.

So I'm using my time to learn and read up and ask questions and check out everyone's coop designs.

 

[karabbitry]

Quote:
do you know when there doing the shows
in phoenix, safford is too far
i gone to the sheep shows but had not had a chance
to go to the poultry shows

The only shows that I know of in the Phoenix area are the Maricopa County Fair, which I think is in April and the AZ State Fair which is in October.

 

[DM]

Quote:
I am going to get turkeys in March. how are they different than chickens care wise, food. I assume they are the same. Always prefer someone in the know to a book.

which hatchery are you going to use for turkeys
local hatched poults have a better survival rate
then shipped birds, breeder stock is better than hatchery
turkeys, protein is higher in turkeys'
remember to feed a 28 percent protein
turkey starter for the first 8 weeks then switch them to
a 24 percent turkey grower, like kelleys brand
or ace hi feed brands, if their to eat they go with the
broad breasted bronze or broad breasted white turkeys
but for heritage turkeys its better from private breeders
than hatcheries, we will be having
royal palms, blue slate, oregon brown turkeys
auburn turkeys, standard bronze turkeys
with this new year i am going to get blue palms
sweetgrass, penciled palms
if anyone wants to get pencilled palms
or pure chocolates, please let me know
i want to order some from a private
breeder in indiana

I agree buying local is a much better idea. Where are you, we would like to come see your set up. How much do you sell your turkey chicks for and when will the blue slate be ready? thanks for the info

 

[Lyongirl]

"I'd be interested in keeping no more than 4 chickens and would be for eggs not meat and hopefully they'd be a quiet breed."

ThinkinBoutChickensInAz- I'm just going to warn you, I said that in October and now I have 8 :x. It all started off with us buying four little babies from a feed store, but two grew up to be roosters and our HOA won't allow them so we sent them away. Then I wanted to search for 2 more but Noskiveez on this forum was selling 4 ladies so I said I was interested and she said she'd throw in a little silkie for free. Of course when she showed up she also had some Phoenix hens in her van she was selling and I couldn't resist, so we bought one. So...4 turned into 8..

people don't kid about that chicken math. Thankfully they are all really quiet except the Phoenix girl when she wants something (to come out, food, to get on the roost that the Amerucana hens use their fat bodies to take up

). Even though I think it's loud you can't hear her from inside the house so I'm pretty sure we'll be lucky. Plus once I get a little more eggs each day I'm going to share with the neighbors and I'm sure that will help as well

.

 

[pastrymama]

Quote:

yup, back in april i told dh i only wanted 3 chickens. well, here we are with 14(one died from a stroke last week) and there are 30 more on the way the 1st of march! i won't keep all the chicks, some will go to a friend and some will be for sale, but i will probably end up with somewhere around 20-22 chickens. ssshhhhh, but don't tell him.

 

[pdx2phx]

I second the theme on Chicken Math...


last March I came home from a week of training to find 4 happy peepers in the garage and a sheepish DH, one of those (the peepers, not the DH

) turned out to be a Roo, then got 2 pullets (one of which was a Roo

), then ordered 27 chicks from Ideal poultry, but I swear we were only going to keep 4 or 5 of them...... now after Roos we still have a total of 20 chickens. Huh?

How did that happen?!?

They are so much more fun and entertaining than I would have expected, and the eggs are nice! We just have a small suburban block wall backyard in N. Phoenix (with a pool and a Koi pond) and somehow it all works. Poop and general chicken mayhem is an issue as they free range right now, but we are going to redo our coop area and (I think) do a large run that includes existing shrubs, etc for ground cover and shade protection.....

 

[squeakyballs]

to the new people!

Most of the prickly pear cacti (cactuses?) in my yard look dead! Did anyone else lose cactus?

I tried to gussy up one of the polish chickens with a bow:

 

[pastrymama]

is that couch outside or inside? if i brought a chicken in the house, much less let one STAND on my couch, i would be DEAD and so would all the chickens! i don't think the bow would woo over dh either, just further convince him that i have gone over the edge. not that i am saying that you are, i think it's cute, but it's a chicken thang, they wouldn't understand(non-chicken folk). my kids would love it!