Arizona Chickens

[kmhfuzzhead]

Dear Rebbetzin,
Keep trying.....I finally made a deal with my husband(and I think he was sure I couldn't or wouldn't do it) because after years of trying to convince them how great it would be etc. he said and I quote: "If you build your own coop we can get chickens!"
So that is how I found the forum un-beknowns to him and I started asking friends and neighbors for any scraps of chicken wire, wood ANYTHING whether it would feasibly work or not and as my pile grew of practical and none practical stuff he became very nervous.....now I really didn't have a full proof plan but he didn't know that!!! LOL !!!! I did however have a friend who had an OLD wood shed that she didn't want anymore.....so I found a neighbor who said he would move it to my yard....I was Estactic.........that did it!!!!!!! He finally said I really didn't think you wanted them this badly....!!!!!!! Now he looks at this forum with me tells me helpful hints..I catch him watching or standing in the chicken coop when he thinks i don't know!!!!!

 

[a2ms4chickens]

My DH is always telling me how he doesn't care about our chickens, but...
He found the mister for them, he also bought me an incubator, and got me an animal kennel to keep the chicks in.

Then he has the nerve to say that I have way too many chicks. Go figure! Will I ever figure him out?

 

[rebbetzin]

Quote:
I came home this last week with an old cabinet, but it is too small really for a decent coop, I may use it in the making of other outdoor craft projects. But... I got a bunch of used welded wire fence from a neighbor. My husband asked me what I was going to do with it... I said "Use for a chicken run."

He was not thrilled with my idea of coverting an old Dogloo in to a coop.

He thinks it is chicken torture to have them out in the yard during the summer... (I'd be fine with an air conditioned coop!) LOL... We have two huge Pine trees that shade the yard most of the day.

I am now seaching for an old used Little Tykes type plastic playhouse. They have some cute ones, and I know I could convert that to a coop easy enough.

I know if I build something it will be much easier then to get a few chicks.

The wire fence I got is still too big of holes really, sparrows and other small wild birds could easily get in. But... I am thinking I could grow a nice vine on it, like Honeysuckle and that would after a bit keep most other birds out. Or cover it with a smaller chicken wire.

I am not giving up!!

 

[Katran]

Hi everyone! I'm new to these forums, looking to get into providing eggs for my family on our own. I had a baby chicken once in high school (part of a child dev class), but my parents made me get rid of it while it was still a baby, so I have no real experience with chickens.

I posted to another thread and they directed me here, so I'm going to be lazy and copy and paste, lol! For the most part anyway:


I've been thinking for awhile about getting hens for eggs, and I'm just not sure where to start, what the best kinds of chickens are, how to set up a coop for them, etc. I've browsed the forums and read the FAQ's, but I still have a few questions.

I've seen some great ideas in this thread for keeping chickens cool, but I haven't read the entire thread yet so I'm sure I've missed some posts that might answer my question. Still, I'd appreciate any responses. What is the best material for a coop in a yard that has very little shade? My backyard is on the northeast side of the house, but because of our septic tank we have no trees back there so the yard still gets full sun for most of the day.

I also have 5 dogs, two of them large and three of them small. What's the best way to build a coop they won't be able to get into (they've never seen a chicken in their lives)? Should I fence off a portion of my yard so the chickens can have free range, or is it best to keep them in an enclosed coop? If they have free range, should I keep their wings clipped (and how do I do that) so they can't fly over the fence? How much free range space do they need? My yard is not really big, and we have very little grass right now. Our soil seems to be real garbage, as we've been trying to get grass to grow for the past two years and can never get it to really get established.

We have a family of five, and some days we'll go through a half dozen eggs in one day, other times we won't eat eggs for days. How many chickens should I have if I want to keep an average one dozen eggs on hand each week (we'd probably eat more if we didn't have to buy them)? On other threads I've seen that people store them at room temperature for up to 6 weeks, but does that apply to those of us in AZ? My house does not have A/C, and it's currently getting into the mid 80's in here.

Where is the best place to get hens in my area (I'm in north Peoria)? Should I start off with babies, or is it better to get one that is already laying age? How much can I expect to pay for a chicken?

I'm sure I'll have more questions, but if anyone can answer these to start, I'd really appreciate it.

Thanks!

 

[a2ms4chickens]

Hi Katran and

Depending on what color eggs you want, will help to decide what kind of hens to get. If you want brown layers, Rhode Island Reds, Buff Orpingtons, Barred Rocks, and Red Sexlinks are all good layers (they usually have good personalities and dispositions, too). Leghorns are good white egg layers, but I heard they can be loud and flighty.

Because we have a lot of predator birds, we enclosed a stable and used chicken wire for the top half of it to keep air circulation. We do have some show chickens in wooden pens with chicken wire. I think as long as their is some kind of shade, they should be good. We do not let our chickens free range, but we did put a chicken run on the back of the stable, so they can be outside (we still have to close it in).

As for dog proofing your coop and run, chicken wire will not hold them back. You need to use a very strong wire, or wood or metal to keep them out. They can also unlatch a gate, so be sure you secure it. I think for freeranging, you should have about 8 sq ft per bird. You can do a search on BYC that shows you how to clip their wings.

Most hens will lay 1 egg per day, but some lay less. I would figure 2-3 hens for at least a dozen eggs per week. I immediately put all of our eggs in the refrigerator when I bring them in.

I'm not sure about feed stores in your area. There are pros and cons about getting chicks vs. laying hens. Chicks you have to wait until they are 16-20 weeks, depending on breed. Laying hens may take a week or 2 to settle in before laying. There are other threads about this on BYC, you might want to do a search.

Good luck on whatever you decide to do, and welcome

 

[Katran]

Thanks for the reply! I really don't care about the color of the eggs. I'm mostly concerned with a breed that will do well in the Arizona heat and will be docile enough that my kids can help care for them.

Thanks for the tips on the coop building. I checked out the building thread forum a little bit, but it seemed kinda overwhelming. Is it easier than it looks to build your own coop? We'd have to do it totally from scratch.

 

[a2ms4chickens]

Some people start with old sheds. Maybe you can find a free one on Craig's list. Then build on from there. It is worth a try.

I have 2 bantam RIRs, 1 BO, 1 BR and 1 red sexlink. They are all good hens. I got the RIR's when they were about 8 mos old. The others I got from a feed store when they were 2 mos old.

I personally think the older chickens are easier to take care of. Chicks are really, really messy, but they are oh so cute.

We have a lab/heeler mix dog who stands outside the gate licking his chops, and eyeing our chickens. We put chicken wire on the gate and my DH found a stronger wire to put over it. We love our dog, but I'm sure he would love to eat our chickens.

Good Luck!!

 

[cardsyourway_us]

We got our 5 red stars two weeks ago and they sure are growing fast! We can see their beautiful red feathers coming all over.

I'm amazed at the variety of personality! Sugar won't let me move anything around in the brooder because she'll jump onto my hand and crawl up my arm to be cuddled! Nugget has insatiable curiosity and only wants to climb/fly higher and higher.

Which leads me to my question...

We're here in mesa and I was wondering if I put them into a secured (completely enclosed by wire walls & a solid roof) brooder outside on my porch, would they be ok? They'll be in the shade except for the first couple hours of the morning. Should I freeze a water bottle and put it in one corner if they get hot? So far 2 of my girls have started roosting on the top of their box (almost 2 ft. high) and will knock each other off and out of their box. Instead of covering them with wire I'd like to move them outside.

Thank you for all the advice! Without this forum we would have never gotten started.

Kathryn

Mother hen of 3 kids and 5 chicks.

 

[a2ms4chickens]

I think it should be fine as long as the wire is strong enough to keep the predators out.

Just make sure they have lots of water. I don't know about your chicks, but ours are really messy and like to tip over their waterer.

Good luck!

 

[annaetal]

Hi I'm new here and I just wanted to introduce myself.
My name is Anna, and I live in Tucson with my husband and two daughters, ages 6 and 8 yrs. old.

Right now we know nothing about chickens. We are just venturing into this this fabulous world but my kids are SO excited, they just can't wait (ok, I can't either!)
We are still in the process of building/finding a coop.
I've been lurking on craigslist and freecycle for materials.
I'm sure something will come our way soon, I'm willing to be creative with our coop designs.

We'd like to get about 6 hens, maybe? Perferably chicks, just for the the fun of getting to raise some babies.
I'm mostly wanting to get hens that are docile and wouldn't mind being smothered with attention from my kids.
Any ideas for breads that are good with kids?
Also another question, what is the regulations on owning Chicken is Tucson? I'm understanding that a small group of hens are okay anywhere here, is that right?
We live around Swan and Broadway (some call that Midtown, some call it East.)

Thank you for any suggestions anyone may have.
Can't wait!!!