Sponsored Post Backyard chickens are a kid's best friend

[Sparrowsong98]

Yup, kids like chickens. Especially the friendly ones. Unfortunately, with my flock of 28 various breeds, no bird is tame for long. Even the roo runs (out of his fear of the very thought of me scooping him up for Sunny cuddles, which is my method of using fear to make him respect me and acknowledge me as top of the pecking order, not a toy to chase and spur like the last rooster did.)

 

[Sylvester017]

Sorry for your loss, that's always tough.

TY for your kind thoughts. A lot of people think it's tough on children to raise and lose baby chicks. I'm 73 yrs old and still cry over the loss of a pet. In fact, when I was a resilient child on my Mom's farm I think I accepted pet loss better than I do now as a grownup. Either way -- young or old -- losing any pet/member of the family is sad but I wouldn't trade any of the fun I've had experiencing our Creator's creatures!

 

[Sylvester017]

Yup, kids like chickens. Especially the friendly ones. Unfortunately, with my flock of 28 various breeds, no bird is tame for long. Even the roo runs (out of his fear of the very thought of me scooping him up for Sunny cuddles, which is my method of using fear to make him respect me and acknowledge me as top of the pecking order, not a toy to chase and spur like the last rooster did.)

When I started backyard chickeneering I had no idea there was such a drastic difference in temperaments in various breeds. After the first couple years we weeded out the assertive aggressive diva breeds and now we keep the most docile calmest known breeds of hens.

I've dwindled down to my favorite smaller lightweight docile breeds for our backyard -- Ameraucana, Araucana, Breda, Cochin, Dominique, Easter Egger, Polish, Silkie, or Sultan. I know Brahma, Faverolles, and Turkens are gentle giants but way too large around my 2-lb Silkies. I've also discovered that the heavily under-downed breeds like Amer's, EE's, and Cochins don't do well in our hot humid SoCal climate so I've had to bypass keeping any heavily feathered breeds.

Surprisingly our Silkies do well in our horrible climate and the docile Breda and Dom's get along splendidly with our 2-lb Silkies. We don't get a flood of eggs like our earlier Leghorn layers but there's only two of us at home to eat eggs anyway. The Silkies are dependable for entertainment -- not so much for eggs -- but all our chicken pets have a forever home with us as long as their quality of life continues.

 

[Sparrowsong98]

When I started backyard chickeneering I had no idea there was such a drastic difference in temperaments in various breeds. After the first couple years we weeded out the assertive aggressive diva breeds and now we keep the most docile calmest known breeds of hens.

I've dwindled down to my favorite smaller lightweight docile breeds for our backyard -- Ameraucana, Araucana, Breda, Cochin, Dominique, Easter Egger, Polish, Silkie, or Sultan. I know Brahma, Faverolles, and Turkens are gentle giants but way too large around my 2-lb Silkies. I've also discovered that the heavily under-downed breeds like Amer's, EE's, and Cochins don't do well in our hot humid SoCal climate so I've had to bypass keeping any heavily feathered breeds.

Surprisingly our Silkies do well in our horrible climate and the docile Breda and Dom's get along splendidly with our 2-lb Silkies. We don't get a flood of eggs like our earlier Leghorn layers but there's only two of us at home to eat eggs anyway. The Silkies are dependable for entertainment -- not so much for eggs -- but all our chicken pets have a forever home with us as long as their quality of life continues.

Problem is: we have red stars and Orpingtons, but the leghorns that have lived with them (they made it through 5 year olds and decided right then that humans were bad) were not all up for the socializing thing. So any chickens that go in become crazy leghorns, and we have yet to...er... Get rid of them, if you get my drift.

 

[N F C]

TY for your kind thoughts. A lot of people think it's tough on children to raise and lose baby chicks. I'm 73 yrs old and still cry over the loss of a pet. In fact, when I was a resilient child on my Mom's farm I think I accepted pet loss better than I do now as a grownup. Either way -- young or old -- losing any pet/member of the family is sad but I wouldn't trade any of the fun I've had experiencing our Creator's creatures!

Well said!

 

[Sylvester017]

Problem is: we have red stars and Orpingtons, but the leghorns that have lived with them (they made it through 5 year olds and decided right then that humans were bad) were not all up for the socializing thing. So any chickens that go in become crazy leghorns, and we have yet to...er... Get rid of them, if you get my drift.

Sexlinks and Leghorns are known to be assertive breeds and Orprington chicks terrorized our Silkies -- we found out the hard way. Our 7-lb Marans hen was mean to our 2-lb Silkies too. I wanted to send the bullies to the butcher but my tender-hearted DH won't think of processing our birds and finds them homes with our chicken friends instead. I was hoping to have a meal or two from our own processed birds until I found out DH couldn't think of eating his pets lol! All our re-homed birds are still alive and well but in other flocks with equal temperament breeds.

 

[Smuvers Farm]

My kid (see profile pic), has tamed our orneriest pullet..... a leghorn, Purple Thunder. SHE has been spared the pot once she quits laying, as SHE is the one kiddo picked to be *his*.

However, this story is about my other *kid*, my 71 year old mom. When she was very young, her grandma raised chickens however, she hadn't been *in touch* with her food since she was about 10 or so, when her grandmother passed.

Mom is all of 5'2, has MS, CFS, Macular Degeneration, asthma and most of her eyesight is gone. She knew we'd gotten some chickens, but I don't think it really hit her until she came to visit us the beginning of August. Her surprise and delight, daily, puts a smile on my face.

She slips on my DHs muck boots damn near every morning to go out and feed the flock. She checks their nests up to 6 times a day, and STILL keeps a daily tally of how many eggs have been collected, and from which coop, and what colours the eggs are.

She has been pooped on, tackled by a chicken (although she said she *tripped in a hole*, I saw her get line backed by PT), learned how to ferment feed, helped to clip wings, mucked out a coop, dealt with an emo (broody) chickie, and then some!

You see, it's never too late to do something or learn something new.... and I couldn't be MORE proud of her!

 

[Sylvester017]

My kid (see profile pic), has tamed our orneriest pullet..... a leghorn, Purple Thunder. SHE has been spared the pot once she quits laying, as SHE is the one kiddo picked to be *his*.

However, this story is about my other *kid*, my 71 year old mom. When she was very young, her grandma raised chickens however, she hadn't been *in touch* with her food since she was about 10 or so, when her grandmother passed.

Mom is all of 5'2, has MS, CFS, Macular Degeneration, asthma and most of her eyesight is gone. She knew we'd gotten some chickens, but I don't think it really hit her until she came to visit us the beginning of August. Her surprise and delight, daily, puts a smile on my face.

She slips on my DHs muck boots damn near every morning to go out and feed the flock. She checks their nests up to 6 times a day, and STILL keeps a daily tally of how many eggs have been collected, and from which coop, and what colours the eggs are.

She has been pooped on, tackled by a chicken (although she said she *tripped in a hole*, I saw her get line backed by PT), learned how to ferment feed, helped to clip wings, mucked out a coop, dealt with an emo (broody) chickie, and then some!

You see, it's never too late to do something or learn something new.... and I couldn't be MORE proud of her!

Moms are great -- loved mine to pieces until she passed at age 98! Here she is in the early 1930's visiting her own parent's farm -- Mom's the taller girl with the outstretched arms herding ducks with her little sis and big brother:

 

[Smuvers Farm]

Moms are great -- loved mine to pieces until she passed at age 98! Here she is in the early 1930's visiting her own parent's farm -- Mom's the taller girl with the outstretched arms herding ducks with her little sis and big brother:
View attachment 1146201

Wonderful pic! Moms are great huh? I will be driving mine back to FL this weekend, and my kiddo got her this Tshirt she can wear in her retirement park.

 

[Sparrowsong98]

Sexlinks and Leghorns are known to be assertive breeds and Orprington chicks terrorized our Silkies -- we found out the hard way. Our 7-lb Marans hen was mean to our 2-lb Silkies too. I wanted to send the bullies to the butcher but my tender-hearted DH won't think of processing our birds and finds them homes with our chicken friends instead. I was hoping to have a meal or two from our own processed birds until I found out DH couldn't think of eating his pets lol! All our re-homed birds are still alive and well but in other flocks with equal temperament breeds.

Yeah they are past laying age and it is a farm... so pet or no pet they all go. And good riddance to those leghorns too. Worst mistake anyone ever made was to buy themselves one of the brown ones, though any color is just bad.