BEGGINER IN MID MISSOURI

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stephcraig78

stephcraig78

Songster
Apr 18, 2016
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Rolla/St. James, MO
Hello my husband and I recently purchased a few chicks for our kids to enjoy raising and learning from like we did when we were young. Got 2 buff Orpington and 2 black sex link first. They are still staying inside (youngest daughter is playing "mother hen") but plan to build coop and move outdoors this week. Just added an Americana and a mystery chick. Plus a baby turkey and an adult quail. The quail is in a separate cage outside since she can fly already. We are very excited to share our flock with everyone here at backyard chickens. Anyone have any suggestions on a simple beginner coop? We are working on drawing up a plan. Thanks for any help or tips you all can give us about raising our flock.
 
Welcome to BYC.
The first tip I would offer on coop construction is build bigger than you think you need - build as large as you can. This a) gives your current birds plenty of room (no such thing, imo, as too much space for them) and b) allows for the chicken math you seem to have already begun to master as you have caught the bug.
you may find some inspiration here https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/2/Coops - even looking at coops that are smaller than you need for your flock you can find ideas that can be adapted to a larger scale.
 
Hi and welcome to BYC - you have some great advice already from OGM so I'll just say hello!

All the best
CT
 
Thanks for the tips! We were looking at the coop where the hens go up a ramp to the nesting box area. And caging it all in with chicken wire. One thing I'm curious about is the quail. How do I tell if it's a hen and why if it's a hen, hasn't she layed
 
welcome-byc.gif
Good luck with your flock! Any plans for that turkey?
 
We have decided he or she will just be a pet. Once we know if it's boy or girl we plan to get another of the opposite sex. We have already fell in love with it. Very friendly bird, loves to cuddle up to our necks and sleep. Could never raise it from baby and have our kids become attached to it then eat it for thanksgiving.
Quick question- we can keep the turkey in same coop as the chickens right? As long as it isn't aggressive towards them? Should we feed it something different than the chick starter? What about as it gets older? Is there a way to tell toms from hens? Here's a pic of our little darling Turk Turk [IMG][QUOTE="mlm Mike, post: 16886439, member: 0"]:welcome     Good luck with your flock! Any plans for that turkey?
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stephcraig78 said:
We have decided he or she will just be a pet. Once we know if it's boy or girl we plan to get another of the opposite sex. We have already fell in love with it. Very friendly bird, loves to cuddle up to our necks and sleep. Could never raise it from baby and have our kids become attached to it then eat it for thanksgiving.
Quick question- we can keep the turkey in same coop as the chickens right? As long as it isn't aggressive towards them? Should we feed it something different than the chick starter? What about as it gets older? Is there a way to tell toms from hens? Here's a pic of our little darling Turk Turk [IMG]
Quote: [QUOTE] [/QUOTE]

Yes, turkeys can be very friendly, sometimes Tom's can become aggressive to strangers though. You can keep it same pen for a little while. If it is a Tom, it will try to breed your hens, which can be problematic due to the size different. I had a Tom crush one of my hens that way. Learned my lesson. Good luck!
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Thanks for the info!! Definitely don't want that happening. Hadn't even thought about that. Didn't know they would try crossing like that. So we have to wait till its older to tell if it's a tom? It's so funny to watch it walk around. Like its feet are too big. Kinda clumsy little thing. We absolutely love it.
 

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