Brand New - Looking for positivity with a healthy reality

[Miss Lydia]

 

[JustDadWithChickens]

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Hi Paul! I used to live in Layfayette. Bless your heart. I hope they are more hospitable to y'all than they were to me.
I'm new to all this chicken stuff! We bought a small 31/2 acre farm last May, so I'm just getting started with all the farming! We planted our garden this week. Today my 5 week old chicks came outside for the first time! Lot's going on here.
Where are you moving from?

I hope they are! We are a little worried, but hopefully no issues!

Welcome and nice yard. Do your research, ask questions, people here are very helpful.
I would recommend 4 birds. And get start with gentle breeds like silkies, orphingtons or australorps. An Easter egger is always fun.
Build or get a good coop, don't go with a minimum size. Give them room. Have a nice secure run and you can probably let them free range your back yard depending on your intentions.

4 birds sounds like a great start! Wasn't sure how many we would need (we eat about 6-10 eggs a day).

Glad you joined the party!!! You will love it here. All members are knowledgeable and willing to answer any/ all questions. Dive right in. I learn something new everyday from my new family...enjoy!!!

Hit that search button and you will find answers to any question...if you dont, ask away. We love helping by sharing our knowledge

I didn't ask any questions just for that reason, have to search first to make sure not already answered!

I live in OK, and have Orpingtons. Very nice hens! They don't do very well with heat, though. I had to move my coop under heavy tree shade, and it helped them out a lot. I add ice to their drinking water and a wading pool with frozen water bottles when the heat gets to 95 and above. Chickens with less feathers do better with heat. Also mosquito control will be important in the deep south. They carry fowl pox. Mine got it last year.

My husband and I were just talking about that! Thinking of natural ways to keep the mosquitoes out!

 

[007Sean]

Howdy
Welcome to Backyard Chickens.
You'll do just fine with all the research your doing before acquiring your flock.
Wish you the best of luck in your move and your chicken raising endeavors.

Thanks for joining us!

 

[drumstick diva]

Silkies are a very popular breed and rightly so however, they are not known to be good layers. They tend to have a few eggs and then go "broody." Which means they want to sit on them and hatch out chicks. If you don't have a rooster, the eggs would be infertile.
Hens don't know that and will sit on rocks, kids toys even nothing and convince themselves they can hatch it.

IF they go broody, you can buy fertile eggs to put under them and they would hatch them and raise as their own. But as I remarked you cannot count on them for a steady supply of eggs.

You may want to read the reviews at top of this page to see the pros & cons listed by folks who own the different breeds.So glad you joined us at Backyard chickens

 

[Kiki]

Welcome to BYC!
We are glad you joined our flock!
Australorps are good layers...not Silikes.
My Australorps are quiet.
Know that not all breeds lay daily.
If you are wanting 6 - 10 eggs a day you will need more than ten birds.
Can you go to Hebert's and pick me up some boudin!

This video will help you learn how to navigate this site:

Coop Ideas:
Chicken Coops

BYC has an APP!

 

[Kiki]

Also I highly recommend you order birds from a major hatchery that is MG/MS clean and not buy birds from just anyone. Chicken diseases are real and not fun to deal with.
Ideal Poultry is a close one to you and you can have chicks pretty much delivered over night to your door. (pick them up at a post office)

 

[townchicks]

Hi and welcome to the group. Congrats on your new home, great yard. Good on ya for doing your research first, I did it backwards,lol. I don't regret it at all, though, love my girls. You're going to want more chickens, though, if you 2 go through that many eggs a day. We have 3 chickens for 2 of us, and they barely keep us going. My Easter Eggers (EEs )are pretty good layers,4 to 5 eggs a week from each and my rhode island red ( RIR) is a laying machine, average 6 eggs a week from her, and we eat them up almost as fast as they come.

 

[JustDadWithChickens]

Silkies are a very popular breed and rightly so however, they are not known to be good layers. They tend to have a few eggs and then go "broody." Which means they want to sit on them and hatch out chicks. If you don't have a rooster, the eggs would be infertile.
Hens don't know that and will sit on rocks, kids toys even nothing and convince themselves they can hatch it.

IF they go broody, you can buy fertile eggs to put under them and they would hatch them and raise as their own. But as I remarked you cannot count on them for a steady supply of eggs.

You may want to read the reviews at top of this page to see the pros & cons listed by folks who own the different breeds.So glad you joined us at Backyard chickens

Was actually reading some posts last night saying that same exact thing. Was thinking of possibly going Australorps instead, I am reading they are AMAZING layers and good for back yard as well.

Will have to do some more research to make sure they would fit our style and don't get the neighbors complaining.

Welcome to BYC!
We are glad you joined our flock!
Australorps are good layers...not Silikes.
My Australorps are quiet.
Know that not all breeds lay daily.
If you are wanting 6 - 10 eggs a day you will need more than ten birds.
Can you go to Hebert's and pick me up some boudin!

This video will help you learn how to navigate this site:

Australorps are top of my list now I think. The tiny eggs from the silkies just won't do, however they are pretty cute to look at!

Also I highly recommend you order birds from a major hatchery that is MG/MS clean and not buy birds from just anyone. Chicken diseases are real and not fun to deal with.
Ideal Poultry is a close one to you and you can have chicks pretty much delivered over night to your door. (pick them up at a post office)

I went to there website and my eyes rolled! So many options for things, half of the abbreviations I do not even know what they mean! Will have to look deeper and google a bunch! However, site looks very promising.

Hi and welcome to the group. Congrats on your new home, great yard. Good on ya for doing your research first, I did it backwards,lol. I don't regret it at all, though, love my girls. You're going to want more chickens, though, if you 2 go through that many eggs a day. We have 3 chickens for 2 of us, and they barely keep us going. My Easter Eggers (EEs )are pretty good layers,4 to 5 eggs a week from each and my rhode island red ( RIR) is a laying machine, average 6 eggs a week from her, and we eat them up almost as fast as they come.

Very cool! Can you keep different chickens in the same coop? I think it would be pretty cool to get a few Australorps and maybe a few Silkies, Australorps for eggs and Silkies because they are pretty

 

[ronott1]

Good Choice on Australorps!

 

[Kiki]

I'm not a keeper of bantam chickens yet (smaller ones like silkies).
SOME people get away with housing them together with large fowl birds like Australorps.
I would not recommend it.

Ideal's website is sorted by egg color.
If you want white eggs click the link for white layers and browse those breeds...same with brown or tinted (blue-Easter Eggers)

Easter Eggers from Ideal do wonderful in the heat too.