Chickens 101

[alindm1]

Socialized with them a lot! They need lots of love. One of my chickens that I held all the time now stays at my side when I walk around the yard. She stays at my side all the time and never leaves. When I coop them up at night and put her in the coop she jumps into the window and watches me leave. Then she goes back to ordinary life until the next morning when I let them out and she starts to follow me around again. I am never able to sleep in the grass or in lawn chair without her hopping up onto my stomach and sleeping with me. She is my love...

 

[Shabana]

Chickydoodles are dusty !! I mean if you have many in the house it's everywhere and if you are nursing a poorly one for several weeks it's still everywhere....
..Can you say dust??

The first time they cluck rather than tweet you'll feel so proud .. Likewise that first doodle doo that kinda sounds like a strangled cat - you'll be "oh he's all grown up" (bless)

... And when you've got family over and they knick pizza off your mother-in-laws plate you'll realise they were worth all the worry and heartache ten times over.

 

[americana-lover]

this is an awesome thread!

 

[shmccarthy]

1) chickens are a lot smarter than we give them credit for and don't underestimate their ability to escape.
2) plan ahead. Remember that chicks get bigger and don't buy too many at once because you may not have room for all of them.
3) you will touch chicken poop. A lot. It doenst even phase me anymore.
4) keep everything CLEAN! I know that's hard when they poop on everything but remember to clean out their coop, run, feeders and waterers as needed. This will keep them cleaner and less likely to get parasites or get sick.
5) if you think you are safe from predators 100%, you are not. Always, always, always check your defenses and never underestimate predators lookin for a meal!
6) even bantams can be big bullies. I have a bantam hen and she is one of the biggest bullies in the coop, despite being the smallest. She has a big attitude. Size doesn't seem to matter as often in the chicken world.
7) QUARANTINE! It you buy new chickens, no matter how healthy they seem quarantine them! Keep them out of the same breathing area as your current flock for at least a month.
8) never use heat lamps. It doesn't help the chickens, it actually hurts them because they can't prepare for cold.
9) assume the people selling you the chicken, probably doesn't know what they're talking about. It sounds harsh but especially Craigslist meets it seems a lot of people don't know what they have or what gender it is.
10) enjoy! Chickens are a lot of fun to have and we will always be learning about them. Have fun with them and keep an open mind.

 

[lazy gardener]

1. It's a lot easier to lure/lead a chicken back to the coop than it is to herd her back to the coop.

2. That first egg is going to cost you about $500.

3. Taking care of chickens in the winter is going to make the winter twice as long.

4. While taking care of chickens through the winter, you will anticipate spring twice as much as you did before owning chickens.

5. There are always many more breeds of chickens that you want than you will actually be able to have.

6. Watching your 7 year old child go charging to the chicken run after getting off the school bus, to read her latest Junie B. Jones book to the chickens: priceless.

7. Watching the chickens lined up actually listening to Junie B. Jones adventures: infinite entertainment!

8. Gardening takes on a whole new dimension when you take the time to watch chicken scrimmage over the latest buggy treat you've shared with the girls.

9. Incubating eggs is both extremely rewarding, and extremely stressful.

10. People without chickens just don't understand.

11. Chickens are as cliquey as 6th grade girls.

 

[Vytania]

1. Chickens have their own cute personalities and are very smart.

2. You always want more chickens.

3. Just because my dad grew up with chickens and has some of his own doesn't mean he knows all about them. (I found out that I might know more that he does and I've only had mine since August.)

4. My hens listen for some kind of bird, not sure what kind, and when they hear something specific that only they can understand they take off running for cover, usually to the barn.

5. My chickens like to help me dig in the garden. They scratch a few times where I'm digging and we take turns. They're quick to grab bugs and worms while we're digging together and think that's the best way to spend the day.

6. I have a Brahma named Tilly, she says "I love you" to me.

7. Every morning when I get my chickens "out of bed" (let them out of the coop) they follow me up to the house like a parade, talking to me all the way. Now that it's cold here they have breakfast of warm oatmeal and whatever I can find to put in it (apples, sunflower seeds, kale, etc) on the patio. When they're done they go about their business while I go back inside to get ready for work. Some mornings they're still hanging out around the patio to see me off to work then go back to the main part of the yard to free range.

8. My blue Andalusian, Olga, needs something on her comb when it's cold. When I pick her up she yells like I'm trying to kill her but as soon as I start rubbing her comb she calms down and relaxes. I've read to use Vaseline but I don't have any. Then read olive oil can be used. I have organic coconut oil I've been using. It works plus makes her smell good.

9. They make sweaters for chickens but I think chicken boots would be cool. The chickens probably wouldn't think so.

10. I never thought I'd ever want a chicken but now I can't imagine my life without them.

 

[beaglex3]

Lazy gardener...i'd love a picture of the chickens getting their junie b story time.

1. i LOVE my chickens
2. ohhhh, my chickens make me so mad >:-/
3. i feel like i really am learning a lot about chickens
4. i don't know squat about chickens :-\
5. we're getting SO MANY EGGS :-o
6. why aren't we getting any eggs /:-|
7. yep...my rooster just loves me <3
8. dang...that rooster just chased me across the yard. he must hate me 8-\
9. i am so glad we decided to raise chickens :-}
10. what in the world was i thinking, getting chickens :+?

 

[ajscuba]

I have only had chickens since August (not my idea), but I love them. I have learned just a few things:

1. You can train chickens. We give treats from a black bucket in a part of the yard and if we go near it, they come running!
2. Despite having a great coup to sleep in, our girls will start to roost in a tree. 20 feet up. Out of reach of the ladder.
3. Clipping the wing does not keep chickens from flying. Just not as far.
4. I am sure we will never have eggs. The girls are 5 months right now and the wait is killing me!
5. Chickens, just like owning Dachshunds, means that if 1 is good, more must be better!
6. I watch the girls poop, so I can check it for consistency.
7. I made sweaters for my girls. But decided against putting them on. Maybe a rescue group needs some.

No real info, just some observations. I do love my girls...

 

[chickiegrrl]

1. You will love your chickens more than you thought you could love an entree.
2. You will talk to your chickens.
3. Poop tells the story of your chickens' health.
4. As you have a favorite chicken, chickens have favorite people.
5. Do a LOT of research before you build a coop. You won't want to repeat the time/energy that you've put into it to make it bigger or different.
6. Committing to supervised free-range in MN entitles you to one trip to the looney bin. People think I'm nuts to stand outside in below zero windchills just so the girls can pick and play.
7. Make your run big enough for you, too. You will want to spend time with them inside as well.
8. Owning chickens makes you talk about chickens ad nauseum. People will call you the crazy chicken lady/man.
9. People love hearing stories about your chickens.
10. Before you have chickens, you can't imagine how much they'll enrich your life and educate your children. Then you get chickens and understand.

 

[Vytania]

I talk about my chickens a lot at work. I get teased about them but I get asked about them a lot too. I have a picture of them as my screensaver on my work computer and on my phone. Sometimes I wonder if my cats are jealous by the way they watch out the windows or if they're just curious about the chickens.