Did anyone ever try to talk you out of chickens?

[Happycowdog]

I am so glad to be here!! You guys are so much fun! I love the topics on here and it makes me feel like not such an oddball!

I just got my first chicks ever! I have an Ameraucana and two light Brahma two day old chicks. I love them to pieces!! They all have different personalities and I could watch them all day! The Ameraucana peeps the loudest and demands to be picked up! She runs after me while in the brooder. When I pick her up she snuggles into my hand. Oddly, one of the Brahma chicks is flighty and the other is not as demanding as the Ameraucana. I thought the Brahma's would be the most affectionate. We'll have to see. I have only had them a day.

It is funny because I always wanted chickens since I was a kid and now at 45 I got them! People would always look at me weird or say the chickens would flog me when I would mention getting chickens. I have been known to be a little odd, but I believe I am not. Like the rest of you, I am just "real!"

 

[LadyBeartoothMamma]

my hubby has but i just ordered 8 more little chickies hehehehehehehe

 

[schellie69]

I got my first 5 pullets last July/09 and then in Oct/09 added 5 more then got 1 Ameracuana then I got 4 little chicks this spring and finally got my rooster from another byc memeber. I lost one hen this last winter (bantam EE) lost another hen to a infection. So now I have 14 I love them not only for the eggs but everything they bring me. I was told by my MIL that chickens where mean and dirty and they where just not worth the effort. My mom thought I was a little nuts why have chickens while you live in town. I did it because I wanted fresh eggs and really thought it would be a great hobby and it has I also planted a garden this year and it is producing a lot of veggies for my family and my chickens. I just tell people at least my hobbies feed my family what does your hobbies do.

 

[chicmom]

I was told by friends that I would hate having chickens....I almost "chickened out" and I'm glad I didn't! I just love them. Don't mind cleaning up after them either. I was told I'd hate caring for them in the winter too. Doesn't bother me at all. I'm so glad I went through with it. I have 19 chickens now and they are my hobby......

 

[alaskachick]

I was told by my Dad that my mom and I were too lazy to take care of chickens. He tried to talk us out of it with gory chicken stories involving lice, mites, worms, poop, deformities etc. Yes, we were grossed out, however our need for putting 100% into a worthwhile project won out. I love working with the chickens. I like trying to make them happy. I like cleaning out the coop and then watching them go inside and enjoy the fluffyness of the new wood chips. They are not particularly trusting me, they tend to run when they see me coming, but it will take time.

 

[sharol]

It is safe to say that about most animals -- dogs, cats, horses, you name it. Twain said it best,
"Man is the only animal that blushes -- or needs to."

Quote:

 

[pkw]

My chickens are more smarter than a lot of people I know but no one has tried to talk me out of chickens.

 

[dsqard]

Quote:
Same here although we didn't debate over them for that long. We only recently moved to a piece of property where we could have chickens. The neighbor's chickens were leaving us nice presents until they started cooping them up and that was when I started my campaign to get some myself. Yes the moment of weakness came, we "agreed" on four chickens and by the end of the day I had four chickens. He SO feigned being surprised when I came home with the chicks! LOL I will be working on the next higher number next spring!

Yes they are "my chickens" when they need fed, watered and cleaned but they are "our" chickens when it was time to build the coop. He loves to do woodworking, so I am thinking that a winter project could be a bigger coop!

 

[BigSkyChickens]

"WHY would you want to do THAT?!" were my grandmother's exact words.....
She has a different perspective. To her generation, urban civilization was the ultimate goal. Plus, she had a problem w/ the wild chickens next door messing up her flower beds.

I think some members of my generation have had enough urban civiliation and just want to get back to the country. That includes chickens & growing food.

Neil Young writes: "I guess I need that city life, it sure has lots of style, but pretty soon it wears me out, and I have to think to smile."

Oh man, I just love this site!

 

[prairiepearls]

What a neat thread! I got my 3 chicks in March and expect them to start laying by September. What can I say? If I'd known how much work it would be to build the coop just the way I want, I might've "chickened" out, so I'm glad I didn't know.

My husband was unsure at first, but when I came close last winter to deciding it was a nutty idea, he said, "Oh, I was starting to look forward to chickens." That was all it took!

The only negative comments I've gotten at all were from people who remembered, from when they were kids, some relatives who had chickens, and as kids, they thought the coop was stinky. Everybody else has been either, "Ooh, will you have enough eggs to share?!" or "You are the coolest aunt!" Seriously, in the eyes of my kids (age 22-30) and their friends and my nieces and nephews, my "cool" factor has soared!

I personally think the banning chickens thing is an old-fashioned attitude from when the country was becoming more urban, and it was totally uncool to do anything rural. Soooo 1940s!