Difficulties of Chickens and a Family

[RLynn]

So I have been wanting to get chickens for as long as I can remember, way before BackYardChickens became trendy. My husband is 50/50 on them. We realize the obvious pros and cons to having them. Our predicament is I want to start building a coop now and possibly get chicks this year or next year, but we also want to start trying for a baby next year also. In your honest opinion, would that be too much to handle? Any advice and thoughts would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

I can't say... I have never had a newborn but I love my chickens!

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

If you are like most of us, chickens are addicting. You will find them more pets than just egg producers and you will want to spend all of your free time watching chicken tv! Why wait? You will have a year or so to learn how to care, manage and enjoy a flock. By the time your family expands, owning chickens will become second nature....

I have a small horse farm with over 30 mouths to feed, not including my husband and son. When I was planning to start a family, caring for my animals was just as important to me. It can be tough at times, but definitely worth it!

Best of luck as you start a family and decide whether or not to become chicken obsessed!

 

[Ribh]

OK, I think you can have both but I would be setting up my coop to minimise the work in case ofs... you know, in case the baby wants feeding when it's coop lockup time so things like automatic coop doors, whatever you call those things that give you a constant food & water supply, a solidly predator proof coop & run & as big a run as you can manage ~ nesting boxes accessible without having to go into the coop/run ~ I'm sure there's other stuff but while chickens aren't hard work there are things you can do to make sure it's as easy to manage as possible.

 

[Chickenaddition]

Welcome to the BYC! I know it’s daunting but I can only say from Xperia next your child will love the experience of growing up with chickens. I hope to see you guys and your flock.

 

[drumstick diva]

If you husband will take over chicken chores when you are unable to or don't want to risk spreading anything to baby yet to be, I'd say go ahead.

If everything will continue to be UP to you, I would hold off till the baby is a year or so old. Baby wouldn't get much fun out of them so young. I wouldn't risk a baby's health.
You can always buy more chickens. You can't replace a baby. Ask someone who has had a miscarriage or stillborn.

 

[Mrs.Megan]

Welcome! It depends on your personality and what makes you happy. Kids and animals don’t always go with the flow, which means you’ll have to lol. If you are already like that, it’ll be easy for you. There’s never a perfect time. If you plan well (ie as previously mentioned auto coop doors) you can make chicken keeping easier on yourself. I think my chickens are easier than my dogs for what’s its worth! Good luck

 

[Thechickentrainer1999]

So I have been wanting to get chickens for as long as I can remember, way before BackYardChickens became trendy. My husband is 50/50 on them. We realize the obvious pros and cons to having them. Our predicament is I want to start building a coop now and possibly get chicks this year or next year, but we also want to start trying for a baby next year also. In your honest opinion, would that be too much to handle? Any advice and thoughts would be appreciated. Thank you.

If you get them, make sure your coop is 100% predator proof. Hardware cloth is recommended over chicken wire. Chickens make very great pets if you spend time with them. Have a blessed day. JESUS loves you.

 

[Mimi13]

Your pending situation is somewhat like mine was, kind of.

I decided to quit work and keep my grandson (my DS and DIL lived in the back side of our house). I quit work 4 months before he was born and in that time is when I decided to get chickens. My chicks were 2 1/2 months older than my grandson.

I really didn’t have the major problems you would face because I was still able to care for my chickens early in the mornings before my DIL left for work and brought me the baby. My little flock did not free range for a year and a half so lock up time didn’t present a problem. Their run was completely predator proof so I did not lock the coop.

When he was 18 months old I decided to get more chickens and began building a larger coop. Dealing with two different coops for about 5 months was a bit challenging with him. There were some things I could and couldn’t do when I had him. My main conflict though was in the evenings when it was close up time. Sometimes he would be napping and I couldn’t go right when I needed to close up everything. I’ve since gotten an automatic pop door which helped. Then I could just close the run up when I went for a head count later that evening.

The biggest problem I’ve encountered doesn’t necessarily deal with a child, but any other commitment as well, like having a job to go to. I have a Red Star, wonderful egg layers, but notorious for reproductive problems. Penny went through a spell last summer where her shells were not hard enough (yes, she ate Purina Layer and had oyster shell on the side) for her to expel a solid egg. I suppose her squeezing would crush the egg shell and she would only expel the insides of the egg, sometimes with partial shell. Anyway, on those particular days, Penny would hang around my back door letting me know she needed help. Now if I had had a job to go to I don’t know what I would have done, but luckily for me, on these days when she needed my help removing the shell I either didn’t have my grandson or my DIL didn’t have to be at work until later in the morning (she’s a cosmetologist), which allowed me the time to soak and clean her up and out!

That’s been my experience and I agree with others that you need to have someone competent and willing to share your chicken and baby responsibilities. There will be times you will need it.

I wish you the best of luck and as it is with anything difficult to do, it’ll be worth it.

 

[BY Bob]

It is definately possible to do both. A lot of chicken keeping can be automated and the ability of chickens to relax a body at the end of a stressful day is invaluable. Having someone to help would make it much easier. Be very careful though, like any pet they are a commitment, you can't just walk away.