Does This Sound About Right?

[Mrs. K]

If this is your first time space is your biggest limiter. If you have enough space, then that increases your chance of predators. In my experience, the coop and run don't have to be fancy, but they do have to be totally enclosed in both chicken wire and in heavy duty wire. One to keep chicks in, and one to keep everything else out. EVERYTHING likes to eat chickens.

If you have kids, I would suggest several different breeds, it makes it easier to tell them apart, give them a name, recognize their individuality, which makes it fun. Plus it allows you to try different breeds, cause you will find, you will like some breeds better than others. Better to have a few of each, rather than a whole flock of one kind that you really don't like.

If your younger children are under 5, I would STRONGLY recommend that you don't get a rooster at first. Children being attacked by a mean rooster, really destroys the fun of chickens for them. Many kids in the past have hated chickens for the rest of their lives after an attack, and you are risking serious face scares or their eyes. If you research, you will find countless posts on how their wonderful rooster went to a demon in a day. After a year or so, when you have some more chicken experience, you can take on a rooster. You will have developed an innate sense of your birds, and a better understanding of chicken dynamics that really only experience can give you.

While it is fun to hatch out your own eggs, it is really just as fun to hatch out someone else's eggs, if you have a hen go broody, or get some day old chicks at the feed store and slip under her. There is nothing as sweet as a hen and chicks.

If you want year round eggs, you need to have a multi age flock. Pullets, or first year chickens will lay pretty steadily through out the short days of winter. However, they do have a bit smaller eggs. Older chickens lay bigger eggs, but as they age, especially as they molt, their egg production slows. By adding a few chicks each year, and taking a few out of the flock each year, you can have a fairly constant egg source.

I have had an ongoing flock for the last 6 years, and at different times before that. I have enjoyed this hobby tremendously, hopefully this advice can help you through some of the pitfalls of my experience.

MrsK

 

[dreamcatcherarabians]

If you have kids, I would suggest several different breeds, it makes it easier to tell them apart, give them a name, recognize their individuality, which makes it fun. Plus it allows you to try different breeds, cause you will find, you will like some breeds better than others. Better to have a few of each, rather than a whole flock of one kind that you really don't like.

If your younger children are under 5, I would STRONGLY recommend that you don't get a rooster at first. Children being attacked by a mean rooster, really destroys the fun of chickens for them. Many kids in the past have hated chickens for the rest of their lives after an attack,

These 2 points are great ones! Especially the multi breed thing, i know how much I enjoy having several different breeds and getting to see how they all act and watching "chicken politics" and just in general loving these silly birds. Especially if you want colorful eggs, you want some different breeds, that's how I ended up getting my "rainbow" eggs.

My grandmother raised chickens, and of course I was too young to remember what kind they are now. Us kids went over every Sunday and picked out dinner and cleaned her coop. One day it was my turn to pick dinner and kill the bird and I got fiercely pecked by the roo I caught. Then i went inside and her budgie added insult to injury and pooped on my head while he was out. Got to the point where the only bird I liked was under glass. If I hadn't found out how old most eggs at the supermarket are, I would never have gotten chickens and gotten over my phobia about birds!

 

[ShellLea]

Don't worry folks, Chicken Math has already struck me! And my husband for that matter. We have decided to get some extras in case we lose some along the way. The hatchery is about an hour away so I was planning on picking them up instead of having them shipped. So far we have decided on four different breeds for sure. I did tell the hubby that we have to keep it under 30 getting started. That's a big jump even with help.

Space is not an issue and predators aren't much of an issue. The lady who lived 2 houses away let her chickens run free and she only lost a couple to cars. My yard is more open than hers and we do have a hawk so I'll have to cover that.

The little ones are 6 and 8 years old. I was concerned about having roos at first but after talking with my farm raised daddy I think we'll be OK with them. The kiddos have had some pretty good training when it comes to having adults with them when they're around animals. Plus we've already put up visual markers where the coop and run will be and they don't go inside the line. And, of course, we talk a lot about when the birds get here.

Now, friends, the morning after the holiday has me sitting on the computer in my robe entirely too late in the day. It is time for me to shake off the lazies and clean this place up! But I will be back soon.

 

[dreamcatcherarabians]

LOL! I was just laughing about your hubby catching "chicken math fever" from the pic of the eggs last night. I told my husband there was one out there worse than him, he got bit bythe math after we got the chickens, not just from a pic of colored eggs. He's a good sport about it all though, helps me clean the coop and everything.

 

[emrys]

Something to consider--the first year your pullets will lay their best. After the first molt, most will slow down and lay fewer eggs the second year. What many people do is regularly rotate in new layers. So if you decide on 14 chickens this year, you might build you coop with the idea of adding, say eight the next year, and that many more the next year. At some point you may want to cull some of the older hens that are no longer porductive. Or you can do like me and have twice as many hens as you need because most of them are old ladies that you just enjoy having around. Eleven hens and three pullets equal 2-5 eggs per day. But those fussy old hens giving the stink eye to the young buck rooster is so worth it!!!

 

[ShellLea]

Well, dreamcatcherarabians, him catching chicken math fever from the pictures of eggs was funny. Him getting an even worse case from pictures of chickens is hilarious! Because of him we have way more chicks coming than I was planning for. Funny how when it was just me he complained about how much money it will cost to get set up. Now that he's involved money is no problem as long as the pretty birdies will be happy! How's that work?

And, emrys, I will have twice as many as I need this year.

The only thing saving me is the fact that the hubby wanted a few breeds that I could only order in straight runs so I should be able to cull some roos soon enough.

Luckily we live close to a low income retirement apartment complex and the old folks can't wait for us to start getting eggs.

Just to clarify the rooster situation...I plan on having more than one coop and run set up. The only one that the younger kids will be able to help with will be the hens only one. Once they get a little older, a little bigger, and a lot more experienced they can help with the others.

Off to make some chicken for dinner!

 

[dreamcatcherarabians]

Well, dreamcatcherarabians, him catching chicken math fever from the pictures of eggs was funny. Him getting an even worse case from pictures of chickens is hilarious! Because of him we have way more chicks coming than I was planning for. Funny how when it was just me he complained about how much money it will cost to get set up. Now that he's involved money is no problem as long as the pretty birdies will be happy! How's that work?

And, emrys, I will have twice as many as I need this year.

The only thing saving me is the fact that the hubby wanted a few breeds that I could only order in straight runs so I should be able to cull some roos soon enough.

Luckily we live close to a low income retirement apartment complex and the old folks can't wait for us to start getting eggs.

Just to clarify the rooster situation...I plan on having more than one coop and run set up. The only one that the younger kids will be able to help with will be the hens only one. Once they get a little older, a little bigger, and a lot more experienced they can help with the others.

Off to make some chicken for dinner!

LOL! Shell, I don't know how or why it works like that. We had a darling Arabian mare once and a pipe busted in her stall in winter. Hubby had been asking me for months why I put up with that mare because she didn't care for men. She'd been mistreated and held a grudge. Well! Lady B aka She Who MUST Be Adored, was soaking wet and shaking. We grabbed a bunch of towels out of the linen cabinet and went out to dry her off. After we'd been toweling for a while I noticed that he was using my very best white guest towels, the monogrammed ones we got when we got married. So, I casually asked him, "If she's such a beeyotch, how come you're using my best guest towels?". Says he, "NOTHING is too good for my BABY!", with a straight face yet. Go figure, they ended up best friends and that mare would do anything for him after that. That's just how it is,

Just make sure you have enough hens to keep the old folks provided with all the fresh eggs they need. Once they get 'em you'll have loyal customers for life. I have a couple of old farmers who are standing on my doorstep every Friday without fail, come to get their weekly 2 dozen eggs. God forbid anything should cause those hens to slow down or stop laying.

When you're teaching the kids to handle the hens, just make sure they wear some kind of eye protection. The hens wouldn't mean to hurt them but they DO love SPARKLIES and SHINIES! Hubby found that out the hard way, tried to look a hen in the eye for fun and got a near miss. He really doesn't listen.

 

[ShellLea]

Sounds like my husband with the cat. My sister called one day asking if we wanted a kitten. I guess a stray had a litter in her garage and they were old enough to wander into the street. I said yes because those wild kitties are my favorites. Hubby threw a fit! He hates cats. Especially calico cats. They're the ugliest ones and it better not be calico! It was calico and tiny and wild kitty scared and he fell in love with her. He tried to pretend he didn't like her for a while but him naming her Princess and letting her sleep on his face at night was a dead give away, LOL!

Now hubs is coop shopping. We have to have 4 separate coops and runs now because of him. I won't complain too much. At least he's not being grouchy about it and he'll help more because it's his project too.

I think my customers will end up being my favorite part of it. They are extremely low income but cash isn't the only way to pay for things. I've had offers for work, baked goods, and the use of an old pickup truck in exchange for eggs.

Eye protection for the kids is turning out to be a hassle. Can't get safety glasses in their size. They 8 year old has sensory issues and she won't wear goggles. The 6 year old, being all boy, wants to use Daddy's welding helmet! I just laughed again. Every time I think about it. I love that kid! At least I've got time to figure something out. I don't pick up my first babies until April 1st.

 

[dreamcatcherarabians]

Quote:
I take my excess eggs to the Salvation Army Food Bank. I think I donate around 20-30 dozen eggs/month. The folks write their names on the egg cartons and bring them back so I can refill them, they understand that those cartons cost money. Some even save cartons from the store for me and I put eggs in those too. We have a real hunger problem here in OK and it just irks me that I can't do more. Seems like living in the middle of farm country NO ONE should be wanting for food. Just my dream to one day see it end.

How about some funny little kid sunglasses for them? Or....some kind of hat with a face shield for your boy? Anything that would bounce a beak if the kid forgot and got their face a little too close to the chicken. Obviously, when they're used to the chickens and chicks and some of the new wears off they'll be less likely to forget, but in the beginning it would worry me a little.

Good for you, for having him get so involved that you need 4 coops! LOL! I keep threatening to buy more birds, maybe some meaties, and trying to get mine to build me another coop and run but so far he's being rather Ghandi about it all, not refusing but not building either.

BTW, I LOVE calico cats, especially Manx calicos....my favorite house cat was named DC (short for Dayum CAT) and she was a gorgeous little Calico. Had Insta Purr, everytime you touched her she started to purr and worked her way up to whistling like a tea kettle!

 

[CarolynF]

I hope you don't mind if I jump into the mix here. When you're talking about getting roosters, or any of your birds, you might want to consider going to a local show or swap and buying from local breeders/showers/4Hers. Here on BYC I participate on the thread for my local area and I've found there are a lot of people wanting to thin their population, especially the roosters. I know of 2 people right now that have roosters that are super sweet and gentle. A good thing for children. I've also learned that quality bred birds are often healthier and more productive than those from commercial hatcheries. But of course that depends on the hatchery as well as each breeder. If I'd taken more time to learn about the local resources rather than just reading about the breeds (and I read a lot of that) I think I'd be happier with the results.

I've been to 2 shows so far, and a poultry swap. What a total hoot! Most of the people showing their birds, and those selling birds, enjoy talking about their favorite breeds. As an example of something I learned.... most pictures will show a Black Sex Link (BSL) as a black hen with red feathers on the neck and shoulders. I bought a young pullet that was supposed to be a BSL. As she grew the red feathers never appeared. I assumed I was given the wrong breed. I asked lots of questions here on BYC and thru a process of elimination we decided she must be a Black Australorp. Then at a show I finally saw an actual Black Australorp. What a difference in size! Mine was SO much smaller, but not a bantam. Asking around I discovered that a BSL will quite often be solid black and many times a BSL is used in the breeding rather than the more common Rhode Island Red. Thus no red in the genetics. NOW... when I mentioned that on the thread for my local region I had at least 3 people respond that this hen just couldn't be a BSL without the red feathers!

But after going to these shows and talking to several small breeders, and reading the thread on Sex Link genetics (here on BYC) I'm confident in knowing she's a BSL, just not the Typical Hatchery BSL. There's always something new to learn, and the books and internet information is often incomplete for the sake of brevity I think. I've learned SO much in the past year and a half! And I really thought I'd done a lot of research before jumping in -- I tend to research things to death!

One other thing... have you considered acquiring your flock in stages? It would give you some good advantages. It would vary the age of your birds and stagger their laying and aging. You could better evaluate the choices you're making about the breeds. It would give you time to make adjustments to your coop and pen setups. It seems everyone says "If I'd known xyz I would have built it differently." If you raise all your birds from chicks, your children will have the opportunity to have chicks more than once.

Whatever you do, I'm sure you're going to love having chickens!