- May 2, 2010
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(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?
I am brand new to farming chickens. We just acquired 4 laying hens yesterday morning.
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
We have 4 laying hens, currently. But will be acquiring more this weekend. We would even like to get a few chics later.
(3) What breeds do you have?
We have 2 Blue Laced Wyandottes and 2 Brown Leghorns. I REALLY want to add some Light Sussex, Buff Orpingtons, Brahmas and Barred Rocks. We're thinking a dozen or so total. All hens. Oh, and my girlfriend just feathered out some Ameracaunas that we'll be taking a couple later this summer.
(4) How did you find out about BackYardChickens.com?
I was looking up Coop designs and breed info and stumbled up on the website. I kept finding myself going back and eventually "lurking" on the boards.
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
I love reading, playing with my 3 & 5 yr old, gardening, researching, photography and scrapbooking.
(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
My husband and I have a son who is 5 and a daughter who is 3. We have 2 bunnies and a Great Dane. We've been eating farm fresh eggs for a while but wanted to get some to roam our fenced in acre. We're excited for the kiddos to learn and for us to reap the benefits. We are trying to be more "green" and organic, for us and Mother Earth. We live in Mid-Michigan so our hens are in for some cold winters. They are in the coop at night and then let out to the coop and run after I take the kiddos to school. Once they are settled in their new environment, we would like them to "free-range" during the day.
I love to learn, so any advice, tips or tricks you can give are GREATLY appreciated.
I do have a couple of questions. My husband built a beautiful nesting box that is 36 inches long with a slanted roof. However, we didn't divide it into 3 separate nesting boxes. We left it open. Bad or good?
Also I just got the 4 hens yesterday and this morning I found a Leghorn egg smashed under the roost. I'm assuming she laid while on the roost (the roost is 4 feet off the floor of the coop and is a 2 x 4). I scooped it out with a shovel and left them in the coop. I came back 2 hrs later to open the door to the run so they could get out and found a Wyandotte egg beneath the roost smashed but the shell was missing. We have straw in the nest, enough to cover the floor of the nesting box, but not super fluffy. I ran to my garage and found 2 golf balls and stuck them in the box and one of the Wyandottes laid down on them. Later when I went into the coop to get the feed out, the golf balls were pushed to the front of the nesting box. (it has a small lip though so the eggs can't roll out).
I would like to get some Buff Orpingtons, Light Sussex and Brahma Laying hens -- does anyone know where I could buy those from?
Any help is awesome!
Thanks,
Amanda
I am brand new to farming chickens. We just acquired 4 laying hens yesterday morning.
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
We have 4 laying hens, currently. But will be acquiring more this weekend. We would even like to get a few chics later.
(3) What breeds do you have?
We have 2 Blue Laced Wyandottes and 2 Brown Leghorns. I REALLY want to add some Light Sussex, Buff Orpingtons, Brahmas and Barred Rocks. We're thinking a dozen or so total. All hens. Oh, and my girlfriend just feathered out some Ameracaunas that we'll be taking a couple later this summer.
(4) How did you find out about BackYardChickens.com?
I was looking up Coop designs and breed info and stumbled up on the website. I kept finding myself going back and eventually "lurking" on the boards.
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
I love reading, playing with my 3 & 5 yr old, gardening, researching, photography and scrapbooking.
(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
My husband and I have a son who is 5 and a daughter who is 3. We have 2 bunnies and a Great Dane. We've been eating farm fresh eggs for a while but wanted to get some to roam our fenced in acre. We're excited for the kiddos to learn and for us to reap the benefits. We are trying to be more "green" and organic, for us and Mother Earth. We live in Mid-Michigan so our hens are in for some cold winters. They are in the coop at night and then let out to the coop and run after I take the kiddos to school. Once they are settled in their new environment, we would like them to "free-range" during the day.
I love to learn, so any advice, tips or tricks you can give are GREATLY appreciated.
I do have a couple of questions. My husband built a beautiful nesting box that is 36 inches long with a slanted roof. However, we didn't divide it into 3 separate nesting boxes. We left it open. Bad or good?
Also I just got the 4 hens yesterday and this morning I found a Leghorn egg smashed under the roost. I'm assuming she laid while on the roost (the roost is 4 feet off the floor of the coop and is a 2 x 4). I scooped it out with a shovel and left them in the coop. I came back 2 hrs later to open the door to the run so they could get out and found a Wyandotte egg beneath the roost smashed but the shell was missing. We have straw in the nest, enough to cover the floor of the nesting box, but not super fluffy. I ran to my garage and found 2 golf balls and stuck them in the box and one of the Wyandottes laid down on them. Later when I went into the coop to get the feed out, the golf balls were pushed to the front of the nesting box. (it has a small lip though so the eggs can't roll out).
I would like to get some Buff Orpingtons, Light Sussex and Brahma Laying hens -- does anyone know where I could buy those from?
Any help is awesome!
Thanks,
Amanda
