Hello all, my name is JJ, I’m from Eastern Canada and I’ve been chicken keeping for 5 years. I have referred to this website quite a few times over the years and decided it was finally time to join!
Here’s a big background infodump if you’re interested to read!
(TLDR at the bottom of the post)
I had been introduced to ducks and chickens when I was little, but hadn’t taken care of them personally until I purchased some puffy little chicks five years ago.
5 were ISA Browns from the local feed store, and 4 were barnyard mixes from a nearby chicken enthusiast.
Thus began the never ending story, as you know!
Three of my four barnyard mixes were, of course, cockerels and I was in denial for many weeks until I separated them from the pullets and let them free range and eat all all the veggies they could handle. My town has a by-law against roosters and I cried my eyes out when I rehomed the three boys.
I went back to the person I formerly bought the 4 from and lucked in to buying 2 pullets.
I named them Sweet Pea and Pod.
Pod was, to my untrained eye, a nearly perfect looking example of a Wheaten Ameraucana.
It’s a long story for another thread, but Pod was a bird who changed my life. Her sister Sweet Pea was the first bird I lost, after a failed attempt to help her recover from coccidiosis with medicine, it’s been hard to forgive myself for not knowing or noticing the signs of illness until it was too late.
Pod survived that illness, I got her a room mate, because Pod did not get along with the rest of my flock, and these two became bonded.
Her friend was a gorgeous all black Easter Egger who laid mint green eggs.
Pod was so cherished, and I gave her a dignified end at the vet’s office this July, when her time on earth could not be extended. This summer has been a sad one to say the least.
My ISA browns were an unforgettable crew of fantastic layers. Pretty, with big personalities. One by one they checked out. Sudden mysterious deaths with no indication of illness, the curse of egg yolk peritonitis, and my final brown girl died this July after a stroke.
Five years later, my sole survivor of my original flock is the little barnyard mix who’s three brothers I sent away.
Her name is Kikyō and she’s a super soft, heavily feathered, slightly iridescent barred rock mix. She may have laid not even 100 tiny sand coloured eggs during her productive years. She went broody a couple times, the scream she’d make when I plucked her out of the nest was always too cute to handle.
She’s calm, clean, dominant but merciful, intelligent, and I can’t brag her up enough.
A year and a half ago I purchased 7 feed store pullets who arrived in horrible shape, some with badly clipped beaks resulting in cross beak. Two Bovan Browns who were afflicted with ammonia toxicity so bad they couldn’t see to eat or drink.
I lost three of those birds to a mink attack, two Amberlinks and a Blue Azure. I’m incredibly fortunate that the attack was interrupted before I lost everyone. This was my first predator attack and it caused so much grief for my birds and I.
The survivors are the two Bovans, named Mudlark and Speedwagon, and two absolute brute Black Sexlinks, Yukako and Kujo.
Yukako and Kujo are excellent layers, but there’s a catch. They’re highly aggressive to other birds. Savages honestly.
They live with Kikyō, despite her being half their size, she is not one to by trifled with; Yukako and Kujo don’t dare cross her. Yukako loves people and will run you over to get a morsel of food, meanwhile Kujo wants none of my love, (but shares that same affinity for snacks.)
Speedwagon and Mudlark live peacefully separate from the others, as I’ve done everything to help integrate them, but the stress and feather loss is not fair to them. From their rough start with the ammonia toxicity and cross beaks, to watching their flock mates perish and nearly meeting the same fate, to then be bullied endlessly; they deserve a quiet life after all.
This brings us to present day, where I have recently taken a drive to buy 12 week old pullets! They are as unique as most Easter Eggers are, and I’m not entirely convinced everyone is a pullet… (Hello darkness my old friend.)
Now I’m considering renovations to my existing coop and run to accommodate my 6 new birds, watching them closely everyday, and hoping the suspicious ones pull through and lay some eggs!
Wish me luck and thank you if you’ve read this far! Looking forward to the interactions on this site, learning new things, and sharing stories and some things I’ve learned along the way!
(TLDR)
I keep chickens primarily for pets, and the eggs are just a happy bonus.
Currently I own eleven birds. 1 elder, 4 layers, and 6 fifteen-week old pullets (I hope)
I’ve owned barnyard mixed Barred Rocks, Easter Eggers, a Wheaten Ameraucana, ISA Browns, Bovan Browns, White Amberlinks, a Blue Azure, and Black Sex Links.
My favourite thing about backyard chickens is the bonds you create with those special hens, and watching them forage, dust bathe, and do their chickeny business. It brings a true sense of calm to me.
My other hobbies are typical rural province things like art, gardening, hiking, and dining. I enjoy reading manga. I play a little kalimba, am part of a D&D group, and sometimes I join my friends for aerial hooping.
I have two Highland Lynx cats, they are brothers, and they love to watch my chickens! …From a safe distance.
Here’s a big background infodump if you’re interested to read!
(TLDR at the bottom of the post)
I had been introduced to ducks and chickens when I was little, but hadn’t taken care of them personally until I purchased some puffy little chicks five years ago.
5 were ISA Browns from the local feed store, and 4 were barnyard mixes from a nearby chicken enthusiast.
Thus began the never ending story, as you know!
Three of my four barnyard mixes were, of course, cockerels and I was in denial for many weeks until I separated them from the pullets and let them free range and eat all all the veggies they could handle. My town has a by-law against roosters and I cried my eyes out when I rehomed the three boys.
I went back to the person I formerly bought the 4 from and lucked in to buying 2 pullets.
I named them Sweet Pea and Pod.
Pod was, to my untrained eye, a nearly perfect looking example of a Wheaten Ameraucana.
It’s a long story for another thread, but Pod was a bird who changed my life. Her sister Sweet Pea was the first bird I lost, after a failed attempt to help her recover from coccidiosis with medicine, it’s been hard to forgive myself for not knowing or noticing the signs of illness until it was too late.
Pod survived that illness, I got her a room mate, because Pod did not get along with the rest of my flock, and these two became bonded.
Her friend was a gorgeous all black Easter Egger who laid mint green eggs.
Pod was so cherished, and I gave her a dignified end at the vet’s office this July, when her time on earth could not be extended. This summer has been a sad one to say the least.
My ISA browns were an unforgettable crew of fantastic layers. Pretty, with big personalities. One by one they checked out. Sudden mysterious deaths with no indication of illness, the curse of egg yolk peritonitis, and my final brown girl died this July after a stroke.
Five years later, my sole survivor of my original flock is the little barnyard mix who’s three brothers I sent away.
Her name is Kikyō and she’s a super soft, heavily feathered, slightly iridescent barred rock mix. She may have laid not even 100 tiny sand coloured eggs during her productive years. She went broody a couple times, the scream she’d make when I plucked her out of the nest was always too cute to handle.
She’s calm, clean, dominant but merciful, intelligent, and I can’t brag her up enough.
A year and a half ago I purchased 7 feed store pullets who arrived in horrible shape, some with badly clipped beaks resulting in cross beak. Two Bovan Browns who were afflicted with ammonia toxicity so bad they couldn’t see to eat or drink.
I lost three of those birds to a mink attack, two Amberlinks and a Blue Azure. I’m incredibly fortunate that the attack was interrupted before I lost everyone. This was my first predator attack and it caused so much grief for my birds and I.
The survivors are the two Bovans, named Mudlark and Speedwagon, and two absolute brute Black Sexlinks, Yukako and Kujo.
Yukako and Kujo are excellent layers, but there’s a catch. They’re highly aggressive to other birds. Savages honestly.
They live with Kikyō, despite her being half their size, she is not one to by trifled with; Yukako and Kujo don’t dare cross her. Yukako loves people and will run you over to get a morsel of food, meanwhile Kujo wants none of my love, (but shares that same affinity for snacks.)
Speedwagon and Mudlark live peacefully separate from the others, as I’ve done everything to help integrate them, but the stress and feather loss is not fair to them. From their rough start with the ammonia toxicity and cross beaks, to watching their flock mates perish and nearly meeting the same fate, to then be bullied endlessly; they deserve a quiet life after all.
This brings us to present day, where I have recently taken a drive to buy 12 week old pullets! They are as unique as most Easter Eggers are, and I’m not entirely convinced everyone is a pullet… (Hello darkness my old friend.)
Now I’m considering renovations to my existing coop and run to accommodate my 6 new birds, watching them closely everyday, and hoping the suspicious ones pull through and lay some eggs!
Wish me luck and thank you if you’ve read this far! Looking forward to the interactions on this site, learning new things, and sharing stories and some things I’ve learned along the way!
(TLDR)
I keep chickens primarily for pets, and the eggs are just a happy bonus.
Currently I own eleven birds. 1 elder, 4 layers, and 6 fifteen-week old pullets (I hope)
I’ve owned barnyard mixed Barred Rocks, Easter Eggers, a Wheaten Ameraucana, ISA Browns, Bovan Browns, White Amberlinks, a Blue Azure, and Black Sex Links.
My favourite thing about backyard chickens is the bonds you create with those special hens, and watching them forage, dust bathe, and do their chickeny business. It brings a true sense of calm to me.
My other hobbies are typical rural province things like art, gardening, hiking, and dining. I enjoy reading manga. I play a little kalimba, am part of a D&D group, and sometimes I join my friends for aerial hooping.
I have two Highland Lynx cats, they are brothers, and they love to watch my chickens! …From a safe distance.