I guess you knew I was new, huh?
My name's Bobbie and I live on a 60 acre farm with my husband and two kids. My daughter is 7 and my son is 9. We have a horse (who is an abuse case I am trying to re-home), a pony, a Mini Schnauzer, 6 cats, a Mini Rex bunny and, of course, now 14 chicks! We've had them for a few days now and so far so good. I got 3 Tetra Tints, 3 Amberlinks, 3 Stars (thanks to BYC for helping me identify them because TSC had them in a tub labeled "Red Pullets") and 5 Brown Leghorns. This is my first flock of chickens, but I come from a long line of chicken owners. I don't know of a generation who's gone without chickens. My mother only had a few for a short period of time while I was a kid, so I don't really have any real hands-on knowledge - hence why I am here!
My husband has wanted chickens for the last 3 springs and I kept ignoring his pleas. This year, I took the idea seriously because my husband is not an animal person and after 3yrs of persistence, I decided I'd look into it. I went researching breeds and trying to find the cheapest route to get started. I got so into it, I found certain breeds I wanted, where I was placing the coop, what the coop would look like, the best place in my yard to free range, ect. Sadly, I did not get to start with the breeds I wanted. It was to expensive to go and buy them through the mail order sites. I wanted Black Australorp, Silver Laced Wyandotte, Speckled Sussex, Barred Rock, Buff Orpington and Delaware hens with an Ameraucana rooster. I decided to go with whatever TSC had because they were cheaper and if I decide chickens aren't for me, I won't have so much invested into my flock. I doubt I am going to regret my decision though. I actually want to sell the horses so I can focus only on chickens - it's a long story, but I want out of horses anyways. They are unridable (Pony is just being started undersaddle and the horse is only a pasture ornament) and I get no enjoyment out of them anymore. At least chickens you get eggs and you can eat them!
I do have two questions before I post this to the board...
1) Can you use the deep litter method in a coop with a floor, or do you need to have a dirt floor?
2) I don't plan on showing and I don't know if I want to try breeding. It depends mainly on how this starter flock goes. If I do, what is the basic forum opinion on cross breeding? I ask because all of the breeds I have picked aren't exactly common and I am thinking about crossing with the Ameraucana.
Thanks!
My name's Bobbie and I live on a 60 acre farm with my husband and two kids. My daughter is 7 and my son is 9. We have a horse (who is an abuse case I am trying to re-home), a pony, a Mini Schnauzer, 6 cats, a Mini Rex bunny and, of course, now 14 chicks! We've had them for a few days now and so far so good. I got 3 Tetra Tints, 3 Amberlinks, 3 Stars (thanks to BYC for helping me identify them because TSC had them in a tub labeled "Red Pullets") and 5 Brown Leghorns. This is my first flock of chickens, but I come from a long line of chicken owners. I don't know of a generation who's gone without chickens. My mother only had a few for a short period of time while I was a kid, so I don't really have any real hands-on knowledge - hence why I am here!
My husband has wanted chickens for the last 3 springs and I kept ignoring his pleas. This year, I took the idea seriously because my husband is not an animal person and after 3yrs of persistence, I decided I'd look into it. I went researching breeds and trying to find the cheapest route to get started. I got so into it, I found certain breeds I wanted, where I was placing the coop, what the coop would look like, the best place in my yard to free range, ect. Sadly, I did not get to start with the breeds I wanted. It was to expensive to go and buy them through the mail order sites. I wanted Black Australorp, Silver Laced Wyandotte, Speckled Sussex, Barred Rock, Buff Orpington and Delaware hens with an Ameraucana rooster. I decided to go with whatever TSC had because they were cheaper and if I decide chickens aren't for me, I won't have so much invested into my flock. I doubt I am going to regret my decision though. I actually want to sell the horses so I can focus only on chickens - it's a long story, but I want out of horses anyways. They are unridable (Pony is just being started undersaddle and the horse is only a pasture ornament) and I get no enjoyment out of them anymore. At least chickens you get eggs and you can eat them!
I do have two questions before I post this to the board...
1) Can you use the deep litter method in a coop with a floor, or do you need to have a dirt floor?
2) I don't plan on showing and I don't know if I want to try breeding. It depends mainly on how this starter flock goes. If I do, what is the basic forum opinion on cross breeding? I ask because all of the breeds I have picked aren't exactly common and I am thinking about crossing with the Ameraucana.
Thanks!
