So happy to have found this wonderful website as my family begins its love affair with chickens. We're picking up ten baby chicks from a nearby farm this Saturday. They will be Barred Rock and Ancona, which I felt was destiny-like since the Barred Rock is a New England bird (like my hubby) and the Ancona is Italian (just like me), lol. The brooder will be ready by tomorrow and our shed will be converted into a coop in no time. I'm so excited and nervous and can't believe how much I love them already (even though we haven't even picked them out yet).