Pham Fowl Farm
Chirping
My wife (Callie) and I (Hunter) bought our first flock of day-old chicks in early 2021, a few months after getting married. I grew up raising chickens from pullets, but raising from day-olds was new to me. Raising chickens in general was new to Callie, so it has been a fun adventure for both of us! In April 2021, we got six ISA brown female chicks (Nugget, Squirrel, Henrietta, Patty, Hopper, and Kylo Hen), one buff Orpington female chick (Eggnog), and one buff Orpington male chick (White Claw). A few months later, we got three Indian runner ducks—two males (Ham and Cheese) and one female (Quackers). Our flock enjoys almost limitless free-ranging area, and we lock them up safe in their roosts at nighttime to protect against predators.
While we successfully protected against predators, over the last winter we had to say goodbye to our sweet chickens Hopper and Kylo Hen after they got into unpreventable accidents. This spring, we got a mixed flock of ten female day-old chicks, including Americanas, Cuckoo Marans, French Black Copper Marans, Midnight Majesty Marans, Prairie Bluebell Eggers, Olive Eggers, Sapphire Olive Eggers, and Starlight Green Eggers. We also got two male white silkies (Pom-Pom and Oreo the Scissorbeak) and one female black silkie (Doomsayer), bringing us to sixteen hens, three roosters, two drakes, and one laying duck.
While the eggs are great to sell or share, the most rewarding aspect of our flock is the companionship. Raising them from chicks, all the chickens love to be held and cuddled, and they come running to us for attention when they see us. If we pull up a lawn chair, we will find our laps and shoulders full of chickens! While the roosters aren't as fond of strangers as the hens, even big ol' Mr. White Claw loves to be held and pet by his mama.
Callie is the breadwinner in our marriage, as IT help at a local public school. I'm halfway through medical school, to start as a resident physician in 2024. Our other hobbies together include traveling and videogames (Pokémon Go! combines those two pastimes for us), and we also like to stay active playing frisbee golf, pickleball, and hanging out with friends. We are blessed to enjoy a lot of the same hobbies as a couple and to share a best friend and overall friend group, so we really enjoy spending time together!
We found BYC while looking for advice on silkie hair-trimming and thought it was a super useful resource! We look forward to sharing and receiving tips and tricks in our future backyard chicken adventures!
While we successfully protected against predators, over the last winter we had to say goodbye to our sweet chickens Hopper and Kylo Hen after they got into unpreventable accidents. This spring, we got a mixed flock of ten female day-old chicks, including Americanas, Cuckoo Marans, French Black Copper Marans, Midnight Majesty Marans, Prairie Bluebell Eggers, Olive Eggers, Sapphire Olive Eggers, and Starlight Green Eggers. We also got two male white silkies (Pom-Pom and Oreo the Scissorbeak) and one female black silkie (Doomsayer), bringing us to sixteen hens, three roosters, two drakes, and one laying duck.
While the eggs are great to sell or share, the most rewarding aspect of our flock is the companionship. Raising them from chicks, all the chickens love to be held and cuddled, and they come running to us for attention when they see us. If we pull up a lawn chair, we will find our laps and shoulders full of chickens! While the roosters aren't as fond of strangers as the hens, even big ol' Mr. White Claw loves to be held and pet by his mama.
Callie is the breadwinner in our marriage, as IT help at a local public school. I'm halfway through medical school, to start as a resident physician in 2024. Our other hobbies together include traveling and videogames (Pokémon Go! combines those two pastimes for us), and we also like to stay active playing frisbee golf, pickleball, and hanging out with friends. We are blessed to enjoy a lot of the same hobbies as a couple and to share a best friend and overall friend group, so we really enjoy spending time together!
We found BYC while looking for advice on silkie hair-trimming and thought it was a super useful resource! We look forward to sharing and receiving tips and tricks in our future backyard chicken adventures!
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good looking flock, good luck on this adventure
