- Mar 24, 2012
- 15
- 8
- 84
I've been lurking for months but a couple days ago posted my first post which ironically was not about chickens. So, I figure I need to introduce myself properly.
Chicken History:
I have no chickens at the moment. I am a newly wed (or married for a year, when do we stop being newly weds?) and transplant from Florida living in hellish Arizona. Many people think Arizona is lovely, I appareantly do not live where they are talking about. In the spring we're planning on moving to Denver, Colorado and there making our chicken dreams come true.
My neighbors growing up had chickens. I did too. They would buy chicks, I would go over, name them and thus they were "mine". I had two Easter Eggers, Sparta and Sparkles. Sparkles looked like champagne and Sparta was, well, a female dog. I've always loved animals but honestly never though about having chickens until a year or so ago. I've always tried to buy organic, cage free, pasture raised animal products but never thought about homesteading.
I worked at a hardware store and we sell chicks in the spring. This was the first time I've thought of raising chickens in the city. I was raised in a more rural setting. So I never thought of this. I thought I would have a challenge with my husband. He does not like animals. I have a salt fish tank, two Greyhounds and a cat. He is at his limits with animals. lol But, I did the math, explained homesteading (I've always loved gardening) and how much of an asset chickens can be. Without really any resistance, he's on board.
Now our aspirations are: chickens for eggs, rabbits for meat, garden for veggies, and fishing and hunting with the goal to be to cut out cruelly raised factory meat completely from our diet and having the ability to produce our own and buy from local farmers what we cannot produce. We're even thinking about turkeys for holidays and experimenting with game fowl. Imagine my surprise since he was been very vocal about no "zoos". Apparently, he does understand if he wants to be 'survivalist' we need food. I'm not allowed to have any more vanity pets (dogs and cat) until the existing ones pass on lol
Chicken Aspirations:
I really want these chickens:
Easter Eggers (Sparta and Sparkles v. 2.0 )
Australorp (I dunno, mainly on the list for egg production but not a favorite)
Faverolles (so cute!)
Speckled Sussex (so glamorous)
Wyandotte (I love their feathers)
Plymouth Barred Rock (another glamorous lady)
Buff Orpington (I just fell in love with these at work)
BUT, Hubby will only let me have four... for now... When we expand our family, he said we can also increase our flock if we need to.
My goal is to have a functioning homestead but also be aesthetically pleasing. So, the garden will be landscaped and the enclosures will be efficient but beautiful. The livability of our yard is high on both of our lists.
That quest is how I found this amazing website. I refused to believe coops were destined to be ugly (my neighbors didn't have a coop really). And Hubby told me I needed an attractive idea if we were going to pursue this. Backyard Chickens has been a wonderful wealth of information and I am so excited for my future homesteading and chickening adventures. It might be a year or two away but I am so excited now! I love seeing all the beautiful coops and reading all the wonderful information on chicken husbandry! It's even been a treasure trove for ideas regarding keeping rabbits as well! Whoever made this website: Thank you so much!
I know this is a long post, but my family (and husbands family) thinks we're nuts for wanting to do this. But I keep telling them, every pound produced with love at home is one less pound needed from cruelly treated animals. Anyways, I have no one to gush to but my husband. And now you guys
Chicken History:
I have no chickens at the moment. I am a newly wed (or married for a year, when do we stop being newly weds?) and transplant from Florida living in hellish Arizona. Many people think Arizona is lovely, I appareantly do not live where they are talking about. In the spring we're planning on moving to Denver, Colorado and there making our chicken dreams come true.
My neighbors growing up had chickens. I did too. They would buy chicks, I would go over, name them and thus they were "mine". I had two Easter Eggers, Sparta and Sparkles. Sparkles looked like champagne and Sparta was, well, a female dog. I've always loved animals but honestly never though about having chickens until a year or so ago. I've always tried to buy organic, cage free, pasture raised animal products but never thought about homesteading.
I worked at a hardware store and we sell chicks in the spring. This was the first time I've thought of raising chickens in the city. I was raised in a more rural setting. So I never thought of this. I thought I would have a challenge with my husband. He does not like animals. I have a salt fish tank, two Greyhounds and a cat. He is at his limits with animals. lol But, I did the math, explained homesteading (I've always loved gardening) and how much of an asset chickens can be. Without really any resistance, he's on board.
Now our aspirations are: chickens for eggs, rabbits for meat, garden for veggies, and fishing and hunting with the goal to be to cut out cruelly raised factory meat completely from our diet and having the ability to produce our own and buy from local farmers what we cannot produce. We're even thinking about turkeys for holidays and experimenting with game fowl. Imagine my surprise since he was been very vocal about no "zoos". Apparently, he does understand if he wants to be 'survivalist' we need food. I'm not allowed to have any more vanity pets (dogs and cat) until the existing ones pass on lol
Chicken Aspirations:
I really want these chickens:
Easter Eggers (Sparta and Sparkles v. 2.0 )
Australorp (I dunno, mainly on the list for egg production but not a favorite)
Faverolles (so cute!)
Speckled Sussex (so glamorous)
Wyandotte (I love their feathers)
Plymouth Barred Rock (another glamorous lady)
Buff Orpington (I just fell in love with these at work)
BUT, Hubby will only let me have four... for now... When we expand our family, he said we can also increase our flock if we need to.
My goal is to have a functioning homestead but also be aesthetically pleasing. So, the garden will be landscaped and the enclosures will be efficient but beautiful. The livability of our yard is high on both of our lists.
That quest is how I found this amazing website. I refused to believe coops were destined to be ugly (my neighbors didn't have a coop really). And Hubby told me I needed an attractive idea if we were going to pursue this. Backyard Chickens has been a wonderful wealth of information and I am so excited for my future homesteading and chickening adventures. It might be a year or two away but I am so excited now! I love seeing all the beautiful coops and reading all the wonderful information on chicken husbandry! It's even been a treasure trove for ideas regarding keeping rabbits as well! Whoever made this website: Thank you so much!
I know this is a long post, but my family (and husbands family) thinks we're nuts for wanting to do this. But I keep telling them, every pound produced with love at home is one less pound needed from cruelly treated animals. Anyways, I have no one to gush to but my husband. And now you guys
from Ohio. So glad to have you aboard. Good luck with your move and future chickens. 
