OK, I used the question template from the "sticky" post at the top of the list for this topic.
(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?
I got my first chickens in June of 2007, a year after leaving The Big City (Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN) to move to a falling-down farmhouse in Middle-Of-Nowhere Vermont.
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
I have seven chickens. I bought eight, but one of them died last winter. They all had a sort of cold for a couple of weeks in the winter of 2007/2008, and they all got better except for one (who got about as worse as a chicken can get - dead). I just put in an order for eight more, and they'll arrive next month. All Rhode Island Reds, and all hens (so far). I think I'd like to get a rooster, because it would be great to have a self-perpetuating flock.
(3) What breeds do you have?
I got Rhode Island Reds because a) that's what my best friends have and b) that's what Agway was selling. Another friend bought some Black Australorps and some Dominiques, and I'd like to try them someday. But for now I'm sticking with what I (barely) know.
(4) How did you find out about BackYardChickens.com?
I found out about BackyardChickens.com from Google, the rulers of the universe. All hail Google, our new overlords.
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
Other hobbies: I'm learning to play the fiddle. I started about a year and a half ago. It takes a lot of practice to get better, but it's a good investment of time because I'm meeting other people when I go out to play. That's the hardest part about leaving home and moving someplace where you don't know anybody.
I'm also a gardener, at least during our glorious 3-week growing season. Every year I add a new bed and try growing some new things. I have about 40 acres, 5 of which are cleared, so I'm not going to run out of room for a while! I have a 30 x 15 vegetable bed, a raspberry patch, a blueberry patch, a grape arbor, a small orchard that grows tiny wormy sour apples (great deer food!), a rhubarb patch, an herb garden, and some flower beds.
I spend a lot of time watering.
(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
Family - none around here. My immediate family all live in St. Paul, MN. I miss them a lot. Although I talk to them on the phone frequently, I only get to see them for a week or so around Christmas.
Other Pets - none (yet). I want to build this place up to be a real farm of some sort, even though it's very small. I'd like to add sheep or goats, and I'd like to have a mule. I'd also like to get a dog. This is all in the future, as I have to be away from the house for 8 or 9 hours a day right now, due to my job in a town about 15 miles away. I guess maybe before I add any more critters I should find myself a farm wife...
(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?
I got my first chickens in June of 2007, a year after leaving The Big City (Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN) to move to a falling-down farmhouse in Middle-Of-Nowhere Vermont.
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
I have seven chickens. I bought eight, but one of them died last winter. They all had a sort of cold for a couple of weeks in the winter of 2007/2008, and they all got better except for one (who got about as worse as a chicken can get - dead). I just put in an order for eight more, and they'll arrive next month. All Rhode Island Reds, and all hens (so far). I think I'd like to get a rooster, because it would be great to have a self-perpetuating flock.
(3) What breeds do you have?
I got Rhode Island Reds because a) that's what my best friends have and b) that's what Agway was selling. Another friend bought some Black Australorps and some Dominiques, and I'd like to try them someday. But for now I'm sticking with what I (barely) know.
(4) How did you find out about BackYardChickens.com?
I found out about BackyardChickens.com from Google, the rulers of the universe. All hail Google, our new overlords.
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
Other hobbies: I'm learning to play the fiddle. I started about a year and a half ago. It takes a lot of practice to get better, but it's a good investment of time because I'm meeting other people when I go out to play. That's the hardest part about leaving home and moving someplace where you don't know anybody.
I'm also a gardener, at least during our glorious 3-week growing season. Every year I add a new bed and try growing some new things. I have about 40 acres, 5 of which are cleared, so I'm not going to run out of room for a while! I have a 30 x 15 vegetable bed, a raspberry patch, a blueberry patch, a grape arbor, a small orchard that grows tiny wormy sour apples (great deer food!), a rhubarb patch, an herb garden, and some flower beds.
I spend a lot of time watering.
(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
Family - none around here. My immediate family all live in St. Paul, MN. I miss them a lot. Although I talk to them on the phone frequently, I only get to see them for a week or so around Christmas.
Other Pets - none (yet). I want to build this place up to be a real farm of some sort, even though it's very small. I'd like to add sheep or goats, and I'd like to have a mule. I'd also like to get a dog. This is all in the future, as I have to be away from the house for 8 or 9 hours a day right now, due to my job in a town about 15 miles away. I guess maybe before I add any more critters I should find myself a farm wife...
