Hi Everybody! I'm New Here!

Summer Lion

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(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens? Yes and no. My husband works on the farm we live on (been here 20 years) and the owner has always had Long Island Reds - for eggs and the table. The last group was a combo of Long Island Reds and New Hampshires. No roosters (she doesn't like them). A raccoon, because another guy who works here left an access door open, killed every chicken except 1, who didn't have a scratch on her. The owner only wanted 1 more chicken and decided she only wanted eggs, no meat, but my husband and I wanted more for ourselves so we came to find a woman who has tons of chickens and she was happy to give us 9 that were being bullied by the others.

(2) How many chickens do you have right now? A total flock of 10

(3) What breeds do you have? 5 Australorp (I was able to identify those with certainty), 1 Leghorn (I'm pretty sure), 1 Buff Orpington (I think), 2 splash blue gold laced Wyandottes (Maybe, I need you guys, lol) and 1 New Hampshire.

(4) How did you find out about BackYardChickens.com? I've been looking at this forum for some time now because I like learning about random things and because I was fascinated by the passion here. Now I understand, because I've gone chicken happy. Maybe because of the variety and small flock that I see their personalities....and partly because they're ours. I can and have spent hours with them in the week we've had them, and walk back home, grinning like a fool.

(5) What are some of your other hobbies? Reading, gardening, dancing, making natural products.

(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share. I have 2 adopted gold brindle Dutch Shepherds (smaller than a German Shepherd, larger than a Malinois) and an adopted beagle and 3 cats. I work in the school district, so I have summers off. My family are my best friends....a hard working husband, 3 beautiful daughters, all out on their own....Daughter #1 gave me my first "son" when she married, Daughter #2 who is engaged to my 2nd "son", and Daughter #3 who is single and very proud of. Then there's my brother & his wife, my niece and her husband who blessed me with a great nephew. I adore my family and love spending time with them!
 
Thank you for joining us at Backyard chickens. Hope you will enjoy it as much as we do.
I would love to see photos of your Dutch Shepherds. I haven't heard of them before. There are tons of dog people on BYC and I am a dog lover since birth.
 
Thank you for joining us at Backyard chickens. Hope you will enjoy it as much as we do.
I would love to see photos of your Dutch Shepherds. I haven't heard of them before. There are tons of dog people on BYC and I am a dog lover since birth.
Hi Diva! I grew up around German Shepherds, but I must say Dutch Shepherds are incredibly strong, agile and intelligent. A breed recognized in the Netherlands, bred to herd sheep and protect the family, today they are used as K-9 for police departments, drug and bomb detection, personal protection, and search and rescue. The AKC has only recently recognized them as a breed here. A German Shepherd does what you tell it to, a Malinois does it before you tell it, a Dutch Shepherd does it before you think it. My Dutchie Shifty will respond on command to hand signals and will run full tilt down the backfield of the farm and leap through the fence rails at full speed. National Geographic did a piece on prehistoric dire wolves and the Dutch Shepherd, in how it will take down a target does it just as a dire wolf did...leap into the air, grab, twist with their entire body and pull down. Our other Dutchie Axel was severely neglected by his owner, so thin you could put your hand in his sternum, see his hindquarter muscles and ribs and he's big for his breed, so it was heartbreaking and he was worse when brought to the shelter, so he had looked like a stick-dog. But we fattened him up and loved him and he discovered the puppyhood he never had. Axel is on the floor in 1 pic. Shifty is in the one with my youngest daughter Kerry, and all the boys (Remy the beagle) are on the couch.
 

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