Hi, I'm new here...

Date sort Score sort
janejetson223

janejetson223

Chirping
9 Years
Joined
Mar 20, 2015
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
Points
67
We are finally getting chickens this spring! I have been checking backyardchickens.com for a while and getting lots of good info. My family has "chicken sat" summers for several years. Last year we didn't have to and we missed it, so we started thinking seriously about getting our own. A local farmers co-op takes chick orders for April and May. We decided to shoot for May and are ordering 2 Buff Orps, 2 Light Brahmas,and 2 Black Australorp females. We haven't decided whether to get a male or not. Also, we have plans to build a 5x6' coop with a fenced yard asap. My husband, kids, and I are very excited!!
 
Welcome to the flock! I highly suggest you buy Storeys guide to chickens by Gail Damerow. It is my 'go to' book for questions, ideas etc. It has just about everything you need to know from coop sizes, breeds, ailments, predators etc. I'm sure you will enjoy your birds - they do become 'family' you know
wink.png
not to mention fresh eggs!! Personally, I have no need for a rooster as I don't intend to hatch/raise little ones on a continuous basis, but it's purely a personal thing. If you live in a suburban/urban area, you might want to check zoning laws about roosters, many places simply won't allow them.
Good luck with your endeavors, take a good look here at the learning center - lots of great info,
thumbsup.gif
 
Last edited:
Sounds like a good plan.You should brobably stick to females first and get a male once you've gathered more experience as roosters can be quite a handful.
Good luck
 
Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided join to our flock. X2 on William1hens suggestion to stick with females. The recommended ration of roosters to hens is 1 rooster for every 10 hens. As they mature, too many roosters can become very hard physically on your hens; over-breeding them, biting and plucking the feathers from their necks and backs, battering them, and potentially, seriously injuring them. The only reason you really need a rooster is to fertilize eggs for hatching and 1 rooster can easily handle 10-15 hens in this regard. I currently have 25 hens and no roosters in my flock, and I get loads of eggs without all the aggression, fighting, biting and feather plucking, feeding on non-productive mouths, crowing in the middle of the night, drop off in egg production, over-breeding and battering of hens that typically goes along with having roosters (especially too many). My hens are stress free and enjoying life without a rooster around. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. Good luck with your flock.
 
BUILD A BIGGER COOP, and they WILL come. Chicken addictions hit hard and fast - you will want more and more. It's better to build larger now than keep adding more coops, etc. We are all enablers here and will never say you have too many. so go for it...
woot.gif
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom