Hi, Newbie here from Mableton, GA

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choonook

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Hello! We are looking forward to getting our first chicks this winter...preferably Rocked Barred. My 5 year old is ecstatic! My 13 year old wasn't until I mentioned we may be able to get a duckling. Not too fond of just having a loner and wondering if she would be just fine with chickens or if we should wait for the chicks to get a bit older before getting a duckling. Also, does anyone have experience with German Shepherds and chickens? We have two...one that loves everything on earth, no problem there, and another that doesn't care for anything/anyone outside of the house. Then there's the garden. Do adult chickens mind being confined to a smaller (25x15ft) space if they're used to larger? I'm hoping they will continue to prep the garden each spring but don't want to stress them out too much and don't plan on breeding new chicks for the job.
 
choonook said:
Hello! We are looking forward to getting our first chicks this winter...preferably Rocked Barred. My 5 year old is ecstatic! My 13 year old wasn't until I mentioned we may be able to get a duckling. Not too fond of just having a loner and wondering if she would be just fine with chickens or if we should wait for the chicks to get a bit older before getting a duckling. I do not know anything about ducks so I can't really answer your question. Perhaps someone on the duck thread can.
Also, does anyone have experience with German Shepherds and chickens? We have two...one that loves everything on earth, no problem there, and another that doesn't care for anything/anyone outside of the house. We have a German Shep and she is GREAT with our chickens, but I do have to say we did a lot of obedience training with her as a puppy, which was a couple years before we ever got chickens. Our neighbor used to have chickens as well and we both free-ranged. Somehow she knew which chickens were ours and which ones were his. If his came on our land, she would gently herd them back over the property line and vise versa with our chickens. Then he gave us his chickens, but she quickly learned that they could stay. She also watches out for the hens and if the rooster gets a little too rough, she will break things up. Then there are the times that we spot a hawk and send her out to stand guard since she can always get back to the coop much quicker than we can.
Then there's the garden. Do adult chickens mind being confined to a smaller (25x15ft) space if they're used to larger? I'm hoping they will continue to prep the garden each spring but don't want to stress them out too much and don't plan on breeding new chicks for the job. Some breeds tolerate confinement much better than others, but the general rule of thumb is at least 4 square feet of coop space per bird and at least 10 square feet or run space. So with a 25x15 foot run, you could house up to 37 birds.
Click to expand...
Good luck!
 
Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided to join our flock. Trailrider330 has done a good job answering your questions. Just keep in mind that those coop and run dimensions are a bare minimum, but more space is better. Overcrowding can quickly lead to aggression, fights, biting and feather plucking, and even cannibalism. If you haven't done so already, definitely check out our Learning Center at https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center. There is lots of useful information there. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. Cheers.
 
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If you would like to chat with other members in GA, you can find them here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/270925/find-your-states-thread

Thanks for joining us!
 
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Welcome from Middle Georgia! So glad you have joined us.

Barred Rocks do well raised in confinement and would be little tilling "machines" in the garden. But make sure they cannot access it during growing season or you will not reap the rewards you plan.

You are in a colder part of the state than me, and IMO if you are starting with baby chicks, wait to get them in March, so the weather will be warm enough to move them out of the brooder to the coop when they are 5-6 weeks old. Even in Macon area March born chicks couldn't be moved out until full spring was here. "They" are predicting a cold, maybe record snow winter for our state this winter.

I have no experience with ducks, but from past info on this site, would make sure you get a female duck if they will be living with the chickens. A male duck among hens is not a good thing. And careful with water/pools around the chickens. You may want to consider a small separate area for the ducks.

Also be careful about trusting any dog unsupervised around your flock, there are so many reports of a friendly dog killing the flock - happened to a friend of mine after several years without an incident and was a devastating surprise.

IMO allow more room in the run than the minimum - I had to expand mine when my small flock were grown - with the minimum areas quoted, they were just too crowded for comfort. Mark off a mock up area of what you think will work and picture 5 gallon buckets to represent each full grown hen as well as water founts, feeders, flock blocks or other "entertainment" items you may want and see how full that area gets. It is much more difficult to build/expand their home after they move in.

Good luck with the new adventure, raising and tending your own flock will be so much fun for your family and yourself.
 

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