How challenging is chicken keeping?

[chicknextdoor]

Ahhh, what a good piece of advice! Will make sure to complete the coop now before they arrive! The Coop section was actually what led me to this whole website, and let me say that I have never been so thankful for anything in my whole life.

 

[aart]

If you can, get the coop done before you get the chicks. There have been so many "Help! The chicks need to go outside and the coop is not ready!" threads. Have everything in place first so that when they arrive, you have time to enjoy them.

Abso lutely^^^^

Want pics? Check out My Coop page:

<<<click link under avatar

 

[chicknextdoor]

WOW, that is a palace! Thanks aart, you can bet that I'll be drawing tons of inspiration from your coop!

 

[yellowchicks]

My son surprised me with 4 cute day-old chicks, so we were never mentally or physically prepared to have chickens in our house. After 12 months of raising chickens, I have to say that chickens are a lot easier than cats or dogs.

I think a well-design chicken coop and run can significantly reduce your daily chores. The chickens are less likely to fight or contracting illness due to the substandard living conditions. I wanted a setup that is fully predator proof, can self sustain the flock for a week if we were away, easy to maintain, and look attractive. I did extensive research, carefully analyzed the pros and cons of each coop (like dozens of them), then made up my own wish list of features and design. Nowadays, it takes about 5 to 10 minutes a day for me to clean the poop boards, feed the chickens, turn the bedding and collect the eggs. On the weekend, I can spend more time to clean and play with the chickens. If I were to do it over again, I would definitely build the coop first then get the chicks, so there is less panic.

There are many different opinions and ways to do things on BYC, I learned a lot from everyone, and implemented the ideas that would work for our climate and conditions. So far, it has been a fun journey, I hope you would enjoy yours, too.

 

[2broke]

Ive never had the ability to free range my chickens....coyotes and hawks make for an unforgiving place to raise chickens if your not careful but good luck any way!

 

[Mike Theiss]

I retired June 1 of 2014 and the first thing that I did was order 40 Cornish roasters and 3 turkeys. I had a good time, was ggod for me to have "chores" that kept me busy. the grand kids loved coming to see the birds. was worth paying the local locker plant to do the dirty work and the fried chicken filled three famlies freezers. This summer I ordered 50 birds and four turkeys. They are in a 10 x 12 garden shed with heat lights and a fan at first.
Have made my own 5 gallon bucket feeders and have fenced off a 30 by 80 foot area for them to run. once they reach 4 weeks the door to the shed is wide open and they run around their, very messy, fenced area.
Spent the cold winter nights researching chicken management. Don't get too anxious the first couple of weeks are the most important in my mind. I use purina flock raiser, medicated for two weeks then use the medicated flock raiser. I find myself watching the birds and enjoying their goofyness.

I also have found Backyard Chickens to have a ton of helpful ideas....Have fun with the birds!!!!

 

[Mtn Laurel]

I had the same situation when I first began as I hung out on this and other websites and was seeing so many posts about injury and disease. It truly frightened me and made me stop reading for a while. I then decided that people had been raising chickens for years - long before the internet was around - and what I was seeing was only a very small percentage of total chicken owners that were having problems. The silent majority had to be doing well!

Having any animal - no matter if pet or livestock - carries a certain amount of responsibility. The daily tasks of water and food. Caring for the occasional one that gets sick or injured. The possibility of predators. That's a given no matter what type animal you have.

The rest of it is only as difficult, as time consuming, as costly, as you want it to be. You can have a homemade coop of recycled material or a brand new pre-built coop or something in-between. They can get most of their nutrition from free-ranging, regular chicken feed, or you can seek out grains to mix your own. You can "scoop poop" and clean the coop daily or use Deep Litter, a less intensive method of chicken keeping. It's all in what you're comfortable with.

I have personally decided that "less is more" and try to keep chickens in the same fashion that my grandmother did. I provide the basics and not much more. I use deep litter to reduce the work load and to provide compost for the garden. In turn, I share the garden with the girls. I provide chicken feed along with garden goodies and the occasional kitchen left over. They have a nice coop that was constructed partially of recycled items. They get plenty of exercise, sunshine, fresh water, and an attentive eye from me to make sure everyone is doing well. That's all they really need.

Oh, you mentioned a broody hen. They make life easier when you decide you want to expand your flock. Put fertile eggs under your gal when she goes broody and you don't have to worry about temperature, taking care of the chicks, etc. My Buff Orp - who really seem to be good mom's - hatched out a clutch of 7 chicks for me about a month ago. She did all the work, they're outside, and I should have a new group of egg layers in the near future.

Glad you joined BYC and enjoy your chicks!

 

[DebFR]

Lots covered here. I will just add - I cannot imagine ever having a yard without chickens! They are fabulous kinetic yard ornaments and are so much fun to watch. I have in my flock the 2 breed you mention and they are among my favorites. The BR are the most amazing foragers, the EE are amazing egg layers, the buffs I agree with someone above that they go broody a lot. Gorgeous though...Our yard is a series of wire tunnel/runs that lead to grazing areas so they are always part of the visual when we look out onto the yard. It is a bit more pricey, but to the side of our yard, we have a loop of 185' of electric poultry netting that encloses a good size run. Their coop, which has an electric door with a timer, opens into this protected area. This makes it easy to be away for a day or two with someone just doing an evening headcount and collecting eggs. Everyone likes fresh eggs, so it is easy to find a neighbor to do that. I would use 1/2" hardware cloth instead of chicken wire. Raccoons can reach right in and pull chickens out of chicken wire openings - bite by bite. A gruesome thing. Like the others - I say dive in and have fun!

 

[pattyhen]

Thanks guys!

So question about the raising of chicks -

I assume that I'll get mine sometime within the first few days of hatching. If the temperature outside is already warm (we're looking at about 85-90 in August here), how long should I wait before moving them outdoors? It seems a little odd to wean the chicks down to anywhere under 70 degrees if I'm going to be moving them outside into a coop in 80+. Or is there already some agreed-upon number of weeks that chicks should absolutely be kept indoors in a brooder?

Apologies if any of this sounds bone-headed! There's just so much to learn!

Also - if anybody else has an opinion as to whether or not a Buff Orpington might be good for a first timer, I'd really appreciate it!

Buff orphinton chickens are my favorite chicken. I've never had one go broody before. They are lap chickens and have great personalitites. I would highly recommend them for a first time chicken keeper.

Patty

 

[DebFR]

Buffs are gorgeous and although mine are not lap chickens, they seem to be among the calmer breeds. I wish mine were like Patti's, but my 2 are frequently broody. Deb