how do you pick?

[Caat]

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Hmm, I think I'd have to call the bylaws people and find out if ducks and turkies count as chickens?? Does the law specifically say chickens? Then you could have 15 chickens, 15 ducks, and 15 turkies!!

And that's called "Chicken Logic"! It's a slippery slope for sure!

You guys are great!!!! Love chicken logic!!!! sadly the bylaws aren't that specific.... THOUGH, It would depend on how you interprete it b/c I'm also allowed t keep goats... so does 1 goat = 15 chickens and nullify the chickens? (not that I want a goat but you know...) I did double and triple check, ducks, geese, turkeys, chickens are all allowed. I have madfe myself a copy of the bylaws JUST-IN-CASE! And I will be calling them again to clarify the bylaw...

I'm lucky enough to live on a wooded 2 acre parcel, my neighbors on one side are vacationners and on the otherside they are pretty good peeps, should be able to bribe with eggs & meat birds... Noise doesn't travel well over that way anyway so I think it should eb all good!

 

[punky rooster]

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Chanteclers are very cold hardy but I would not say they are the best. Buckeye's and Hedemora's are very cold hardy also.

I like you choices for breeds. The leghorns are prone to frostbite. You can help prevent it by putting petroleum jelly on their combs.

 

[WallTenters]

I would not go with the leghorns, again because of the frostbite. As much as I think they are beautiful, graceful creatures, they're also very flighty, nervous and kind of annoyingly difficult.

I love our Dominiques. Very cold hardy, sweet birds and worth trying to breed. There are several sources available.

Yes, all our chickens at least go outside in the winter. I almost died laughing seeing one of my Dominique hens chasing a mouse through the snow once!

And... I would NOT recommend getting chicks from a hatchery. Really, ordering from a breeder is cost comparitive to the hatcheries (you will usually pay a couple dollars more per chick from a breeder). But the birds are real representatives of the breed, and will do better for you.

Also, since you usually order chicks in 25 per set, you'll want to sell the extra chicks of the orders you get. Much easier to sell chicks that are nice quality to show homes or even 4H show homes. Hatchery quality cockerels are very hard to find homes for.

 

[Caat]

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Well the "closest" hatcheries are 7 hrs away (and yes, I am crazy enough to drive out and back in the same day

) and they are far from helpful! I'd get one word answers to my questions and so-on. I get it that I'm just some small Joe and would be buying so few chickens that my business or there lack of wouldn't matter to them... So

to them!

I would love to get a couple Dominiques but I don't know where I'd get them from. The one heritage town close to here doesn't have them. Mind you, I am starting (very very very slowly) to find out about people who have chickens on a small scale and who WILL sell 2-3 chicks at a time

since I hace the time, I am taking it slowly at choosing what I want. (not that I have the choice of being patient or not...)

I really appreciate everyone's input

 

[Chris09]

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Leghorns also Come Rose Comb.

Chris

 

[WallTenters]

Contact Mr. Urch of Minnesota 507 451 6782 ... he has several breeds. We just got a shipment of Dom chicks from him and they all look correct.

I'm not sure about shipping across the border to Canada, but he should know.

 

[Caat]

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Cool, thanks! I will, worst case senario he may be able to direct me in the right direction

 

[Cass]

Get as many as you want of whatever you want and let THEM try to count them. You ever try to count chickens? They DO NOT stand still for longer than the time it takes to gulp down a mouthful of food. And one or two are always shy around strangers, so they won't be seen at all. A couple will fly under a bush, so they won't be seen either. Get as many as you want, no one will ever know.

On a sadder note, not every chick you buy will make it to adulthood, so you may BUY 2 of each breed you want and wind up with one of several breeds. Same with ducks. However I would do more research on ducks, if I were you. Some breeds need one gander to two hens, others prefer a one to one ratio.

 

[Caat]

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lmbo! I bet you rock at chicken math! Don't tell anyone (aka DH) but I plan on getting as many as I can get away with

I love the support and restraint that ppl show here! Soooo glad I didn't find byc sooner, I would have died of chicken envy!

 

[Cass]

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lmbo! I bet you rock at chicken math! Don't tell anyone (aka DH) but I plan on getting as many as I can get away with

I love the support and restraint that ppl show here! Soooo glad I didn't find byc sooner, I would have died of chicken envy!

Chicken math? OMG I'm a master ...I ordered 6 chickens...5 female, 1 male....the breeder had a bad hatching year and couldn't get me the birds I wanted when I wanted them. So I bought someone's D'uccles....4 to be exact. Then someone really local to me offered to hatch me some chicks, so I said SURE I"LL TAKE 6. (knowing they might not all live) THEN The original breeder had *my* chicks in the 'bator...the original 6...so now I am going to have 16 birds...however Bantams only count as half and chicks don't count AT ALL, so I have 2 chickens. But next spring? I"m gonna be hip deep in eggs.