Alyssa Bates
In the Brooder
- Jul 10, 2017
- 22
- 23
- 34
Hello there!
I have been researching Australorp chickens in preparation for starting our own flock this spring. Our city only allows up to 3 chickens. The more I learn about chicken behavior, life cycles and care, the more I'm coming to realize that 3 is a fairly difficult number to work with, especially since we want to keep them for eggs and would like to let them die naturally and add new chickens to the flock to maintain a number of 3 ongoing.
Since we want chickens that are calm and easily handled, everyone tells me to always start with chicks and raise them. Chicks are available at our nearby feed store each spring, but not any other time of the year.
Everyone also tells me I should purchase three chicks right at the start for various reasons (three will be happier, and if unfortunately one chicken doesn't make it there are still two to keep each other happy until we can get another bird). But I'm seeing so many snags I could run into along the way. Here are my major questions...
1) Even with the best care possible, one day, one of the chickens will die from old age. To replace that one, and keep my overall number of chickens up to 3, I'll need to purchase a new chick in the spring. Can you actually raise a chick in isolation, and then introduce it to the other two once it is old enough?
2) If you can't raise a chick in isolation, what is my solution? Wait until after two chickens pass away, and then raise two new chicks to add to the third? But then the 3rd will be stressed out until the other two are added... right?
Does anyone else have experience managing flocks of 3? If so, how do you handle it?
I have been researching Australorp chickens in preparation for starting our own flock this spring. Our city only allows up to 3 chickens. The more I learn about chicken behavior, life cycles and care, the more I'm coming to realize that 3 is a fairly difficult number to work with, especially since we want to keep them for eggs and would like to let them die naturally and add new chickens to the flock to maintain a number of 3 ongoing.
Since we want chickens that are calm and easily handled, everyone tells me to always start with chicks and raise them. Chicks are available at our nearby feed store each spring, but not any other time of the year.
Everyone also tells me I should purchase three chicks right at the start for various reasons (three will be happier, and if unfortunately one chicken doesn't make it there are still two to keep each other happy until we can get another bird). But I'm seeing so many snags I could run into along the way. Here are my major questions...
1) Even with the best care possible, one day, one of the chickens will die from old age. To replace that one, and keep my overall number of chickens up to 3, I'll need to purchase a new chick in the spring. Can you actually raise a chick in isolation, and then introduce it to the other two once it is old enough?
2) If you can't raise a chick in isolation, what is my solution? Wait until after two chickens pass away, and then raise two new chicks to add to the third? But then the 3rd will be stressed out until the other two are added... right?
Does anyone else have experience managing flocks of 3? If so, how do you handle it?
