Hello all,
I am new to this forum and to raising chickens. I got four Chicks in April from the TSC and a Fifth shortly thereafter. My backyard chickens seem to be spoiled, my kids spend alot of time with them and they love being with people. I cannot go outside without being rushed by chickens! I think I am enabling their behavior by always having something for them to eat. I put in my first garden this year and the chicks have been helping weed and fertilize it. Aren't chickens great?
Oh well, any advise for keeping my chickens healthy and happy would be great.
My setup is an 8X12 shed with a quarter of it partitioned off with framing and chicken wire fencing, I only have two nesting boxes with shed access so I don't have to go through the screen door into the coupe and get poo on my shoes. I have roosting poles they use and a fan to circulate the air in the summer and a heat lamp for the winter. Every morning the chickens are let out of the coupe and shed to roam free in the privacy fenced backyard. In the evening they all migrate back into the coup area and roost on the poles. I shut them up in the coupe for safety and security.
I live in a little suburban town where farm animals are probably looked down upon, but these chicks are PETS, my daughter named them all and we will never eat them. Their eggs however are coming on strong! I am averaging three a day, one day I got five. The little bit younger fifth chicken is not yet producing, I believe.
I do have concerns about disease and am wondering what kind of vet visits I should be making. I fed them chicken starter which was medicated, until they started laying eggs. Now they are on layered crumbles. Any do' s and Don't s will be greatly appreciated.
I am new to this forum and to raising chickens. I got four Chicks in April from the TSC and a Fifth shortly thereafter. My backyard chickens seem to be spoiled, my kids spend alot of time with them and they love being with people. I cannot go outside without being rushed by chickens! I think I am enabling their behavior by always having something for them to eat. I put in my first garden this year and the chicks have been helping weed and fertilize it. Aren't chickens great?
Oh well, any advise for keeping my chickens healthy and happy would be great.
My setup is an 8X12 shed with a quarter of it partitioned off with framing and chicken wire fencing, I only have two nesting boxes with shed access so I don't have to go through the screen door into the coupe and get poo on my shoes. I have roosting poles they use and a fan to circulate the air in the summer and a heat lamp for the winter. Every morning the chickens are let out of the coupe and shed to roam free in the privacy fenced backyard. In the evening they all migrate back into the coup area and roost on the poles. I shut them up in the coupe for safety and security.
I live in a little suburban town where farm animals are probably looked down upon, but these chicks are PETS, my daughter named them all and we will never eat them. Their eggs however are coming on strong! I am averaging three a day, one day I got five. The little bit younger fifth chicken is not yet producing, I believe.
I do have concerns about disease and am wondering what kind of vet visits I should be making. I fed them chicken starter which was medicated, until they started laying eggs. Now they are on layered crumbles. Any do' s and Don't s will be greatly appreciated.
