Just wondering--what got you started into raising chickens?

[Rex Mom]

I've never been around chickens... raised birds before... but not chickens. Started looking into it earlier this year.. thought it would be nice to have fresh eggs.. one less thing to buy at the grocery store. After alot of research and finding this site, I decided to give it a try. Took my 8yr old nephew with me to the feed store (he was so excited) and we picked out four chicks (2 Buff Orp, 2 Partridge Cochin) and brought them home. Couldn't resist the fluffy feet of the Cochins. I don't live on alot of land but thought I could keep this number of chickens without bothering my neighbors. So far, all is well, they all lived from the fluff ball stage and we really enjoy them. I look forward to some fresh eggs this fall. I can see how they could be addictive... LOL. Someday when we move to a place that has acreage I know I will have alot more than 4! Already seen some breeds that are very interesting I'd love having.

Susan

 

[jqs birds]

I grew up with chickens, ducks, geese, and pheasants. When I was a kid I hated taking care of all of them, I thought I always has something better to do? Whatever that was!
Now I keep them because they relax me watching them go about there business in there own world.

 

[ticker9400]

My parents divorced when I was 7 years old.. My mom being newly single decided to give my brother and I a chick each to cheer us up.. We loved those chickens mine was named M&M and his was poopy(because there was a lot of it) They chased us around our apartments all summer long.. We left them with the landlord for the weekend( I dont know how we got to keep them in the first place being in a apartment?) When we came home the landlord had them for dinner the night before

I have always wanted to have chickens since that day and now I do...

 

[cybercat]

Even though I had been around chickens off and on through my years growing up. It was not until I helped a friend up North with their that I got really interested. My first taste of a free range egg and I was sold. Even though it took me a few year later and moving to another state to get my own I did.

 

[Chickn chick 46]

It's all my mother in laws fault

She and her husband have a farm which include alot of chickens. She started offering us eggs and I was hooked. This little green horn never in a million years would have "those dirty things around"

Now we have 8 hens and 9 four week old chicks

 

[cmom]

I first got chickens about 45 years ago. My DBF at the time somehow aquired 50 birds. We didn't have them for very long as they turned out to be meat birds. We did get some eggs from them . I didn't have any bird then for about 40 years then my DH brought 6 RIR chicks home in a box with nothing except a 5 lb bag of chick starter feed. I went to the local feed store and bought a brooder and supplies, feeder, waterer and more feed. The first coop didn't get built until the pullets were 12 weeks old.The nest boxes weren't added until the birds were 16 weeks old. The following week we got our first egg.. Now, I have a Flock of 40 birds and two coops. I had a Roo but re-homed him and have lost 3 others to predation and illness/heart attack. We are building a new barn and will be building a new very large coop on one side with access to the nest boxes from the inside of the barn. More chicks...

 

[gbharden]

My Grandmother had chickens as I was growing up. I have very wonderful memories of feeding the chickens and gathering the eggs. I wanted those same memories for my grandchildren. So I finally talked my hubby into letting me have a few chicks. Hopefully, my few will multiply! But my grand girls and I love the time we spend with the chickens! I hope they will have the same great memories for them one day!

 

[zowieyellowflame]

I used to have a supply of farm fresh eggs a couple of years ago from a co-worker that ended. I eat 2 to 5 eggs every single day.... and I definately prefer farm eggs. I also had chickens when I was a kid, so did my husband and we have the land, had a shed and longed for animals/pets since I lost my dogs to old age recently.
We jumped in this spring with 8 hens and a rooster (after a brief mix up of extra roos). Now 2 hens became broody so we have 11 chicks, 4 of which are 2 weeks, the rest about a week. And also about 40 eggs in a bator. I am hooked.

 

[GA Peach in VA]

My youngest DD saw that the kindergarten classes at the school were hatching chicken eggs. The classes were seeing who's eggs would hatch first. I was getting daily updates from the kids. I work for the after school care program. I would make a point to "visit" the classes to see the chicks. Then, I found out that my friend, the cafeteria manager and a local farmer, was the "owner " of the eggs. She told my DD that we "needed" some chickens at our house. Well, DD talked us into "looking" at the chicks and that was that. When my friend went to pick up the chicks from the classrooms, she placed them in a box marked--pancakes. As she passed me in the hallway, chicks just a chirpin', I told her I needed some of those pancakes. She smile at me and said " I know'!!

Angie

 

[shadowpaints]

i had Chickens as a kid at my granparents. i loved it ! they had Silkies and i always loved helping... i figured when i 'grew up' lol. we live on 25 acres, and we have become pretty self suffcient. we raise 2 steers a year for the freezer, we have goats and milk the alpines, and we also have plenty access to goats meat since we breed the alpines we often trade several doelings a year for about 200 lbs of goat meat. We have a very large garden, with just about everything growing in it. but this year when we passed by the chicks at the feed store i couldnt resist. i got 10 Sex link pullets. ok so that SHOULD be plenty... not... 2 checks later when i had moved the sexlinks out to the brooder that is out side.. i asked if they could order Silkies.. they said sure.. and a week later we had 10 silkies.. 8 white and 2 black.. hmmm. the sex links got moved into the coop and the silkies got moved into the outside brooder.. we decided we should raise meat chickens.. we ordered 25 and ended up with 30! lol we have lost 1 silkie (just a week ago) and 2 sex links (one right after we broght em home and the other that got into the dogs pen) we still (at last count ) have the 30 cornish crosses. they will go to freezer camp just in time for my 15 to get here from cackle!! lol (5 blue silkies, 5 buff silkies and 5 aracuana) hehe i promis im done for this year lol but im not making any promises for next!!

we love our birds and even the cornish x are friendly. but our sex links and silkies are love birds always trying to get me to pick em up first.. people think im hilarious when i pick up my fave and i talk to her and she talks back.. ok they all are my faves and they all talk to me !! lol