Latest NY Times Article: "When the Problems Come Home to Roost"

[possumqueen]

So you have silkies????? And STILL you run your mouth about them? shame!!

But seriously, do you use them to hatch ducklings? And how does that work?

And are we hijacking this thread? Are we in trouble for that?

(signed) the other mouth

 

[RevaVirginia]

Being about 15 minutes late one morning to go let them out. The looks I got could have easily escalated to heads spinning and projectile vomiting...sooo diabolical isn't that big a stretch.

 

[Wifezilla]

So you have silkies????? And STILL you run your mouth about them? shame!!

I don't have silkies.....I have mechanical skills! (I made an incubator out of an old cooler

I have hatched out a few ducks in it. Just wanted to see if I could do it! Hee hee hee)​

 

[GrannySue]

Hey, at least we got a mention;
The Web site www.backyardchickens.com, which calls itself the largest community of chicken enthusiasts in the world, started here.

Oh, and this was cute;
She has not taken them to the vet because of the high cost, but she goes to workshops and searches out cures on the Internet. She has even put garlic down their throats in hopes that the antibacterial qualities of the cloves might help.

“I’m discouraged but I’m determined to figure this out,” Ms. Lane said.

Determined to figure it out, even if she kills a few chickens by forcing garlic down their throats?

Sigh. But I guess other posters are right. Letting people know that they need to do their research before they get chickens is a good thing.

 

[purpletree23]

I thought about her article awhile and voted her Queen Dork. Imagine me screaming and running around the house pulling out my hair. It is a very biased article. Why do people think chickens are different from any other animal or for that matter humans. Having anything that needs daily care including a baby or children takes a lot of thought. If everyone really thought about having children no one would. They can get lice, appendicitis, broken bones, ear infections and other horrible things that I prefer not to mention.

You go into something like this hopefully with your eyes open and educated. A lot of people didn't and yes there are chickens at shelters and so are cats and dogs. Way too many irresponsible people. Our pound has so many cats it is waiving the adoption fee. Yes chickens are adorable when young but then reality sets in. I have to feed them everyday and go out into the snow and rain and clean up after them and then the chickens end up at shelters.

I'm so mad I could spit. I think I'll pop over to the chick section and get my twice daily fix of fuzzy butts and then I'll call our pound and see if they have any chickens that need a home. GRRRRRRRRR

 

[AZKat]

I didn't think that the article was so much anti-chicken as much as it was anti-clueless, careless chicken owner. I'm all for people keeping chickens (obviously), but its inevitable that some people are not going to do a good job, and its important to tell that side of the story too.

 

[DDRanch]

Quote:
Have to agree with this. More and more are turning up in our local animal shelters as people just don't want them anymore after the "cute" baby stage.

 

[Mahonri]

I'm hoping we all have chickens for life.

 

[budkingston]

Awesome responses.

One thing I would add... I think that this article says more about us than what is says about chickens....

Have we grown so far from nature, reality of life and death, as humans, that we somehow need to keep chickens as pets to recapture that, and when faced with the reality, we can't deal with it?

We are puzzled by disease?

We are puzzled by poop?

We are puzzled by noise?

We are puzzled by the response of neighbors?

And when all else fails, we need the assistance of an animal shelter to resolve an issue with chickens????

Really, we have learned to rely on others so much that we can't take care of ourselves, physically or emotionally. Maybe the government SHOULD require people to keep chickens. It would FORCE people to think through and resolve their problems. I guess it is just easier to send a check.

 

[DIMBY]

Buckingston makes some sense. As I said, there has to be a happy medium. Are my chickens pets? Well, yes and no. I am amazed at how 'tame' some of them are, but others want as little to do with me as possible, and that's fine. I really enjoy the eggs, as do my friends and neighbors, and I also just love the atmosphere they bring to my back yard. I have learned so much and there is a real 'zen' element to watching them. I lost five pounds over the summer (do the math, 100 feet from kitchen door to hen house, did that at least 20 times a day, every day....it really adds up!). I am learning what to worry about and when (the 3 day rule is a good one), and I have a neighbor who has about 30 chickens lined up to do the deed if and when required.

But, let's get real. Chickens aren't for everyone. I inherited three from somebody who thought it was a "cool" idea but realized after four weeks how much work and time they can take. I'm getting another two or three in a few weeks from a couple who are splitting up and have to sell their place. And our local animal control has a lot of chickens they don't know what to do with. Rather than madating every American own chickens how about this: if you're even thinking about it, you have to spend at least 30 hours logged onto backyardchickens.com before you can go there!!!!