Living with Chickens, Things I Have Learned

[wesnmads]

We are only about 8 months in, but we have had some definite fails and surprises. Here are some lessons I have learned.

1. Never expect that your chicken will not bathe/flail in any dirt or in our case wood chipping meticulously laid in a pathway around a garden causing an extreme mess. We are now in the process of vacuuming the lawn and laying a brick pathway.

2. Never expect that your chickens and vegetable garden will live in harmony a'la some French impressionist painting. Learned that one after I planted my new spring garden, went away for the day and came back to a leveled garden...one 4 hour period!

3. Poop...oh the poop. Let's just say free-range and patio sets may not be the best idea.

4. Speaking of poop, the size! I thought chicken poop would be petite somehow, not the case....at all.

5. Hens can be loud. Not sure why I didn't know that, but I didn't. They squak every morning when the sun comes up..still hoping we won't get that ackward talk from a neighbor.

6. The depths you will go to to make those little girlies happy and healthy. Form sprouted foods, chicken gardens, mealworm farming, probiotics etc. and it all sounds perfectly reasonable to me.

Anybody else have any lessons or stories to share?

 

[justplainbatty]

We are only about 8 months in, but we have had some definite fails and surprises. Here are some lessons I have learned.

1. Never expect that your chicken will not bathe/flail in any dirt or in our case wood chipping meticulously laid in a pathway around a garden causing an extreme mess. We are now in the process of vacuuming the lawn and laying a brick pathway.

2. Never expect that your chickens and vegetable garden will live in harmony a'la some French impressionist painting. Learned that one after I planted my new spring garden, went away for the day and came back to a leveled garden...one 4 hour period!

3. Poop...oh the poop. Let's just say free-range and patio sets may not be the best idea.

4. Speaking of poop, the size! I thought chicken poop would be petite somehow, not the case....at all.

5. Hens can be loud. Not sure why I didn't know that, but I didn't. They squak every morning when the sun comes up..still hoping we won't get that ackward talk from a neighbor.

6. The depths you will go to to make those little girlies happy and healthy. Form sprouted foods, chicken gardens, mealworm farming, probiotics etc. and it all sounds perfectly reasonable to me.

Anybody else have any lessons or stories to share?

HAha! Welcome to chickens. I have lost countless garden flower plants, tomatoes,zucchini, cucumbers ect to my birds. They are ever so helpful when I start to dig a hole for a plant, they happily dig and turn the soil for me. When they leave, I plant my plant. An hour later it is unplanted, I guess they weren't done. I carefully spread my mulch only to find it in a pile again later. (I now do my gardening at night with the help of the house flood lights and a lot of mosquito spray). I give them fresh water but they drink out of a mud puddle instead. I thought the lawn chairs were for me but chickens like them too. I need caution tape for the craters by the walls of the house where they sun/ dust bathe. Chicken poo land mines- everywhere! I miss my dog who used to eat the poo on my deck, porch and sidewalk. Spoil them? I can't stop, it's like a drug! I can't help you, I've lost my mind! Happy happy me- twirl twirl.....

baaawk!