My chickens seem cramped?

[Krugerrand]

as an FYI for those who may not be familiar ... here is a rental company in my parts of the world:
http://www.rentthechicken.com/p/western-pa-and-surrounding-areas.html
I've seen some other companies in other areas, too.

We gave this serious consideration for this spring, but then decided to just go ahead and put the money towards building what we wanted and what would work for us. Plus, I wanted the kids to have a chance to bond with chicks. Getting eggs right away wasn't as big of a priority.

I think the business model is interesting ... and worth investigating in some other ways.

 

[LaFleche]

If you want the chicken keeping hobby mainly for your children, starting with chicks or even incubating some hatching eggs might be the thing to do instead of renting mature production hens.

There are small incubators available and it will be a revelation for your kids to watch their development during incubation (candling is THE event!) and how the chicks work themselves out of their eggshells, so they can bond with them right from the start.

As your space is limited and you do not want to sacrifice your garden, bantams might be the right choice. Bantam Wyandottes come in various colour variations, lay a reasonable amount of eggs and are easy to handle, Silkies or Polish are easy to tame as well.

ETA: And if you are into blue or green eggs, cute bantam Araucana will provide them and be people friendly as well.

 

[clarkbre]

Too funny. I just told my husband what you wrote, and he was like we'll see... Anyway,I just measured and we do have the space for about a 4'x10' (or maybe 5'x8') run if we end up keeping them. I'm hesitant to build a bigger run right now for two reason: if we DON'T end up keeping them, I don't necessarily want all that grass destroyed (I know, it's a superficial reason, but I've worked hard to get grass to grow in that area!), and 2) I'm worried about predators, mainly foxes, digging under. The run they came with has fencing on the bottom so they are safe, and I worry that we'd be liable if something happened to them because they were in a different run (it didn't say anything about that on the agreement). We do have foxes in our neighborhood (as well as a Cooper hawk that hangs out on my block).

You're actually in a VERY good spot. It sounds like you're committed (paid upfront?) to these 2 hens. Other than expanding their run area to give them a little more space, let it ride! See how the summer/fall goes with 2 and take notes.

Questions to ask:
- Are you and your husband both equally committed to keeping chickens for years to come?
- Are you enjoying the entertainment of the hens?
- Are 2 hens supplying enough eggs or would you like more?
- Are you willing to commit an area of your yard to it? (Sounds like 40 sq ft might be the initial plan)
- What do you currently like and dislike about the rented coop and run?

Once you honestly start answering these questions in the summer/fall, take the winter to research and design a coop/run AND the chicken breeds you would like to raise. Then, in early spring, start building your design. At that point, you can get the first run of chicks in the spring and raise them as you own. That is it's own fun experience as well.

 

[Krugerrand]

You're actually in a VERY good spot. It sounds like you're committed (paid upfront?) to these 2 hens. Other than expanding their run area to give them a little more space, let it ride! See how the summer/fall goes with 2 and take notes.

Questions to ask:
- Are you and your husband both equally committed to keeping chickens for years to come?
- Are you enjoying the entertainment of the hens?
- Are 2 hens supplying enough eggs or would you like more?
- Are you willing to commit an area of your yard to it? (Sounds like 40 sq ft might be the initial plan)
- What do you currently like and dislike about the rented coop and run?

Once you honestly start answering these questions in the summer/fall, take the winter to research and design a coop/run AND the chicken breeds you would like to raise. Then, in early spring, start building your design. At that point, you can get the first run of chicks in the spring and raise them as you own. That is it's own fun experience as well.

I think this is all very good advice. I think you really want to find out what chickens you want long-term. You have chickens that will lay great for 2 years and then the production will drop quickly and likely won't live long after that. (and that may be what you want!) Keep in mind, after this rental agreement, they'll be nearly half-spent.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/red-stars-lifespan.870608/#post-13186394

My only suggestion would be to start the design phase before Spring. As you get ideas, you can keep an eye out on things like Craigslist for materials cheap/free. And given the cost of materials these days, the savings can be substantial with early planning.

 

[Alfia]

I think this is all very good advice. I think you really want to find out what chickens you want long-term. You have chickens that will lay great for 2 years and then the production will drop quickly and likely won't live long after that. (and that may be what you want!) Keep in mind, after this rental agreement, they'll be nearly half-spent.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/red-stars-lifespan.870608/#post-13186394

My only suggestion would be to start the design phase before Spring. As you get ideas, you can keep an eye out on things like Craigslist for materials cheap/free. And given the cost of materials these days, the savings can be substantial with early planning.

Thanks, great advice! Since we have a 3 year old, I think we would probably opt for hens with a longer lifespan.

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

Or start on the coop and get chicks now since they will be in the brooder for several weeks.

Terrible idea imo, build first then brood them in the coop. My chicks are fully feathered and off heat usually in 3.5 to 4 weeks brooding in coop with overnight temps in the mid 30's

People should not put the chick before the coop

 

[Krugerrand]

Thanks, great advice! Since we have a 3 year old, I think we would probably opt for hens with a longer lifespan.

Alfia ... how is the rental coming along? Did you figure out some more space for the girls? I'm not allowed roosters by township ordinance and Saturday morning my 14-week silkie decided to crow at 5:40.

That got me to thinking about your rental arrangement and thought I'd share some thoughts.

The kids really liked the chick-raising experience. (we bought from TSC) We had picked out 2 golden comets (virtually guaranteed hens, like what you have), and a straight run of easter egger and silkie. If you are in a situation where you cannot keep a rooster and get straight runs ... it adds a good deal of stress, particularly when young kids are involved. We were fortunate to be able to find a home for our rooster, but it's not always so easy and still many tears were shed.

Now were faced with deciding if we want to replace #4 now or later. After watching craigstlist, I see that it won't be too hard to get a 10-14 week old pullet ... which is the path I think we'll take in a couple years to stretch out the egg production.

Bottom line, if yo go with chicks next year and want to be sure you have girls, I'd strongly recommend something with a high probability of being a pullet.

 

[Alfia]

The 2 will likely be ok in there but make sure they get out as much as possible to freerange. Any chance of adding a small fence or enclosure for them to expand the area?


Not sure about introducing new to the existing as I don't have much experience with that.

It's funny your husband has come around to them. When we built our first coop/run in '14 I thought my wife was crazy to get chickens. The build was fun and once the chickens were using it, I warmed up to the hobby quite a bit.

After moving last summer, we left the coop and the flock to the new home owners and have started our coop(4x8)/run(10x8) build for 8 new chicks. It's been fun but I am already thinking of adding another 4x8 run and 2.5x4 coop for a flock of 4 bantams.

My wife has officially created a chicken farmer out of me!!!

Too funny. I just told my husband what you wrote, and he was like we'll see... Anyway,I just measured and we do have the space for about a 4'x10' (or maybe 5'x8') run if we end up keeping them. I'm hesitant to build a bigger run right now for two reason: if we DON'T end up keeping them, I don't necessarily want all that grass destroyed (I know, it's a superficial reason, but I've worked hard to get grass to grow in that area!), and 2) I'm worried about predators, mainly foxes, digging under. The run they came with has fencing on the bottom so they are safe, and I worry that we'd be liable if something happened to them because they were in a different run (it didn't say anything about that on the agreement). We do have foxes in our neighborhood (as well as a Cooper hawk that hangs out on my block).

 

[Alfia]

as an FYI for those who may not be familiar ... here is a rental company in my parts of the world:
http://www.rentthechicken.com/p/western-pa-and-surrounding-areas.html
I've seen some other companies in other areas, too.

We gave this serious consideration for this spring, but then decided to just go ahead and put the money towards building what we wanted and what would work for us. Plus, I wanted the kids to have a chance to bond with chicks. Getting eggs right away wasn't as big of a priority.

I think the business model is interesting ... and worth investigating in some other ways.

That's the company we are using.

 

[clarkbre]

I'm in southeast PA, and luckily the spot we have for them is under a giant spruce tree, so they do get mostly shade. And @Ridgerunner, we have had them about 3 weeks, but I've been moving the whole setup around some so the poop doesn't build up. I think I'm going to keep it in one place going forward but put wood chips in the bottom. They don't seem stressed or unhappy, just kinda bored! Every time I go out, they cluck at me and seem like they desperately want out of the run. I have lots of yummy bugs in my yard, I suppose.

They need fresh ground to peck, scratch and do their thing. They will be happier for it.