My boyfriend and I moved into our house about 6 months ago and contemplated chickens for a long while. We finally went and got our 4 chicks yesterday. We found a small, well established livestock supply store. The people there were very knowledgeable and helpful. We weren't sure about which breeds we wanted so we got 4 different ones. A RIR, a Black Sex Link, a Welsummer and what I think is an EE, it was sold as an Americana. The Welsummer was also labeled as a Welsommer on their site so not sure if that's just an alternate spelling or if it's a mix as well. We don't plan to show them and don't have a rooster so as long as they're healthy and lay eggs we'll be happy.
We are using a cardboard box in our garage for the chicks which is pretty warm even without a heat lamp since it IS May in Arizona but we're using a red bulb to raise it up to 95 F in the box. They seem to have found the water, are eating a lot, are active during the day and not clumping up on each other or anything so hopefully they're happy. I have read a bit about pasty butt and things like that so I'm going to be a paranoid new chicken mama for a while I'm sure.
We also have a small dog and 2 indoor cats. None of them have access to where the chickens are. We'll be turning a large resin shed into our coop. It was here on the property when we moved in and we barely use it. We'll be adding a couple extra windows and a run to it. We have our plans all drawn out for the nest boxes and roosts etc so over the next couple weekends we'll be building it and getting it ready for them. The chickens will have time out in the yard as well while I'm doing my gardening. Unfortunately our neighbor has a bunny and bird killing outdoor cat who likes to hop the 6ft block wall into our yard so they'll never be left outside of the coop/run alone.
This forum has been very helpful since we started contemplating the chickens so I'm sure I'll have tons of questions as we progress.
We are using a cardboard box in our garage for the chicks which is pretty warm even without a heat lamp since it IS May in Arizona but we're using a red bulb to raise it up to 95 F in the box. They seem to have found the water, are eating a lot, are active during the day and not clumping up on each other or anything so hopefully they're happy. I have read a bit about pasty butt and things like that so I'm going to be a paranoid new chicken mama for a while I'm sure.
We also have a small dog and 2 indoor cats. None of them have access to where the chickens are. We'll be turning a large resin shed into our coop. It was here on the property when we moved in and we barely use it. We'll be adding a couple extra windows and a run to it. We have our plans all drawn out for the nest boxes and roosts etc so over the next couple weekends we'll be building it and getting it ready for them. The chickens will have time out in the yard as well while I'm doing my gardening. Unfortunately our neighbor has a bunny and bird killing outdoor cat who likes to hop the 6ft block wall into our yard so they'll never be left outside of the coop/run alone.
This forum has been very helpful since we started contemplating the chickens so I'm sure I'll have tons of questions as we progress.
