I'm Halo. I am currently housing 12 chickens which are co-owned between myself and another family in town. I have the room, she does not, but we both have the desire to raise birds and get great eggs.
This is our second batch of birds. Last fall we were given 7 birds (all one breed, not sure what they were—red star, maybe) that were 2 or 3 mos old, someone had too many. A month or so later, we heard the first crow of a roo. I thought I had him picked out, but there were others that I thought were maybe-roos as well. So we decided to harvest three of them and get 4 more (with the idea that they would be better able to defend themselves in the coop if there were even numbers). The day after the first three were dispatched, someone in the coop crowed. That's when I became certain that what we were given were 5 roos and 2 hens. After harvesting the last two roos, we decided to pass the hens on to another friend who could give them a happy home and needed some more layers. The day we went in to clean things out, we found 4 pretty little eggs in one of the laying boxes.
So this spring we decided to start over with sexed chicks. We planned on having 10, so we got twelve (with the anticipation that we would lose one or two for whatever reason). So far all 12 are still alive and clucking.
1 RIR hen
3 Barred Rock hens
4 Welsummer hens
3 Silver Laced Wyandotte hens
1 Silver Laced Wyandotte rooster
Our roo was not planned, but not entirely unexpected. Out of 12 birds, I'm not shocked one is a roo. And this time I knew what I was looking at when he started to change.
They were hatched Feb 28, 2013, but we didn't get them until they were 3 weeks old. So far, the roo has yet to crow. I know the last batch we had had already started crowing by this age, so I'm kind of expecting to hear it any day. But I have also read that Wyandottes are sometimes quiet roos. He postures and flaps, but no crow. Some of the hens make plenty of noise in his stead—to the point where we are starting to wonder if it is an egg song, but so far no eggs.
A quiet roo would be a good thing because I live in town. Ordinances say we technically can't have chickens because we are not zoned for it and can't put the coop far enough away from houses. But I also know that lots of people in town have chickens in their yards. If none of the neighbors complain, the county doesn't really care. However, if I have a crower, I am more likely to have problems and lose them all. In effect, so long as he is quiet, he will stay. If/when he does start to crow, I will try to rehome him.
As for neighbors, the one who hears them the most doesn't mind at all. He actually liked the crowing, but that sound carries and I have no way of knowing that a neighbor the next street over won't complain. When we finally have layers, I plan to buy my neighbors' silence and happiness with eggs—we should have plenty.
And eggs could be coming soon.
That's my henny story so far. I have loved reading the forums for any number of questions and ideas. I have a few questions that I am still looking for answers to, so I'm sure you will see me around.
This is our second batch of birds. Last fall we were given 7 birds (all one breed, not sure what they were—red star, maybe) that were 2 or 3 mos old, someone had too many. A month or so later, we heard the first crow of a roo. I thought I had him picked out, but there were others that I thought were maybe-roos as well. So we decided to harvest three of them and get 4 more (with the idea that they would be better able to defend themselves in the coop if there were even numbers). The day after the first three were dispatched, someone in the coop crowed. That's when I became certain that what we were given were 5 roos and 2 hens. After harvesting the last two roos, we decided to pass the hens on to another friend who could give them a happy home and needed some more layers. The day we went in to clean things out, we found 4 pretty little eggs in one of the laying boxes.
So this spring we decided to start over with sexed chicks. We planned on having 10, so we got twelve (with the anticipation that we would lose one or two for whatever reason). So far all 12 are still alive and clucking.
1 RIR hen
3 Barred Rock hens
4 Welsummer hens
3 Silver Laced Wyandotte hens
1 Silver Laced Wyandotte rooster
Our roo was not planned, but not entirely unexpected. Out of 12 birds, I'm not shocked one is a roo. And this time I knew what I was looking at when he started to change.
They were hatched Feb 28, 2013, but we didn't get them until they were 3 weeks old. So far, the roo has yet to crow. I know the last batch we had had already started crowing by this age, so I'm kind of expecting to hear it any day. But I have also read that Wyandottes are sometimes quiet roos. He postures and flaps, but no crow. Some of the hens make plenty of noise in his stead—to the point where we are starting to wonder if it is an egg song, but so far no eggs.
A quiet roo would be a good thing because I live in town. Ordinances say we technically can't have chickens because we are not zoned for it and can't put the coop far enough away from houses. But I also know that lots of people in town have chickens in their yards. If none of the neighbors complain, the county doesn't really care. However, if I have a crower, I am more likely to have problems and lose them all. In effect, so long as he is quiet, he will stay. If/when he does start to crow, I will try to rehome him.
As for neighbors, the one who hears them the most doesn't mind at all. He actually liked the crowing, but that sound carries and I have no way of knowing that a neighbor the next street over won't complain. When we finally have layers, I plan to buy my neighbors' silence and happiness with eggs—we should have plenty.
And eggs could be coming soon.That's my henny story so far. I have loved reading the forums for any number of questions and ideas. I have a few questions that I am still looking for answers to, so I'm sure you will see me around.
