New member, hi!

Date sort Score sort
BeefQuesoritto said:
(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?

I'm new to chickens. I've only had them for 2 days, but they're so cute... I didn't know they could be so cute!

(2) How many chickens do you have right now?

7 chicks.

(3) What breeds do you have?

Not really sure, they're feed store chicks. I think two are cuckoo marans, 3 are barred rock, and the other 2 are unknown, but they're stripey. It's been pretty difficult to find chicks or eggs, so I just got what I could get while I could get it.

(4) What are your favorite aspects of raising backyard chickens?

I really like the idea of having eggs and knowing exactly where they came from. In general, I'm trying for food soverignty. So, I have a garden as well. I'd eventually like to have quail, turkeys, and geese.

(5) What are some of your other hobbies?

I like knitting and sewing. I can spin yarn, too.

(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.

Currently it's just me and a couple cats on 5 acres in the middle of nowhere.

(7) Bonus: How did you find BYC, how long have you known about BYC, and what made you finally join our awesome community?

I knew about the forum for a while, but never bothered joining because I didn't have any chickens. Now I do!
Click to expand...
Welcome to BYC!!
 
Glad to meet you, and welcome to BYC. What an awesome cat with spooky reflective eyes! Congratulations on your new chicks - very exciting and very cute. They develop so much personality and become so engaging!

Here are my favorite beginning articles that helped me as a newbie. All articles are short, and have illustrations, and reviews, which are often worth looking at for the comments.

1. Intro to chicken keeping

2. Common mistakes & how to fix them

3. Ventilation (important to chicken health), with helpful links to coop designs organized by climate (because what is just right for my New England hens won't work for my brother's Arizona chickens)

3(a). Farmers Almanac on Building Coops (Includes size requirements!)

4. Predator protection for new & existing coops

5. Dealing with a muddy coop and run

6. Winter chicken care

To look for articles on your own:

A. Use the SEARCH button, but use the Advanced Search choice, and select ARTICLES at the top of the box. Just enter your keyword(s) and scroll through your results!

B. I find it helpful to notice the rating and reviews. All articles are by BYC members, and all the reviews/ratings are as well. The ratings help a newbie like me sort the most useful and reliable articles.

C. You can bookmark the articles or posts you think you want to refer to again using that bookmark icon at the top of articles or posts. You can find them again by clicking on your own avatar and looking at the list of bookmarks you have built up!

Notes about where to put a coop:

1. As far as you can, put a coop and run on high ground, that drains well, so you won't have so much muddy coop problems. Chickens need to be dry, dry, dry.

2. As far as you can, put a coop with the ventilation lined up with your prevailing breezes, and away from the direction of your storms. If you are not sure of these (who is these days?), check with your local National Weather Service website.

3. As far as you can, arrange for some sort of shade over your coop and run. Preferably deciduous so the girls will enjoy winter sun, but summer shade.
 
Thanks so much for such a helpful post! I appreciate it. I've been reading a bunch of threads and keeping note.

The coop I have is an unused shed, 4x9, on the leeward side of my barn. I'll be cuting holes in it for a window and vents. I might scrap the window idea and just put hardware cloth there instead for an open coop, and use the cut out wall panel as a cover for winter.

The shed has no floor, and I'm debating on how to deal with that. I may dig in hardware cloth along the perimeter of the shed, or apron it out along the base. I have a lot of electric fencing, so I could probably run a couple wires around the base of the coop as well.

Shade and trees is unfortunately rare here, but I've just put in some windbreak trees! Planning on way more! I have a shadecloth cover for the run for now.

I hope that all sounds alright!
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom