Hi everyone,
I am Emily Fournier. Although my BYC membership is new, I have been relying on the forums here to answer my weird chicken questions for a couple years now.
I have been backyard chickening for 3 years and have expanded from 1 to 3 coops. I call my flock the Book Club Farm because all my chickens are named after female characters written by female authors. I currently have 12 chickens (7 of which are currently chicks). Last summer I lost most of my flock due to sickness that we couldn't seem to cure, but we seem to be doing pretty well now.
I got into raising chickens (or as I call it "chickening") when I was a little girl, although I was an adult before I got my first chicken. My grandfather used to be an inspector for chicken farms and I always loved hearing his stories. My mom, as a result of my grandfather's work, grew up on a chicken farm and missed having chickens when she moved into town. My grandfather passed away a few years ago, that same year my town passed a new ordinance allowing backyard chickens. When I started preparing for my first set of chicks I had no idea how to care for chickens, just memories of stories from my grandfather. I researched and built a coop and got the chicks and fell in love. I am now known as "the chicken lady" by friends and strangers, I even have a chicken suit that I sometimes wear while tending to my chickens which the neighbor's kids get a huge kick out of.
The coolest part, for me, about raising backyard chickens is getting to connect with so many other people. My neighbors and friends all buy eggs off of me (when I have them, we go through a lot of eggs at my house). My neighbor's kids come over and ask about the chickens and pet them. I always give them an egg straight from the coop when they come over, which to them is the coolest thing ever. People have come out of the woodwork to talk about chickens with me. I love meeting someone new and learning that they have chickens and instantly start swapping stories. It is not uncommon for people to hear me say something like "Anyone want to come pick up chicks with me" which my friends now think is a totally normal statement.
It is so awesome to get to care for these beautiful birds and get to know their personalities.
I am Emily Fournier. Although my BYC membership is new, I have been relying on the forums here to answer my weird chicken questions for a couple years now.
I have been backyard chickening for 3 years and have expanded from 1 to 3 coops. I call my flock the Book Club Farm because all my chickens are named after female characters written by female authors. I currently have 12 chickens (7 of which are currently chicks). Last summer I lost most of my flock due to sickness that we couldn't seem to cure, but we seem to be doing pretty well now.
I got into raising chickens (or as I call it "chickening") when I was a little girl, although I was an adult before I got my first chicken. My grandfather used to be an inspector for chicken farms and I always loved hearing his stories. My mom, as a result of my grandfather's work, grew up on a chicken farm and missed having chickens when she moved into town. My grandfather passed away a few years ago, that same year my town passed a new ordinance allowing backyard chickens. When I started preparing for my first set of chicks I had no idea how to care for chickens, just memories of stories from my grandfather. I researched and built a coop and got the chicks and fell in love. I am now known as "the chicken lady" by friends and strangers, I even have a chicken suit that I sometimes wear while tending to my chickens which the neighbor's kids get a huge kick out of.
The coolest part, for me, about raising backyard chickens is getting to connect with so many other people. My neighbors and friends all buy eggs off of me (when I have them, we go through a lot of eggs at my house). My neighbor's kids come over and ask about the chickens and pet them. I always give them an egg straight from the coop when they come over, which to them is the coolest thing ever. People have come out of the woodwork to talk about chickens with me. I love meeting someone new and learning that they have chickens and instantly start swapping stories. It is not uncommon for people to hear me say something like "Anyone want to come pick up chicks with me" which my friends now think is a totally normal statement.
It is so awesome to get to care for these beautiful birds and get to know their personalities.
