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[frogletta]

Hello to all,
I was doing some research and came accross this site. i have been dreaming of raising chickens for a long time. Any advice on how to get started and how to get my husband to agree to it?

 

[arlee453]

there are loads of wise and experienced chicken folk here!

To get started, if you visit the BYC main page (www.backyardchickens.com) there is a 'learning center' link there with tons of information to help get you started.

Take a browse there and then come back and ask your specific questions here!

Welcome and hope you can get those chicks soon!

 

[s6bee]

You have to do what I did, just order them and say " oh by the way".
Then you have to say "oh by the way, you need to build me a coop", and "oh by the way, we need this and that, etc. "

If you order hens, you can sell the eggs. If he's ok with culling tell him you can start raising your own broilers and have healthy dinners! ( mine are only for eggs ).

The men usually love them just as much as us crazy ladies, they just won't admit it.

Welcome aboard by the way! This is unbelievably addicting!

 

[mmajw]

Start by figuring what breeds you want and how many. You can order them through an online hatchery or through your local feed store. Then you will need a coop and run for them.

 

[CrowinKing]

I sell enough eggs in 2 weeks to pay for feed and still have enough for our own fridge!! There fun to watch scratch around the yard very stress reducing!!! And if he doesn't agree to it just get some anyway that's what we all do here anyway he'll get over it!!!

 

[Slike]

Quote:
Lol, quoted for truth. I may have pulled this one a *couple times (see: many) when I was a little kid and starting out with chickens so my parents couldn't get a chance to say no, haha

Welcome to BYC!

 

[equine chick]

It took me two years to convince my dh we needed chickens. Two years of wasted time, eggs and chicken bliss. He really likes them as much as I do(well he likes them), he will love the eggs and when his friends ask for eggs he gets so proud you would have thought he layed them.

 

[cjeanean]

My hubby didn't like them at all, he thought they were annoying and a pain in the butt. Especially when he found out that he would have to move a 16x8 chicken coop 35 miles with the help of three teenage boys!!!!! The coop got to our house, surprisingly we were able to reassemble it, and once that was done he just ignored them. All that changed when we got our buff orpington hen! She fell in love with him, and now he loves ALL 30 chickens!!!!! We went from 10 to 30 (just since Feb 27th), with 27 more coming in three weeks....This is what I did to get past 10 of them:

Eggs: at 1.75 to 2.00 per doz at the store, think of how much money could be saved by raising our own chickens (of course, it's really not that much cheaper, if at all, but even a few cents can be called 'saving' LOL!)
Also, since the eggs from your hens will be better than store bought, they can be sold for more than the price of eggs in the store. I'll only be selling mine for 1.50 a dozen, but there are people on here who can get 2-4 bucks a doz for farm fresh eggs!

Meat: not only will you save money not having to buy chicken, you can sell it for 2-6 dollars a lb!!! Yes, I was SHOCKED at the fact ppl would be willing to pay that much for a farm fresh chicken, not even organic chicken!!!! If it was organic you could sell it for 8-12, at least that's the prices I've seen in the store for just organic chicken breast!!!

Fun: it's educational, and gives you the chance to experience a bit of the farm in an easy to manage small scale.

If none of the above arguments work, buy them, call him at work, tell him you have a surprise for when he gets home. Put on some lingerie, light some candles, and stand next to the brooder full of chicks. Oh, and make him something good for dinner. Good luck, and welcome!!!!

REMEMBER: the FAQ is an awesome place!!! You can spend hours there gleaning info about how to raise chickens!!! Also, chickens are FLOCK animals, make sure you get at least TWO of them!!!

 

[frogletta]

Thanks for all the advice. I let you guys know how it goes.

 

[Cheekon]

Good luck with your hubby!