New? Not so much, but as for chicken rearing, yes.

My name is Lynn, my wife's name is Merlene.

Here the answers to the sample questions:

(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens? I was raised on a farm, but we didn't raise chickens. We got our first "flock" early this spring.

(2) How many chickens do you have right now? We decided on having three, but bought an extra one, just in case one didn't make it. They all survived so we have four.

(3) What breeds do you have? They are Black Sex Links.

(4) How did you find out about BackYardChickens.com? Searching the Internet for information on chickens and coops.

(5) What are some of your other hobbies? Gardening, traveling, fishing, hiking and camping.

(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share. I am retired military (35 years US Army); married (50 years in two weeks); no pets, lost our dog to old age about a month ago; We are both Master Gardeners and I volunteer at the local Botanical Gardens each summer as a Plant Diagnostician.

I am finding raising chickens to be an interesting adventure. Some times they seem pretty smart, but other times they couldn't be any dumber. I have found a lot of useful advice and information on BackyardChickens.com. Hopefully I will be able to contribute to the knowledge base as well.

Lynn (& Merlene)
South Ogden, UT, USA