New Virginia Member Looking To Get Started!

manaze88

Chirping
7 Years
Apr 20, 2012
98
7
79
Berryville, Virginia
Hello....I'm just getting into this, and this seems like a decent resource that keeps popping up in my search results. I'll be working on a chicken coop this weekend, but have yet to figure out what type of chickens I'll be housing. Only going to have a small number of them, and for eggs only. As I'm searching through the site, trying to find the specific information I need to get me going in the right direction, if anyone has any helpful hints you don't mind sharing, I would surely appreciate it.

  • Leesburg Virginia Resident
  • Living in a non-HOA neighborhood
  • Reusing an old shed as part of the coop

I have a decent sized back yard, so I thought 3 or 4 chickens would do well with the space. I plan to keep them protected, and allow them the ability to go in/out of the shed into a covered area to protect against foxes, cats, dogs, etc. When I'm home, I intend to let them out to wander around the yard.

My biggest reason for going with chickens is that I have many food allergies, one of which is soy. The amount of soy in the chickens diet seems to have an impact on my egg-eating abilities, so I'll be going for gluten-free, soy-free chicken feed. I've tested out my allergies on some local farm provided eggs, and the results were good. The cost, on the other hand, was not so good. Trying to be more self-sufficient, the chickens will be a good addition to my back yard garden (which I'm keeping fenced in to protect against local predators as well).

Given the area that I live in, I'm trying to determine the best chickens for my needs. The Amber Star Hybrid came up in my search, which of course is a bird I know nothing about, outside of the fact that it lays eggs, and is docile. Not sure if that has any relation to 'quiet' but that's one of the things I'm looking for, as well.

I'm sure a lot of what I'm looking for is spelled out for me on this site, so I apologize in advance for those that feel like this is the millionth time someone has asked the same questions. Gotta start somewhere, though!

Thank you, and let the games begin....
 
Hello and Good Luck.. I raise Chickens and sell their Eggs sadly due to allergies I can not enjoy eating them .. But I haven't tried altering their Diet as you spoke of. Though I have read that Duck Eggs are usually more tolerable. And Have tried them .. My sensitivity is mostly to the Whites so occasionally I do eat a Duck Egg removing most of the white.. Usually Tastes wonderful with Minimal Side effects .. Wishing you The Best of Luck !!
welcome-byc.gif
 
Hello and welcome! My chicks are still babies so I can't recommend a quiet breed, but my production reds are super friendly. From what I understand, all of the hatchery hybrids are basically bred to be great egg producers and to be docile. But I have also read that they sometimes stop laying eggs after two years. So if you are looking for pets that will lay for a longer time, you may want to try a chicken that isn't a cross.

Have fun chicken shopping!
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom