Newbie Chicken Enthusiast in Nunn, Colorado, United States

[drumstick diva]

Welcome to the pulse beat of the chicken community, BACKYARD CHICKENS

 

[WindingRoad]

Hi

Christmas gift this year is a chicken coop to be built once the ground thaws! Since we are new to chickens, we are researching as much as we can about coop design, breeds, etc. I'm super excited to enjoy having hens and fresh eggs!

(1) Are you new to chickens / when did you first get chickens?
Yes. While we bought a chicken coop for my Dad 3 years back and he had 8 hens, down to 4 now, we have learned a lot about what not to do. So yes, we are very new and eager to learn how to give them the best life possible (home, enrichment, security, feed, etc) and reap fresh eggs.
(2) How many chickens do you have right now?
0... we will start with 10 this year and will build our coop to hold 20.
(3) What breeds do you have?
None - we are researching what egg-laying breeds do best in Northern Colorado (partly on the plains and just south of WY border) - summer heat can be brutal, not an ounce of shade, crazy winds are the norm, and winters fluctuate from 50 above to 0 with winds adding to that in both directions)
(4) What are your favorite aspects of raising backyard chickens?
How incredibly smart they are, watching their antics, and enjoying fresh eggs.
(5) What are some of your other hobbies?
Reading, cooking, needle felting, sewing, crochet, and the start to weaving.
(6) Tell us about your family, your other pets, your occupation, or anything else you'd like to share.
I'm a dog trainer and have also worked with mini donkeys, horses, goats, and hopefully chickens soon! Since learning theory holds true regardless of species, (from minnows to humans to everything in between) I am really looking forward to having some fun working with the chickens. I love to learn and am always interested in surrounding myself with other curious folks. We have 3 dogs, 1 cat, and 3 horses in our family.

(7) Bonus: How did you find BYC, how long have you known about BYC, and what made you finally join our awesome community?
I found you when my Dad was trying to learn what he could and could not feed his chickens. I did a google search for what is safe to feed chickens and found this site to be incredibly useful. I'm officially joining now since we are aiming to start our build in the spring and have chickens in early summer.

Chickens are very food driven in training. And chickens herd better than cows or sheep. I just have a small tree limb that I hit the ground with and in loud screeching voice I say Get in the COOOOOOOpPPPPPPP. I think they want me to shut up so they get in. I also praise them. What good girls you are!!!!!... LOL. They know UP ( to roost) DOWN. I just point a finger right at them on the one. GO OUT.. Come. They know their names too. You'll be very surprised how quickly they learn.

 

[Percheron chick]

Welcome.
I'm in the front range in a similar situation. I have had everything from cold hardy Cochins to heat loving leghorns and everything in between. Never had a heat related death but have seen a production decrease in the hottest summers with Cochins and Brahmas. But then I don't have those two for their egg laying prowess. I do not care for big floppy combs as they are more prone to frostbite. My philosophy on buying chickens is get what makes you happy. The more diverse, the better. Test the waters on your first 10 then expand your flock next year with the breeds that work for you. Is a colorful basket important? Do you name or tract each hen so being able to tell them apart is necessary? Is it high egg production? Breeds that I will always have in my flock for egg production are black australorp, barred rocks, easter egger and leghorn. For diversity of feathering, any wyandotte, EE (another vote), brabanter and Russian Orloff. For broodiness a cochin or two. I also have an Ameraucana rooster so I can hatch out some crazy looking EE.
I highly recommend picking up your chicks at Feeders Supply. They will have the largest selection of chicks short of going to a hatchery. Not uncommon for them to have upwards of 60 different breeds and feathering in the spring and summer.
You will find your natural horsemanship skills cross over to chickens easily. Geese too!

 

[puisheb]

hello! Welcome to the community! You fit right in already that would be pretty cool if you could train the chickens! I wonder if they could fetch the newspaper

There's a chicken camp for animal trainers that I would love to participate in. Need to save up the money to do so though! Until then, I'll be holding my own chicken training experiments!

 

[puisheb]

Chickens are very food driven in training. And chickens herd better than cows or sheep. I just have a small tree limb that I hit the ground with and in loud screeching voice I say Get in the COOOOOOOpPPPPPPP. I think they want me to shut up so they get in. I also praise them. What good girls you are!!!!!... LOL. They know UP ( to roost) DOWN. I just point a finger right at them on the one. GO OUT.. Come. They know their names too. You'll be very surprised how quickly they learn.

That is awesome!!!! Very cool! Sooooooo very excited to get the chicks! Need to rein it all in until the coop is built!