Newbie

[MedicMamma]

So I am defiantly a city girl. We moved to a small Texas town a few years ago and I am loving the small town living. Without city ordinances we have only discussed having chickens. Well.......long story short..... I sent my husband to the local feed store for a few things and he came back with 8 Rhode Island red chicks. So I guess we are doing this! I really am excited. We have had them for almost a week and they are super friendly and seem very healthy. In a mad dash to learn as much as I can about chickens I have stumbled onto this site. I am leaving town next week to go to the hardware store (It is two hours away) to get all the supplies to build a coop. I have found a new love in woodworking and conveniently we just moved my dad into an assisted living apartment and he gave me all of his tools! I hope my design works (fingers crossed) due to the distance I had to do some major planning because I can't just go back to the store if I forgot anything. My kids are supper excited and I am working on things to keep them away from the TV. Due to my job I am stuck in town for days while I am on call but get to stay at home. ( I am a paramedic) So this should be at the minimum an interesting adventure. (My family in the big city think I have gone crazy with real baby chicks inside my house.) I welcome any and all advice. I have been buying occasionally some local farm fresh eggs (when I remember to order them) and I am excited to be able to have my own in the back yard! I am nervous about the winters in the Texas panhandle. Not sure how that works with chickens with high winds (can be 30-40mph winds) and below freezing temps. Also the heat can get pretty bad also. We hit 93 today which is really warm already for the beginning of summer and no rain in sight. (horrible grassfires in our county). So I guess I am nervous about the hot summers too.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Welcome to BYC and congrats on your starter flock! So glad you've joined us.

 

[drumstick diva]

Chickens generally can tolerate cold much better than heat. So I would advise you post on the 'Texas thread' -put that in the search box above and it will pop up, then ask what type of coop works best, and what breeds they recommend to survive the heat.

In very hot areas some people have pretty much open air coops- for instance floor , roof, and two opposite sides that are wire attached to frame, and two solid sides, so there is free flow of air. Also lots of shade is great - natural or manufactured. You could have solid panels to cover the wire walls, when the weather turns cold.

 

[Chonke]

welcome to BYC. Im currently building my coop too during my free time. Dont forget to buy the supplies needed to feed and water your chickens. For example im making an automatic water and feed system so ill be buying PVC and chicken water nipples to get that set up. Luckily I had a bunch of 2x4s laying around from a previous project so i saved a lot by using those first.
Good luck and stay safe in that ambulance!

 

[Teila]

G’Day from down under MedicMamma

Welcome!

Did you check out the Learning Centre in your mad dash? Lots of good tips there: https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center

Best wishes!

I hope you enjoy being a BYC member. There are lots of friendly and very helpful folks here so not only is it overflowing with useful information it is also a great place to make friends and have some fun.

If you would like to share pictures and stories of your flock, you have come to the right place. BYC’ers never tire of these and do not back away slowly or commence eye rolling when the photo album or home videos come out

 

[redsoxs]

Hello from Kansas, MedicMamma, and

! It's great to have you in our community!

 

[N F C]

Here's a link to your state thread...I'm sure fellow Texans will have some advice for you regarding coops and breeds:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/44/texas

Best of luck to you!