Questions about vacation

[savina99]

I have not had chickens yet but woul like some someday. My husband feels they will tie us down and we would not be able to go on vacation. At most it would be a week. We currently have a parrot and it is hard to find someone willing to take care o it because most o our friends and neighbors do not have them or are comfortable around them. Is there another way? What do you guys do?

 

[savina99]

...

I have not had chickens yet but would like some someday. My husband feels they will tie us down and we would not be able to go on vacation. At most it would be a week. We currently have a parrot and it is hard to find someone willing to take care of it because most of our friends and neighbors do not have them or are uncomfortable around them. Is there another way? What do you guys do with your chickens when your gone?

 

[FrankA]

It would probably be best to have someone look after your chickens while you're gone. With that said, they do have automatic feeders and waterers that will hold enough food and water for a week.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!

 

[Wyandottes7]

Welcome to BYC!

I'm glad you joined our "flock".

If you only go away for a couple of days, you will usually be fine just leaving your chickens with plenty of feed and water. However, I wouldn't leave chickens alone for a week without somebody to watch over them. So many things can happen (predator attacks, disease, etc).

 

[NickyKnack]

Welcome to BYC and the coop! There's a lot of great peeps here! Feel free to ask lots of questions. But most of all, make yourself at home. I'm so glad you decided to joined the BYC family.

 

[savina99]

Thanks for all the speedy replies! Can I have 4-6 chickens in a coop that houses 20? I have a shed on our property that is large enough to house 20 comfortablely. But ny has very cold winters zone 4 here. So we get about -20 -25 ish. Will this be too cold with all the extra space? I was hoping not to har to run electricity to it. I know I would have to have some hardy breeds.

 

[drumstick diva]

chickens huddled together put out some heat but, 4-6 in a coop that can hold 20 - no way- too much open area. Unless you put portable partitions inside to temporarily shrink the space down to an appropriate size. They would freeze, their water would probably freeze in your winter temps, and rodents ? might eliminate their feed faster than they could.

I had one real vacation, as in longer than a weekend, in 1984. None since, it comes down to what is more important to you. If I wanted to travel, I would not have animals.

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello and Welcome To BYC! X3, you really don't want to leave chickens, or any animals, alone for a week. Most people get a neighbor or relative to check on them and collect eggs (often in exchange for the eggs), with self feeders and waterers you can usually set it up so there is minimal work to be done. With water in the winter, it is a lot easier to have a heated waterer, or you are carrying water several times a day in the really cold weather. If you set it up right, you can have 4-6 chickens in a large space, you might have to partition it a little and your roost placement will be important... but you are better off with too much space in the winter rather than too little.

 

[savina99]

So without partitions what would be the smallest amount of hens I could house as a beginner? I eventually want to grow to have 10-20 hens but was a little intimidated since I've never kept them before. Also I have to have someone check an care for the parrot anyway I just didn't know how easy it was to get away and leave them. Because of the parrot we have never really been able to take a week long vacation. Mostly just an overnight but my husband dreams of a week on a tropical island. Worst part is, he is the one who wanted the parrot. Don't get me wrong I love my buckwheat (our Quaker parrot) but the bases of his argument was his fault in the fist place. So, I figured we are stuck at home anyway why not have chickens.