Hi all! I am a returning member after a really long chicken-free break, and happy to be back!
We sold my second flock (raised from incubated eggs I had on hand when my first flock was killed by coyotes) to a friend in 2011 during my complicated twin pregnancy, when I couldn’t stand the idea of eating fresh eggs from my (clean!) coop and hubby had too many chores to keep up. I ended up losing my babies in 2011 and we focused the next years on getting and staying pregnant.
We are now newly back to raising chickens along with our 6.5-year old son and 3.5-year old daughter (and two ESS pups and our small herd of registered Highland cattle). We were gifted my hubby’s boss’s custom 8’x10’ coop and three hens who he claimed were no longer laying (I didn’t find that out until they got here). I’m happy to say that today, Day 12 since they arrived, after getting one egg most days, we have THREE eggs in the nest boxes!
Our son will be thrilled! Our no name (so far) hens are a Red Star, a Black Star and (I think) a New Hampshire. We ultimately plan to have six laying hens. No roosters this time, at least not yet. And no free ranging plans as of yet, either. The coop is on skids and needs to be moved back about eight feet (in line with the front of our barn) and a bigger run built. I will be researching automatic chicken doors (solar operated, if that’s a thing, b/c no power at the coop), as the current chicken door opens outward instead of up and keeps getting blown shut by the wind.
We sold my second flock (raised from incubated eggs I had on hand when my first flock was killed by coyotes) to a friend in 2011 during my complicated twin pregnancy, when I couldn’t stand the idea of eating fresh eggs from my (clean!) coop and hubby had too many chores to keep up. I ended up losing my babies in 2011 and we focused the next years on getting and staying pregnant.
We are now newly back to raising chickens along with our 6.5-year old son and 3.5-year old daughter (and two ESS pups and our small herd of registered Highland cattle). We were gifted my hubby’s boss’s custom 8’x10’ coop and three hens who he claimed were no longer laying (I didn’t find that out until they got here). I’m happy to say that today, Day 12 since they arrived, after getting one egg most days, we have THREE eggs in the nest boxes!
Our son will be thrilled! Our no name (so far) hens are a Red Star, a Black Star and (I think) a New Hampshire. We ultimately plan to have six laying hens. No roosters this time, at least not yet. And no free ranging plans as of yet, either. The coop is on skids and needs to be moved back about eight feet (in line with the front of our barn) and a bigger run built. I will be researching automatic chicken doors (solar operated, if that’s a thing, b/c no power at the coop), as the current chicken door opens outward instead of up and keeps getting blown shut by the wind.
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