SelmasRoost
In the Brooder
- May 30, 2020
- 3
- 12
- 24
Hi all, very very new to raising chickens. I have been wanting be more sustainable and to raise chickens for years. But that’s hard when you live in the city/suburbs And work full time And we don’t have a lot of room. When I retire my dream is to have a small homestead farm. I have been researching and studying up on raising chickens for many many months/years. So during our “stay at home” quarantine we decided we could do an urban coop in our little backyard. ( yes checked local codes and spoke to our neighbors for a go ahead). We collected free wood from Craigslist (building on a budget) & Ordered our chicks and started building.
The chicks are adorable. But terrifyingly new territory for us. They are now 4 weeks and I can’t believe how fast they grow. 1 BR, 1 Australoup, 1 Buff Orp, 1 partridge rock.. In all my searching on the internet I see tons of utube and sites with info from people with big yards or farms all with some important info to learn but all missing an important element for first time chicken owners. And very little on non conventional applications for start up help. For urban, non-farming people we quickly discovered we had to change our thought process on what owning/raising chickens meant. They are not dogs who provide unconditional love. And at first we were so upset/sad that the chicks were terrified of us. But we have worked hard to win their trust or at least tolerance. Once I understood that their nature as prey animals is to hide from everything I could understand their reactions. A farmer with a big homestead would think I was nutz to worry about that but this is what urban people worry about.
Once I figured out I Could mix their crumble with water and make a paste I could feed them by hand. That was a huge turning point. Now they run to me when I come to feed them. They still are afraid and don’t like being cuddled yet, (I hethat may come later as they get older) but I’m more confident they will at least interact with us.
our coop has been challenging to build as its wedged between 3 trees in a planter in our back patio. I made sure to plan it with the recommended SF for coop and run. I also made it demountable so we could take it with us if we ever moved.
our next challenges
In a few weeks we will move birds to coop. And figure out a routine that works fir cleaning and feeding.
thank you all for this wonderful site where I have learned tidbits of info from all over.
I hope to post again soon. Attaching a photo of our coop in progress. 90% of wood is recycled and free, even the siding & columns And moulding in front were from Craigslist and free. What added up on cost was screws hardware and hardware cloth. Plus bird food bedding etc... since this photo was taken we have added ramp and
runs on sides.
The chicks are adorable. But terrifyingly new territory for us. They are now 4 weeks and I can’t believe how fast they grow. 1 BR, 1 Australoup, 1 Buff Orp, 1 partridge rock.. In all my searching on the internet I see tons of utube and sites with info from people with big yards or farms all with some important info to learn but all missing an important element for first time chicken owners. And very little on non conventional applications for start up help. For urban, non-farming people we quickly discovered we had to change our thought process on what owning/raising chickens meant. They are not dogs who provide unconditional love. And at first we were so upset/sad that the chicks were terrified of us. But we have worked hard to win their trust or at least tolerance. Once I understood that their nature as prey animals is to hide from everything I could understand their reactions. A farmer with a big homestead would think I was nutz to worry about that but this is what urban people worry about.
Once I figured out I Could mix their crumble with water and make a paste I could feed them by hand. That was a huge turning point. Now they run to me when I come to feed them. They still are afraid and don’t like being cuddled yet, (I hethat may come later as they get older) but I’m more confident they will at least interact with us.
our coop has been challenging to build as its wedged between 3 trees in a planter in our back patio. I made sure to plan it with the recommended SF for coop and run. I also made it demountable so we could take it with us if we ever moved.
our next challenges
In a few weeks we will move birds to coop. And figure out a routine that works fir cleaning and feeding.
thank you all for this wonderful site where I have learned tidbits of info from all over.
I hope to post again soon. Attaching a photo of our coop in progress. 90% of wood is recycled and free, even the siding & columns And moulding in front were from Craigslist and free. What added up on cost was screws hardware and hardware cloth. Plus bird food bedding etc... since this photo was taken we have added ramp and
