Should I buy now?

[LLMama]

Hello. I am a chicken virgin that has been daydreaming about getting some for years. I now have two toddlers and I really think they would benefit from having animals (that is how I rationalizing this to my husband). I am getting started late and I want to get a 4 chicks to lay eggs, (3 golden buffs and one rock bantam) is is too late to get them this year? They wouldn't reach maturity until November, when the weather is getting cool.
Thank you for your help in advance.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

I think you could get chickens this year, but I would personally not buy chicks at this time of year. If you buy chicks, there is a very good chance that they will not lay their first egg until spring 2014 since they will reach maturity as the days are getting very short. If I were you, I'd look about for "started pullets" or laying hens that are less than a year old.

If you are determined to have chicks, then get them very late, perhaps mid-November. Then they will be ready to lay eggs for you in April.

Temperature has very little to do with when hens lay eggs--instead, it's all about how much light they get. Hens are very photo-sensitive. They quit laying eggs in the winter because they are not getting enough light. If they were getting at least 14 hours of light, they would lay no matter how cold it is outside.

 

[LLMama]

ok. that makes sense. I have a farmer that might sell me some older chicks but I read that if the chicks aren't handled by humans from the time they are hatched they won't be as friendly and I wanted my 3 year old to have a good experience with them. Do you predict this being an issue?