- Feb 1, 2014
- 4
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Hello everyone on Backyard Chickens! Boy, I sure am glad to have found this website. My name is Hannah, and I am thinking of keeping a few chickens around. Here are my answers to the suggested questions to answer when introducing yourself here on this site.
(1) I am new to chickens. I don't have any yet, because I would like to be as educated as possible on the caring of chickens before getting my hands way too full.
(2) I do not have any chickens right now, but I am looking to buy some soon. I asked my husband to buy me some chickens for my birthday which is in a few days. He said find out everything we will need to have and do and we can get some.
(3) No breeds yet, but I have looked at this website some already before joining and am thinking of getting some Barred Rock chickens, or the Rhode Island Reds. I want hens only, just for making eggs, I do not plan to eat any chickens (I'm too close to my pets, and so is my husband!)
(4) I googled "How to care for chickens" and this website came up. I haven't gone anywhere else because this site is answering all my questions!
(5) My hobbies outside of family care are reading and cooking. Cajun meals are my favorite (etoufee's, rice and gravy, gumbo, etc.)
(6) My husband and I have a 4 month old daughter, she is the sweetest little thing! He is a professor at the local community college, and I am a stay at home mom. Besides our daughter we have lots of animal children. We have 4 dogs. 1 Great Dane, Artemis, 1 Pit-Lab mix, Aphrodite, 1 mutt dog that we aren't sure his breed because we rescued him from his abusive owners that we renamed Indy (like Indiana Jones Jr.'s dog, because he narrowly escaped death
) and 1 chihuahua that is indoors (my baby before my daughter). We also have 5 kittens, 4 from the same litter and 1 from the road that we recently took in. The kittens names are Bast, Thoth, Oki, Simon, and rescue kitty doesn't have a name yet. My husband and I are animal lovers. We can't watch the commercials with the sad animals on them or I cry!
We live in south Louisiana, in a sweet spot. We live in town, but we own 6 1/4 acres of land. The land was previously used for Cock fights (which we find disgusting) and there is what we call "the barn" which is the old arena and snack bar/office. Behind the barn and arena there is a building where they used to keep the roosters for fighting. There are in all about 30 rooms that are filled with chicken coops. These coops have just been sitting there for that last few years, and the land is empty. I thought it was time to change that. Now that my daughter is not so small, I have a lot more time and ability to start something new. Put our land to good use. I wished to start that by keeping a few chickens, and see where it takes me.
HERE ARE A FEW QUESTIONS I HAVE FOR STARTING OFF:
1) Should we get eggs to hatch ourselves or baby chicks?
2) Should we get a hen to mother the chicks?
3) Do I have to have a rooster if I plan on having (approx.3) hens?
4) Where can I buy the chickens I wish to have locally? (Craig's List?)
Thanks in advance for answering the questions and welcoming me to the board!
(1) I am new to chickens. I don't have any yet, because I would like to be as educated as possible on the caring of chickens before getting my hands way too full.
(2) I do not have any chickens right now, but I am looking to buy some soon. I asked my husband to buy me some chickens for my birthday which is in a few days. He said find out everything we will need to have and do and we can get some.
(3) No breeds yet, but I have looked at this website some already before joining and am thinking of getting some Barred Rock chickens, or the Rhode Island Reds. I want hens only, just for making eggs, I do not plan to eat any chickens (I'm too close to my pets, and so is my husband!)
(4) I googled "How to care for chickens" and this website came up. I haven't gone anywhere else because this site is answering all my questions!
(5) My hobbies outside of family care are reading and cooking. Cajun meals are my favorite (etoufee's, rice and gravy, gumbo, etc.)
(6) My husband and I have a 4 month old daughter, she is the sweetest little thing! He is a professor at the local community college, and I am a stay at home mom. Besides our daughter we have lots of animal children. We have 4 dogs. 1 Great Dane, Artemis, 1 Pit-Lab mix, Aphrodite, 1 mutt dog that we aren't sure his breed because we rescued him from his abusive owners that we renamed Indy (like Indiana Jones Jr.'s dog, because he narrowly escaped death
) and 1 chihuahua that is indoors (my baby before my daughter). We also have 5 kittens, 4 from the same litter and 1 from the road that we recently took in. The kittens names are Bast, Thoth, Oki, Simon, and rescue kitty doesn't have a name yet. My husband and I are animal lovers. We can't watch the commercials with the sad animals on them or I cry! We live in south Louisiana, in a sweet spot. We live in town, but we own 6 1/4 acres of land. The land was previously used for Cock fights (which we find disgusting) and there is what we call "the barn" which is the old arena and snack bar/office. Behind the barn and arena there is a building where they used to keep the roosters for fighting. There are in all about 30 rooms that are filled with chicken coops. These coops have just been sitting there for that last few years, and the land is empty. I thought it was time to change that. Now that my daughter is not so small, I have a lot more time and ability to start something new. Put our land to good use. I wished to start that by keeping a few chickens, and see where it takes me.
HERE ARE A FEW QUESTIONS I HAVE FOR STARTING OFF:
1) Should we get eggs to hatch ourselves or baby chicks?
2) Should we get a hen to mother the chicks?
3) Do I have to have a rooster if I plan on having (approx.3) hens?
4) Where can I buy the chickens I wish to have locally? (Craig's List?)
Thanks in advance for answering the questions and welcoming me to the board!
and Welcome To BYC! With eggs, besides just the fun of hatching chicks, one reason for eggs is they are the easiest way to get unusual breeds or types of chickens not available as chicks in your area. Think the biggest reasons to get already hatched chicks is you know how many chicks you have to start with since the hatch % on eggs can really vary and you may wind up with nothing after waiting three weeks. The BYC Learning Center has a nice article on using an incubator vs a broody hen for hatching chicks. 
