start with baby chicks or adult birds?

[birdbrain5]

ok so i dont know what to do, i have 5 chickens i got at an auction, im no expert and they were young and now i have 3 roo's and 2 hens. i plan to keep one roo and both hens, and take the other 2 roos back to the auction. my question is, should i get more adolescent/adult chickens, or should i just get some pullet chicks from tractor supply? the only reason i didnt go that route from the begining is because i thought chicks would be alot more work, and wait. i have 2 dogs and 2 cats and didnt want to see anyone get eaten. now i have an empty hutch they could go in until they are big enough to put with the others.
to help me decide, can you tell me if i got chicks, about how long of a wait do i have until i can put them in with my other chickens? and how long until they will start laying? i know this depends on breed, and i honestly dont know what they have at tractor supply right now, so just a rough idea is ok. also, is this an alright time of year to get young chicks? im in NC so i dont have too bad of a winter coming.. but we have had some real heat lately.
and is there any reasons people dont just get adult chickens to begin with, other than having to quarantine them, or not knowing exactly how old they are? i dont plan to eat my birds, just want the eggs.
thanks!

 

[swordgeek]

The decision to start with chicks or adult birds is purely personal. I've raised day-old and 6/8-week-old birds now. The kids loved the cuteness of the chicks, but frankly, I found myself pretty stressed out about them. Were they warm enough? Too warm? Healthy? How many times did I have to de-paste a butt or clear out a gunked-up eye... But they were so darned CUTE! And we can pick them up and hold them and they're comfortable with that and... Uh-oh... now that we're so attached to them, one turns out to be a rooster... but we have to keep him, because he's our BABY!

Fast-forward 2 years and it's time to get something new. Pullets! Yeah! They're old enough that I don't have to worry so much! And I really don't have the free time I once had. Perfect solution. But wait... they aren't used to being picked up. They don't LIKE being handled. They barely want to feed from our hands. That sucks.

But we still love them. All of them. The raised-from-chick ones will still sit in our laps, and were worth the effort. And the new ones are adorable, if more stand-offish. And they're mostly getting along out there.

Oh, and I swear something ELSE out there has crowed twice in the past few weeks... besides the accidental rooster.

Anyway. It's a personal choice. Do you want to be able to hold and pet them? Do you just want eggs?