Starting a flock

[H E R]

I've recently inherited 2 polish 1 silver laced sebright rooster and 4 silkie chicks and trust me when I say I have my hands full they are all different ages so trying to give everyone their needed attention. Not to mention my one silver lace wyandotte that just got over a dog attack that follows me wherever I go. I think chicks are better because you know their diet and the treatment of the pet. You know how you take care of you flock inheriting someone else issue's can be tiring. But I've had them since Christmas and they are all coming around and getting to know who everyone is and the pecking order. Jmo

 

[Jan78]

start with babies they will get to know you

 

[cindynkidsd]

Either way, start small! "The more you have the more you want!" Its addicting!!!! I agree though, introducing new chickens to whatever age you have is tricky. Read up on it first. This site will be your "best friend"!

 

[Pointyp72]

We chose young pullets, to avoid doing anything special for eggs/chicks. Also with that, we've added a couple pullets to the flock gradually over time. That helps with the amount of eggs they lay. Having a 6 yr. old hen laying infrequently, a 4 yr. old hen laying pretty steady and a 1 1/2 yr. old laying TONS is great!

 

[Chicken-Man]

It deepens on what you want, starting from chicks mean you need to wait months for eggs but they are so cute

and you can hand raise and tame them. And it means with the chicks they all live together forever so they all love each other. My first 3 hens were all chicks and they all love each other as much as I love them. It also means when they do lay they wont want to bite you as much when collecting eggs. But if you are looking for eggs

and not nessaserally pets too I would say go with layers. But I also suggest u get them at a younger egg stage so you get al the eggs from them.

I prefer getting chicks but it's your choice hope I have helped. -Live Long And Prosper and may the force be with us all.

 

[Shalom Farm]

Here is how I size things up. I started with hens, already in lay and getting right into the fun of it and grew from there.

Benefits of Hens:
- Old enough to lay
- Knowledge of health and history
- Less likely to have medical emergencies than chicks
- Have distinct personalities already and you can select for which you prefer
- Idea of laying ability
- Select for a colorful flock
- Insurance against having a cock sneak in
- In established flocks the pecking order is set
- Less complicated care and allows the beginner keeper all the joys of chickens right away without wait or potential heartbreak

Cons of Hens:
- Older than pullets and so if you care only for production, their productive lives are already partially spent
- Aging is tricky and you have to trust the person you are buying from is telling the truth
- Because of the move, they will stop laying for a bit while they settle
- Breaking up or taking only part of an established flock can cause some upset in the social dynamics
- No ability to hand rear and develop people friendliness, so be very choosy of which birds you purchase
- More expensive. $10-50 each depending on the breed. More if it is a Show Quality (SQ) Bird.
- Can bring illness into existing flocks or spread illness by change of location


Benefits of Pullets:
- Close to laying, so the move doesn't upset their cycle as much as a hen
- Cheaper than hens, generally...
- Chance of having an accidental cock/cockerel is low
- You can choose based on looks, color, and size as they are pretty much "done" with "drastic" changes in looks
- Health is pretty stable at this point, young, should have good vigor
- Allows a little bonding time
- Longest productive life with you
- Easier to age because they haven't laid yet

Cons of Pullets:
-Some personalities are set by then
- It is possible for a cockerel to slip in
- Pullets can have health concerns when they start to lay
- Pullets are very in-demand and can be hard to find during certain times of the year
- Unknown productivity, sometimes you just get saddled with some "lemons".
- Some breeds take longer than others to mature, so if you're choosing a "slower" breed then they will be eating for free for a while
- Can bring illness into existing flocks or spread illness by change of location

Benefits of Chicks:
- Cheap, depending on what you want. from as little as $.50 to $10 for SQ rare chicks
- They are adorable (come on, that's always a plus)
- They allow you to "train" your chicks to be use to routine handling
- Some hatcheries can sex them, which is great if you want all pullets
- Very hard to bring in illness from a hatchery or well managed breeder chick
- Give you loads of experience, along with some hard lessons

Cons of Chicks:
- Fragile and die easily
- While risk is lower, can still carry illness and will easily die in comparison to a healthy pullet/hen
- Most offer a 90% sexing guarantee, which means you might here a Cock-a-doodle-do one day
- Require a lot of care
- Require additional housing needs and electric needs.
- Can come with an array of health concerns like curled toes, pasty butt, cross beak, etc.
- Some breeds from hatcheries are sold under "false" names. For example, some hatcheries are selling "RIR Pullets", when they are really PR pullets with no RIR traits. "Americanas" fall under this as well, even some people being sold Buckeyes when they are really a darker ISA or PR.
- If you want to show, its a mixed bag. You might have a winner, they might all be fluffy fails. By the time you get a winner, it may have been worth investing in an adult bird
- Unknown point of lay or quality of laying, most do fine but for mutts this is a little more debatable
- Noisy in large numbers
- Can still bring in illness, regardless of origin


Benefits of Hatching Eggs:
- "Virtually" illness free (with communicable illness*)
- Can get some great strains of chicks not available locally
- You can manage and raise them how you like
- All the pro's of chicks with a touch extra work
- Cheap

Cons of Hatching Eggs:
- "Virtually" illness free with communicable illness is starred off because contamination of the egg can still occur.
- Can still be born with defects
- The parent flock could be poorly fed or not getting enough vitamins/minerals which results in you having some very sick chicks or no chicks at all
- Fragile!
- Require broody hen or incubator
- Require attention and turning if not using a hen
- You will get a ton of cockerels, just assume that and have a plan for it. If you don't, thank the heavens, but expect at least half to be male.
- Can require more know-how if emergencies pop up such as shrink-wrapping,
- 2 dozen failed egg hatches can equal or exceed the price of started pullets. 50% hatch rate is a "good" rate on eggs shipped.
- Fertility is never 100% at all times, so you must plan for the unfertile egg here and there.

Benefits of the Older Hen:
- Lets not forget about these heroes! They know the ropes and are savy in free range situations
- A friendly older hen can give you hours of enjoyment
- Good if you don't need dozens of eggs
- Many older hens can be used as broodies and make great mothers
- They are good "teachers" to younger pullets
- They can display longevity genes. For example, I have an 8 year old healthy hen giving 3-4 eggs a week. That is a good hen to breed for production!
- Have had a lifetime of handling and tend to know the drill when it comes to being picked up.

Cons of the Older Hen:
- Most likely not going to be giving you many eggs
- They will not be with you as long
- Because of aging color, many can not be shown
- Older hens can pretty much only be used for stewing if you are dressing them
- Can be more easily killed by infectious diseases
- They eat, but don't produce much if anything, aside enjoyment
- Can be more easily stressed by moves



Personally, I prefer to skip to the pleasure of pullets or hens. Chicks are great (has some in the room right now) but they require a lot of care that I rather leave to a broody mother. If you prefer the "fruits of your labour" route, chicks might be enjoyable. If you like to get your toes wet and have some fun instantly, Pullets or hens are for you.

Might I also suggest looking into at least the following 5 layers, meat and dual purpose:

Layers:
1- ISA Brown
2- Any of the PR's
3- Leghorns
4- PB [ production blacks]
5- RIR

Meat:
- Jumbo Cornish X
- Cornish X
- Cornish Game
- RIR or RIW
- Dorking

Dual Purpose:
-RIR or RIW
-Buckeyes
- NHR
- Orpington
- Jersey Giant (slow to grow)


Remember, not matter what you settle on, MAKE ROOM FOR MORE! Cause these chickens are potato chips...

 

[kschicks2013]

If you don't have a lot of time to care for chicks I would get started pulleys plus you won't have to wait as long for eggs. My hens were 3 months old when I got them and they started laying eggs when they were 22 weeks also you don't have to keep them in a warm environment like you do with chicks. I am going to add to my flock and I will get either hens or started pullets. Chicks are adorable but take a lot of work.

 

[XxMingirlxX]

I started off by getting two ex batteries and a polish, I'd wanted the exbatteries because they were so docile and I didnt want them put down, I'd originally planned to get two exbatteries and one 10 week old so I could see her grow up, but she was two you so i got a polish instead. To be honest I'm glad I didnt get the 10 week old, I have some atm and they are a handful and won't lay yet. The exbatteries are lovely girls and so is the polish when she's not falling asleep on top of fences. Id go for older girls personally.

 

[ChickenCurt]

I guess the decision is now in your hands as to what you want. I started with a few for personal desires...then got a few more...then more yet...now my flock is near 300 and I am farm shopping, LOL, anyone looking for a 2 1/2 hobby farm...

 

[Llrichards]

As a new chicken owner I would definitely say get a few adult hens, and pullets. If you start with chicks it can feel like a long time getting eggs. After that initial flock add pullets. The only advantage I see to chicks is they are more attached. If you always want the pet quality maybe choose chicks. I started with a flock of hens from some else, they were were only about 1.5 years. You definitely don't want old hens (which I call 3 yrs and older) due to egg production. I loose some periodically to predators and replace with pullets.