Topic of the Week - I wish I knew…

[sumi]

Pic by @Hinotori
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Hindsight is always 20/20 they say and I don't think there is a chicken keeper alive that doesn't have at least one "I wish I knew this before…" when it comes to chicken keeping.

Be it knowing how addictive chicken keeping is, or that a coop needs to be predator-proof, or that keeping a few too many roosters in a flock is usually not a good idea, or that chickens peck really hard, we all learned some lessons, good, bad, funny, or sad along the way.

This week I would like to know what you wish you knew before you started keeping chickens and the things you learned along the way.

See here for a complete list of our Topic of the Week threads:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/topic-of-the-week-thread-archive.72529/

 

[N F C]

I wish I had known years ago how much I would enjoy raising chickens. If I'd only known how much fun and how interesting they are, I would have gotten them a long time ago.

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

I wish I knew that integration wouldn’t be easy.

 

[drumstick diva]

Wish I knew computers weren't so bad, wouldn't have lurked for 8 mos.

 

[Hinotori]

I wish I had known that different breeds really do have different requirements for space. Also that you just shouldn't put certain breeds together because of bullying

 

[Kiki]

I wish I knew just how real chicken diseases are.

Thankfully I learned about biosecurity and practice it religiously.

 

[JedJackson]

Wish I had known more about temps, humidity and hygiene for incubators when I was younger. I could have raised so many more chicks and ducklings.

 

[MillersFarm]

I wish I knew the proper ratios for turkeys, chickens, ducks, guineas, pheasants, etc.

 

[Lazy Farmer]

I wish I knew to join Backyard Chickens years ago instead of only 15 months ago.

 

[N F C]

I wish I knew to join Backyard Chickens years ago instead of only 15 months ago.

Better late than never Connie!