Total newb excitedly embarks on backyard chicken adventure!

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Now that I've got my baby chicks, it's time to move up the ranks from borderline-obsessed lurker to completely-obsessed registered member :) Who knew chickens could be so addictive!

I live in Nova Scotia, Canada (where winter is hopefully finally behind us now!) and yesterday I got six baby chicks - 3 are day-olds and 3 are a week old. They are commercial laying hens from a feed store. I'm a bit on the impulsive, don't-want-to-wait side sometimes when I have an idea in my head (in this case, how great it would be to have backyard hens)... so when I went into the feed store to enquire about baby chicks and they had some coming in the next day, I got my hopes up really high. Turns out they were all spoken for but the lady said they could call me if there were any left by 4:30. So by 4:00 the next afternoon, I was waiting hopefully by the phone... and the call I was hoping for came :)

Sadly, I have to say I wasn't particularly impressed by the guy at the store who had a name tag that said "supervisor". When I asked him what breed they are he said, "brown and white" (oh thanks, that clears it up! :rolleyes: ) ...I asked if he meant that the hens were brown and white or that their eggs would be brown and white, to which he replied, "yes". At that point I gave up! I know they are two kinds of hybrids (3 of each) but that's about it.

So far they are doing great in their Rubbermaid tub with pine shavings and a regular light fixture for heat (100 watt bulb) that they can move away from if they are too warm (it's 95 degrees directly under the light and they are tending to stay a bit to the side of it).

I went to a sawmill today and asked for lumber "seconds" to build a coop. This winter I built a deluxe insulated dog house for my two golden retrievers that ended up costing about $800 by the time it was finished and I am determined to find a way to make a great coop for a lot less money. So I got all the framing lumber I need for $30 (which I think would have been about $200 at Home Depot). They're a bit rough, but i took my electric sander to some of them today and made them look great. I have 3 sheets of plywood and a sheet of pink styrofoam insulation left over from the doghouse. The biggest expense will be the hardware cloth. I'm wondering if a 4'x4'x4' night-time coop "building" will be big enough for 6 hens? I was going to make it bigger (4'x6') but am wondering if it's necessary (I can get away with a lot fewer sheets of plywood if 4x4 is big enough). The coop will be built inside a barn/large-storage-shed, with a run area inside the barn and a bigger run outside. I plan to build the coop onto the side of the barn wall, raised up off the ground, and cut a doorway in the barn wall to the outside run. Thoughts and ideas appreciated.

Glad to have found this site and to no longer be lurking!

Susan

My new chicks :)
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This is the doghouse I made this winter with the help of my 15-yr-old son (he held one end of the tape measure on occasion!). .
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Welcome to BYC!
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Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

Cute babies you have there!!
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(And dogs!) If you are interested, check out the links on chicks attached.

Sounds like you coop will be awesome! Chickens need about 3-4 square feet per bird in their coop and 8-12 per bird in their run. Also, you may have read the rule about 1 nest for every 4 hens. Don't go by it. Do either 2 per hen or one for each so they don't squabble. Make sure your coop is predator proof and has good ventilation. Shavings, straw and shredded paper are good bedding materials. (Don't sure shredded paper in the nests though.) I attached a few links on coop stuff too.

Again, welcome to community and feel free to ask any other questions!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/...ks-the-first-60-days-of-raising-baby-chickens
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/raising-your-baby-chicks
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/how-to-socialize-baby-chickens
https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/2/Coops
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/advice-for-first-time-chicken-owners
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/chicken-predators-pests-how-to-protect-treat-your-flock
http://www.fresh-eggs-daily.com/2014/03/nesting-box-wars.html
 
Thanks so much :)

I was just reading your "Mountain Manor" picture story and wanted to leave a comment but I couldn't find a "reply" or "comment" button :/. Am I just not seeing it or is there not one there? Anyway, love the creative touches to your coop, and I see why you need predator-proofing - wow, that bear!

Susan
 
Thanks so much
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I was just reading your "Mountain Manor" picture story and wanted to leave a comment but I couldn't find a "reply" or "comment" button
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. Am I just not seeing it or is there not one there? Anyway, love the creative touches to your coop, and I see why you need predator-proofing - wow, that bear!

Susan
Thank you!! If you go to the bottom of that page, there should be a place where you can leave a comment. It's a box.
 
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Welcome to BYC!

Mountain Peeps has given you some great advice. Chickens will need about 4 to 5 square feet per bird in the coop to keep them from becoming too aggressive. When chickens are crowded in, they turn on each other. 10 square feet per bird in the run. I like to have 1 nest box for every 2 or 3 hens. If somebody goes broody, it is nice to have extra boxes. You can never have too many boxes!

Definitely follow the links that Mountain Peeps has left for you, especially to the Learning Center. Lots of good articles on raising, housing and keeping your flock happy and healthy.

Great to have you aboard and welcome to our flock!
 
Your dog house(condo?) looks like it can stand the test of time. Do the dogs actually go in there? My dad's friend ,a million years ago, made a dog house with a picture window, garden, flower boxes, etc. The dog never spent a minute in there.
 
Welcome to BYC
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Glad you joined us! That is a great looking dog house! Wow. Please take pics and do a coop page of your coop build? We often have contests running for coop builds and designs, that we can add to our Coops section. Current one here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...2014-win-a-20-byc-store-gift-certificate/0_30

We also have a contest running for our new members at the moment, if you are interested. Rules and how to enter here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/885886/welcome-to-byc-sign-up-and-win/0_30

Enjoy the site!
 

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