Understanding Chicken Math

[itsbob]

Don't know if I dare reply..

BUT started out about 3 months ago with the idea that a "few" chickens might be a great idea.. healthier eggs, free eggs (Yeah right!) so we decided to go to a friends house who has HUNDREDS of birds, all different breeds. We pick up a Orpington, Two Leg Horns and a Barred Rock.. and two Pekin ducks.. so we're a little short of the agreed to 10 birds we wanted..

About a month after we got those a friend announced he found a job out of state and wanted to know if we'd adopt his chickens.. so we adopt his 2 Araucana, 2 Silkies, and 2 mystery breed chickens...

Now we're up to 12.. and I think, HEY, I'd like to incubate and hatch, my 7 year old will love that! So we pick up 22 eggs 18 chicken and 4 Pekin from the same friend.. Pekin were infertile, so they go away, so I HAVE to buy a dozen Khaki Campbell eggs to replace them (only wanted to buy four, but have to get their required minimum).

Didn't have much luck in the hatch, so I have nine 2 week old chicks, and two week old ducklings.. SOOOOO, I HAVE to get more chicks to replace the eggs that didn't hatch.. Now I have 16 Araucana chicks coming on the 12th of this month.. (14 hens and 2 Roosters).

All told that SHOULD give me... carry the one.. round.. 10.. that will give me a total of the 10 birds my wife told me I could have!!

 

[itsbob]

i still want more Khaki Campbell ducks..

 

[Mammahen71]

Don't know if I dare reply.. BUT started out about 3 months ago with the idea that a "few" chickens might be a great idea.. healthier eggs, free eggs (Yeah right!) so we decided to go to a friends house who has HUNDREDS of birds, all different breeds. We pick up a Orpington, Two Leg Horns and a Barred Rock.. and two Pekin ducks.. so we're a little short of the agreed to 10 birds we wanted.. About a month after we got those a friend announced he found a job out of state and wanted to know if we'd adopt his chickens.. so we adopt his 2 Araucana, 2 Silkies, and 2 mystery breed chickens... Now we're up to 12.. and I think, HEY, I'd like to incubate and hatch, my 7 year old will love that! So we pick up 22 eggs 18 chicken and 4 Pekin from the same friend.. Pekin were infertile, so they go away, so I HAVE to buy a dozen Khaki Campbell eggs to replace them (only wanted to buy four, but have to get their required minimum). Didn't have much luck in the hatch, so I have nine 2 week old chicks, and two week old ducklings.. SOOOOO, I HAVE to get more chicks to replace the eggs that didn't hatch.. Now I have 16 Araucana chicks coming on the 12th of this month.. (14 hens and 2 Roosters). All told that SHOULD give me... carry the one.. round.. 10.. that will give me a total of the 10 birds my wife told me I could have!!

I'm not GREAT at math, but by my counting, that comes to 33 hens, 2 roo's and 4 ducks....

So the 2 roo's cancel out 2 hens, and the 4 ducks cancel out 4 hens... therefor I figure you have 27 chickens. UNLESS you have kids, that consider them PETS, and then they are not chickens, they are "cats."

So the great news is: You aren't a crazy chicken person, you are a crazy CAT person, who has 10 chickens and 17 cats!

 

[JekkaLynn]

My Hubby finally gave in and said I could get some chickens. We agreed that for our family of four we should get 4-6 chickens and one rooster. I use to have chickens so I knew about chickens math. I figured we would get 10 straight run chicks and keep all the hens and one of the roosters. We wanted chickens that would look nice, and lay cool looking eggs. I started looking online but everyone was sold out and I didn't want chicks from a hatchery. I finally found some free chicks but they were just 3rd generation hatchery Colombian Rock descents from someone's backyard flock. They had four two week olds that they said were pullets. When we mentioned wanting 6 eventually they grabbed some Rhode Island Red chicks from their flock. So now we had 6 two week old pullets. But we had wanted Easter Egger chicks or Ameruacana or Marans for the cool eggs. Sooooo we looked some more and found 4 Black Copper Maran chicks, 2 Ameruacana chicks, and 5 Easter Egger chicks all straight run. So all the straight run dont count until they are sexed and the free ones don't count because they were free so....I don't have any chickens yet right?

 

[JessicaThistle]

This thread is hilarious! I'm a newbie that was a victim of chicken math. We went to "just look". Yeah right. My husband knew that wasn't going to happen. Then we thought we'd get two, but he grabbed 4. So then I have to pick some too since he got to, right? So I picked up two and then two more. We wound up with 8 but I keep looking.

My hubby says no more but what is he going to do about it when he comes home and notices a few adorable little extra faces? He wouldn't have the heart to make we return them.

 

[Mama Kay W]

Got to love everyone's chicken math!!

I almost had hubby letting me get a few more (I wanted a few easter eggers) but we would of had to increase the run size (coop was fine for 4-5 more since one isn't doing well and I'd be down to only 3) but......he figured how much for the new roof area and welded wire would cost........and having to pay for an expensive dentist visit

we can't afford it.

 

[CarolinaHen]

Ok, I see the problem here. You are all counting wrong.

You only count the ones that have names and are of laying age. Names like "white chicken", "speckles", "cheeks", etc. do not count. Those are descriptions, not names. Go back through your flock using this method of counting, and you will see that you do not have nearly the number of chickens that you have stated before. In fact, you may find that you have so few that you need to go to the store and purchase more chicks......... which of course don't count until they start laying

See how easy it is to do "chicken math"?

 

[Gingersnap722]

Lute,

Chicks and ducklings do not count in chicken math. So at this point you do not have any chickens.

You'd better head back to the feedstore.

Imp

LOL!!!!!

 

[Gingersnap722]

This thread is sooo funny I am crying!!! I have to run help friends clean out horse stalls and I'll be back with my own chicken math tonight!!

 

[Gingersnap722]

Never wanted chickens, ducks or any other barnyard animal. Daughter gets a live duckling for her 16th birthday. All eyes are on me and I cave. Well, you can't just have one duckling and they are very cute, so off to Tractor Supply we go. Can't get just one more because my other two daughters that are still at home each want their own. Now my hubby takes this as a green light to bring chicks in asap, before I can think about it. Back to Tractor Supply. Bring home 6 little cuties. I'm hooked! For some reason our chicken math is backward and as they get older they don't count anymore. Once these were grown I wanted more. Back to Tractor Supply. Some guy cuts in front of me and buys every chick they have. By this time, I'm obsessed and have to have chicks this instant. Google is an amazing thing!! Look at all those hatcheries!! Of course it's February and you have to buy a minimum of 25 chicks from the one I chose. Ohhh hubbbbyyyyy, please can we? He's all for it. Here come 25 plus two extra chicks. We have the room, why not? Ok, 27 is a bit many, so give the neighbors 10. Then some people want to start buying them as they get older. Hmmmm......Sold! This February, 27 more. June ships 32 more. Looks like "Littlebit's Chicks" may be born. Next up? The incubator!! We're going to venture into breeding our own. I never thought I would be so chicken obsessed!!! I have to go spend some time with my little ones now. The juveniles are getting so big so fast, which means I almost have no chickens again. Come on June!