Utah!

[aravis227]

So many recommendations and things to research! thank you for the ideas, I'll be reading up a lot in the next couple of days! a couple of people have asked for specifics on what we ate looking for. We want a layer/pet combo bird. What originally turned us on to the idea of raising chickens was eating and baking with eggs from a friend's chickens. oh my! the taste and color was amazing! Everything I baked with them came out with richer color! I want my own chickens so I have a source of my own eggs. We are also all three very into animals and pets, so we want a bird that will be friendly and tolerant of some attention from us. I'd like a large breed because of my toddler, he's learned to be very gentle with our cats so I'm not too worried, but I would rather a bird that is a little bit more resistant to any unintentional damage that a toddler's clumsiness may inflict. I don't want to have to ban him from the birds. We thought for a but about possibly using our birds for meat when they got older, but I honestly think that, no matter our intentions, we won't be able to do it. We get very attached to animals.

Sphinx - oh my! That sounds intense and hilarious! More hilarious after it was done, I imagine.

 

[aravis227]

How does having multiple breeds all together work? Would I need to have more than one of each? For example, could I choose four breeds and have just one of each? What about introducing more hens later. Could I get two now and then when they've reached the end of their laying years add two more? I didn't think I would when I first started researching, but I'm finding this five hen limit to be really stifling!

 

[Sphinx]

Birds don't really notice the different breeds, so you can have one of each just fine. I have noticed that sometimes polish chickens get picked on a bit because of their fluffy heads. I got my two because they were mostly plucked by their nestmates. But, my chickens have been very nice to them, and they're all filled in now. My husband likes the idea of getting meat birds, but I just can't bear to.

Honestly, I was laughing so hard through my whole injection experience that it made it even harder. It was hilarious. I was glad there was no witnesses, but then part of me wishes someone had been filming because it had to have been hysterical to watch. I do think I need to have dh videotaping me walking from where I climb into the field to where I feed T-bone, with him hot on my heels. I think it's kind of funny to watch him running to keep up with me.

 

[La Casa de Pollo]

Sphinx, hysterical visions ofyou doing this yesterday. Laughed out loud for quite awhile haha thanks for that! Hope the next one is a little easier on you though

Aravis, I have not had probs mixing mine up. Once in a while you get a stinker, mean chicken, eats feathers or bullies, I just get rid of them, life is peaceful again. I think it happens whether they are all the same breed or not.

Kids/Pet/good layer makes me think Barred Rock. They are sweet Mellow chicken, if you handle them a lot as chicks they can be great lap chickens! My Golden Sex links (3) have all been very outgoing with people, quite chatty, and once they start laying, quite like being touched and follow me around the yard like a dog.

I have heard that lots of people like Orps, that they are great with kids etc, but the color makes a difference. But I did not like the one that I had (a buff) for eggs. She was not that great of a layer. Polish are not into cuddling so much. Sweet and cute, but scared of things due to their limited vision. I had heard just what Sphinx said about the Polish getting picked on, but not in my flock, they do not ever do that.

 

[La Casa de Pollo]

Oh about the buying them at different times...that works it just takes patience when you introduce the newbies. You need to provide the new ones with a little hideout, or try a wire cage so they can all see each other for awhile before you let them run together. The older girls kind of get territorial and can be mean to the new ones at first. It is quite comical to watch though. But they need some supervision.

 

[sundancenbare]

Welcome Aravis! My favorite breeds are the silver laced or gold laced wyandottes, Easter Eggers, or my black copper marans. My favorite chicken currently is an "Olive Egger"- she's a lavender ameraucana/black copper marans cross. The only chicken I've ever had go broody was a black copper marans though.

Oh my gosh you guys, the cow injection was quite the adventure. I'm glad there weren't witnesses. Those syringes were huge and scary (see my facebook page for a picture).


I took a few minutes to collect myself (ok, an hour), and I head out there armed with my pink mucking boots, a squirting water bottle, and a syringe.

TBone sees me and comes running. The fact that I'm holding a water bottle compounds the problem. He's convinced this bottle is for him and keeps trying to drink from it. Meanwhile, Casanova thinks me squirting water in his eye is a terrible idea, and he doesn't like the look of that needle either, so he's trying to make a run for it.

All this commotion got the attention of the other cows (steers) so they moseyed on over to watch everything.

This all ended with a cleansed eye (no sweeping under the eyelid though) and a cracked syringe, and no shot given. I decided it was insane to think I could do this alone. Even the smallest of the steers weighs more than me.

When dh got home, I asked him to help me. I got the bright idea that I should bring some of the calf grain into the field as a peace offering to Casinova.

Well, the grain got the attention of Baby, the horse. She wanted some of that. Badly. So she's chasing me around the field, trying to get her nose in the bucket. I know she's on a very strict diet, and I'm fairly certain that diet doesn't involve calf starter, but it was looking like she was going to win that battle. I sneakily gave the bucket to dh, and Baby continued to follow me. When dh was mostly to the "time out corral", she noticed HE had the bucket, and took off at a gallop to get to him. He got there first and was home free! I felt very lucky that only TBone and Casanova had noticed I was back with the white bottle and the bucket of grain.

Eventually, I was able to give the injection, and I irrigated the eye a bit more. I brought a rubber glove so I could try to sweep under the eyelid, but I lost my nerve. I did try to peek and didn't see anything though. After that syringe was empty, I put the contents of the cracked syringe in the intact one, so that dose is ready to go.

We get to repeat the antibiotics shot on Saturday. Whee!!

I wish I could have been there. i laughed so hard at your description that I thought I would faint. Too funnt. I needed a good laugh.

 

[La Casa de Pollo]

I had to post my egg pics :0

This is from one of my girls from pawtraitart. Her second egg.
Dark, nice color! Good girl!

 

[aravis227]

So based on your recommendations I've narrowed it from two breeds that I was considering it to FIVE breeds that I'm considering!

Part of me thinks "well, I can have five hens...just get one of each!" and the other part of me thinks "that would be a billion and a half eggs!"

My husband and I were talking last night about whether it was better to get chicks or pullets. He's afraid we would have a hard time keeping chicks alive. I think that a) chicks are adorable, b) we kept our son alive, and c) if we end up getting multiple breeds they'll probably do better if they're together ASAP. What do you all think, chicks or pullets for a first timer? Should I just make this easier on myself and go with two pullets of the same breed and then expand once we've figured it all out?

 

[UrbanChickensUT]

Hello Daloorashens,

Thanks for asking and my other birds seem to be doing well. One has a little bit of a mucus around her nostrils so all of them are on Duramycin 10. All of them are eating and running around so I am guessing they will recover and this will be a thing of the past. I ordered Denagard and will start them on this for a few days when it arrives next week.

Thanks again Cynthia for the suggestion on Denagard! I have read nothing but positive reviews on this medicine.

 

[auntie hattie]

Sphinx

!!! Wish I could have been there. Very funny. I think I will just stay with keeping chickens and my dog.

Lisa that egg is awesome! Love the color.

aravis

Newtochickensut glad to here your chickens are doing ok.

Daloorashens so happy you are getting your chicken coop built!! Would love to see pictures.

Cynthia have you heard anything from Ideal? I'm just curious. I'm thinking after looking at pictures they must be birchen but whats with the curl?