What do you wish you'd have known when you started?

[justmeandtheflock]

Finish the coop before you start incubating

We got chicks 7 weeks ago and still don't have the coop finished yet because it won't stop raining. Hubby has given up waiting for it to stop and has been out there in the pouring rain working because I have more babies coming tomorrow, I put in the order 4 weeks ago.

 

[lleighmay]

I wish I had tallied up all the expense it would take for "free" eggs. So far, with pens and coops and etc. I figure I'm currently averaging approx. $2.00/egg. That being said, I've loved every minute of it and wouldn't trade the whole experience/learning process for anything

 

[DonnaBelle]

Things I wish I'd known and a few things I'm glad I did.

1. Build a "hen house" not a "coop" in other words, if you can,
build something large enough for a human size door, or else it can be very hard to clean.
2 Make sure you human doors swing out, not in.
3, Use PDZ and diamateous earth for chicken poop smells.
4. Put nest doors on the outside too, easy to get eggs.
5. Hang feeders/waterers close to the door inside.
6. Put a small waterer outside, under a little covered chicken shade area.
7. VENTILATION IS IMPORTANT. We put a 36" x 48" window on each side of the hen house, for cross ventilation. They have screens but we screwed hardward cloth over the entire window for extra security.
8. Make it your nightly ritual to say "good night boys and girls" and
close those run doors.
9. We put up electric poultry fencing and no problem with 4 legged predators. A little Brittany decided she wanted a chicken but quickly changed her mind after one bump of the fence.
10. We just put a $15.00 box fan from Wal Mart in one of the windows, and use it to pull stale air out and fresh air in. THIS WORKS REALLY WELL.
11. If at all possible, have electricity to the hen house.
12 If at all possible, put it on skids, so you can pull it around and change grazing areas.

By all means, haven't listed everything but I hope this helps or gives ideas to folks.

DonnaBelle in Oklahoma, USA

 

[shaggy]

i wish i knew about Ideal Poultry or MyPetChicken before starting

i was convinced that i had to find a local farmer, which is why i have a rooster now ....

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

hmmm . . . I wish I had taken the incubator on a test run with cheap eggs. I wish I had built a "run" on my coop and asked my girls what they wanted in a nest box. I wish I had tiled the floor of the coop (I did the brooder and the feed storage area). I wish I had made the coop about two feet wider. I wish I had bought the automatic feeders right away.

 

[rhondapiper]

I wish I had known:

That my coop would end up costing my 10x as much as the total cost of buying eggs for the rest of my life even if I ended up being 100 years old.

To finish my coop before getting chicks so I would not have seven 8 week old chickens living in and pooping in my garage while I tried to finish a coop in the ceaseless rain.

That hardware cloth costs more than buying the entire Tiffany catalog (and having each item custom engraved).

That my chickens would not be cuddly, but would like to rub poopfeet on me at each opportunity.

That mealworms are the key to any chicken's heart.

That getting breeds where you cannot tell forever if they are roosters is maddening.

That the first time you do not wear shoes you will smush chicken poop up between your toes.

That they can poop into any opening of any size.

That you can try your best but still lose some.

That chicken poop smells like the end of the world, but that a warm feathery chicken smells lovely.

Really, despite all the learning experiences, I am very happy with how much I like the silly little buggers. I'd never had birds and wasn't sure about feathery pets, but these chickens, while not as interested in me as my other pets, are really fun to watch and so funny. Every time I watch my little runt fluff up and peck someone twice her size, or watch one of them fly madly into something and then, like a cat, pretend they meant to do that, I realize that I've become a chicken person.

 

[SC_Hugh]

I wish that I had started collecting used lumber and plywood, hinges and wire instead of buying brand new materials at Home Depot. That would have made the coop and run expenses a lot cheaper.

I wish I had found BYC before I brought home my chicks,

--Hugh

 

[joebryant]

Quote:
AMEN !

 

[Drafthorsegal]

I'm with France on this one....

I wish I'd had known years ago how absolutely fun chickens are. I'd have gotten into them years ago. Years! I'm also with rhonda... there's nothing like the smell of a clean hen who wants to cuddle... that spicy earthy fresh feather warm fuzz is just the absolute best! Poop aside... and they do poop a lot... chickens are lovely!

 

[MagsC]

I very much wish I had been better prepared!! That and patience in incubating.