What information do you wish you had known starting out?

[Aschenfire]

LOL! Chick-a-Saurus! Indeed! Mine are going through that stage right now. I compared them to Gremlins, too

 

[NestingHillsSC]

To treat them as chickens!!! If you treat them as they are they will be just fine.

 

[Queen of the chickens]

I agree. I am going to suggest in home brooding for first week or two, just because it takes some that long to stop having pasty butt/needing frequent monitoring for other illness or constipation, etc. We don't have much problem with dust/smell before that. However, after that they fire up those tiny hair dryers and become typical house guests. . . can't wait for them to move out. We are bring some of our chicks and adult chickens to the class to demonstrate how to handle them, check for lice, and things like that. I have chicks that will be almost 4 weeks and some that will be six weeks at the time of the class. One of them is a frizzle cockerel with nearly bald spots and crazy feathers. I think that will do the trick. Plus they are going through the "spastic" stage where they squawk and flap and act like idiots if you come near the brooder. I think it's a mob mentality.

I'd remind folks that chicks, while cute, are essentially composed of four ingredients:
Food
Water
Crap
Dust

Keeping them in the house is fantastic until you realize that they have some how packed tiny hair dryers into the cage with them and are now blowing a fine mixture of the above out into the house. Soon everything in the room will be coated with a layer of FCD, and you really, really want to have a plan for where your cuties are going to go that doesn't involve your airways and their vent material. Also some pictures of 3 week old chicks would work like chicken birth control for owners who think "awwww, so cute." Show them the chick-a-saurus phase where the chickens look like a feathered gremlin and then they'll understand those super cute easter chicks turn out very chuggly for a while.

I also wish I'd known that no matter how much space I give them, they all pack into the same 4 foot spot, and somehow that's normal.

 

[spacepony]

How about a reference to a nice internet resource/support group? Something with a wide knowledge base, lots of friendly people willing to share knowledge/pictures/advice/shoulders, and moral support for when chicken math gets exponential! Any sites come to mind?

 

[chiqita]

NO matter WHAT you do, and how much you handle them, they have a teenage phase where they are terrified of anything tall. Just keep feeding them treats and they will decide they love you again. I was SOOOOO upset when my hand raised babies decided I was darth vader. i was sure I failed, and and needed new chickens, these would never come to me again.
Also, let see If I have a pic of a chic o saurus....

 

[Lute]

Don't handle ducklings too much. They'll die from the exposure.

 

[OldGuy43]

That I didn't need near as many nesting boxes as I thought. I built 3 for 6 hens. They all use the same one.

 

[ReikiStar]

X 2 - also, chicks and chickens will learn to drink from a rabbit-type water bottle very easily. Keeps the water clean and bedding dry.


Here is my list for new to chickens:

Chickens are chickens, they don't care how cute or nice looking your brooder or coop is or how expensive anything is (do it for you, not for them). They need food (good quality protein, scratch is NOT food), water, shelter and safety from predators. Everything else is just gravy.

Heat is a lot worse for chickens than cold, especially adults. Don't keep the brooder too hot, the cooler it is (within reason), the better chicks feather out for being outside. Give them lots of room to get away from the lamp.

If you bring in chicks that have been raised somewhere else, keep them separate! Quarantine your birds! All of my chicks ended up with cocci from a few BCM chicks I got from a farm.

Be prepared to face coccidiosis with chicks...all birds have it and stress brings it out. If you catch it early, it's not a big deal. Get some Corid or Sulmet ahead of time. Keep a good chicken medicine kit on hand.

Feed store employees often don't know as much as you think. Use BYC as a resource!

DON'T brood chicks in the house - way too much dust - use a garage, basement or even a separate part of the coop. You can move them to an outside brooder with a lamp at 3-4 weeks old depending on time of year and location.

Use craigslist to save money on supplies, etc. It is possible to get almost everything you need used (see #1, chickens don't care).

The best way to prevent picking or bullying is to provide plenty of room. There is no substitute for space.

Unless you are very disciplined you will end up with more chickens than you thought you would have. Chicken math does not discriminate.

Build your coop and run bigger than what you 'think' you'll need.

You don't need a heat lamp in the coop for adults unless you're above the arctic circle (or at least the 50th parallel

). How were chickens raised before electricity?

Get the right breeds for your climate! It will make your life a LOT easier.

The bigger the feeder and waterer, the less often you'll have to refill it.

I strongly recommend that you read the old timers thread in the Managing Your Flock section for ideas to share...they have some of the best advice newbies (and oldies) can get! I have learned so much from them!

Good luck with your class!

Love all of these!!

• I would have add with cocci know the early warning signs that the books don't tell you about. Often times you won't see the bloody droppings. With very young chicks, like 1 day to 1 week old, if they fall a sleep standing up and rock forward, wake themselves a bit and keep trying to sleep....they are sick!! I healthy chick sleeps sitting up, will slump into a sitting or lying position -- this is normal. This one sign is so subtle, you'll have a dying chick before you understand whats wrong with them.

• Also, if you use a conventional method of watering them put MARBLES in the water so they won't drown or get themselves too wet.

• Safety is paramount. Realize everything out there wants to eat your chickens. You owe them the consideration of time and yes, EXPENSE to build a predator proof coop and run. Know that predators will fly, dig underneath, pull-chicken-parts-through-holes, rip through wire and unlock latches. NEVER USE CHICKEN WIRE to protect chickens. It keeps chickens out of places, but lets EVERYTHING in. It's like tinfoil to racoons and canines. Only use WELDED wire with small holes so the chickens' heads can't be pulled through. Electric hot wire is incredibly effective at keeping predators away...no one comes back for more pain.
• Don't trust your dogs or cats. It will be their first time meeting chicks and eventually fluttery chickens. Their instincts act quicker than your human brain does. DO NOT ASSUME your chickens are safe around your other animals.
• Don't trust other peoples dogs around your chickens. See above.
• Chickens don't need heat lamps. Go ahead and insulate your coop if you live in a cold winter climate. But the more birds have to depend on their feathers and correct diet during the winter, the stronger and healthier they will be. Adding heat to adult birds is unnecessary in the least. At the worst, its a fire hazard and providing heat weakens your birds natural ability to handle the cold.
• Speaking of coops....VENTILATION. Learn what that means. It's nearly the most important factor in any type of animal housing for respiratory health and health over all.
• Keep a clean yard. Chickens are a bit like goats...they will peck at and ingest a lot of things you think they would leave alone.
• If you get roosters, learn about rooster behavior and teach them early to respect you as the Alpha Roo. There is NO NEED to beat or be violent with a rooster. He will only learn to fight you or fear you, neither of which is going to make for a happy rooster.
• Stress equals disease in chickens. Understand that they form life long bonds with other chickens, they bond with their humans and even where they live. Minimize stress in your chickens' lives by knowing this and making changes slowly, if you have to make them at all.

There are so many things for people to know. Thank you for caring enough to ask and share it the information with new chicken owners.

 

[BeetleChick]

#1 Chickens grow absurdly fast, I would have started building the big coop much earlier, our 12 where over 4 months old when they moved into the big coop and had started laying eggs in their tractor without any sort of nesting box.

#2 Chickens can be trained for the right incentive (food!) ours come running inside almost every night for their snack waiting in their coop.

#3 Chickens will dig holes along the edge of their run

#4 I remember one afternoon when they were around 3 months old and I was moving their tractor there were red feathers everywhere, but it was just a natural thing. I counted the 10 red chickens several times before calming down and realizing they were all there.

#5 Chickens love dry leaves, ours will shred them to nothing in just a couple of days

 

[BackyardCountry]

i wish that i had known not to overresearch them. sometimes its better to go with the flow.
also, i wish that i had known that their poop is like glue. it will stay on the tray forEVER