What's Your First Piece of Advice for Newbies?

[TooCheep]

Don’t get chickens until you know TONS about them

^This. Basically read and ask questions before you bring in chickens or any other animal. It is scary to me how many intro posts come from people who just got chickens and obviously didn't educate themselves on what they were getting into. Their chickens suffer and/or die and it is entirely unnecessary.

 

[slordaz]

When asking advice remember, everyone has different ways of doing things, and there are a lot of variables such as weather,breed , location etc, ultimately you read the advice and decide what might work best for you and your flock. We are here to support and educate on different options not to force our ideas on someone as not everything works for everyone.
Research Bird breeds before you decide oh I want that one cause it's pretty, then it doesn't work for your area for some reason

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Being humane does not mean rescuing every other chickens you feel sorry for and putting your entire flock at risk of illness or disease.

Never bring a mature bird from someone else's place to yours as they may be carrying something that hasn't yet presented. And avoid buying broody hatched chicks at ALL cost! Chicken diseases are real.

 

[FireGal]

Okay, I ~am~ the newbie. So, not so much advice, but things I have learned. All of the above ^

And, at least for me...
Chicks are work! Keeping their brooder clean, and didn’t I just give them clean water?? How did it get so dirty so fast? How do they do that to their food? How is it that I do everything in my power in terms of food, water, temperature, room, Love, care, safety...and they still just die?
Wow, that coop the store said was plenty big enough got small really fast. Where did all of those flies come from? Why are my chicks convinced I am Jack the Ripper even though I am the one giving them all the food, water, and love?

I thought it would be fun, and it is. My girls make me laugh every single day. But besides the physical labor, the mental gymnastics are also exhausting. I had no idea how challenging it would be to constantly wonder and worry and wait and be at my wits end about how or why something is happening

 

[chrissynemetz]

Chicken wire will absolutely NOT keep predators out. It barely keeps the chickens in!
No matter where you live, you have more predators than you think you do.
And always build bigger than what you ever think you'll need.... because eventually you might need it.

 

[chrissynemetz]

Also you don't need a rooster to get a hen to lay eggs... And yes you can eat fertilized eggs.

 

[DuckWhisperer06]

Build your coop, run and everything you need for your birds *before* you pick up chicks, but after you know what breeds and how many you want.

There is a LOT you have to account for when building your coop.

 

[sealer39]

Determine what you want from your chickens, meat birds, egg layers or pets, then research, research and research to get the right breed for you. Everyone will be happier!
And, start out slow, you can always get more chicks if you don’t like the ones you originally selected because you didn’t do enough research.

 

[Lisa-Lu]

Predator protection was first and foremost for us, and I'm sticking with that as number one.
Double the size of the coop you are thinking of, at least. We started with 4 hens in a pre-fab coop, and 6 months later we had 18 and we had built our own coop that will accomodate more when the urge hits.
I agree with the educate yourself as much as possible BEFORE you get them. Have your coop, feed, basic supplies ready to go.
But one thing that was hard for me to learn, is that sometimes they get sick and no matter how hard you try to save them (spoon feeding, medications, research, losing sleep) they die. There are SO many chicken illnesses and health issues that I had read about but none of them sank in until I was dealing with them. It was heartbreaking for me, and its always a favorite it seems.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I agree wholeheartedly with all that has been said.
The main thing I can relay is that there can never be too much ventilation. Don't worry about cold. Keep the big windows wide open. You'll never have a respiratory issue if you give your birds completely fresh air.