When did you start with chickens?

[Silkiemama]

Quote:
I bet your "chicks" are "cheeper" than either alternative!!!!! LOL!!!!!!!!

 

[Tuffoldhen]

I grew up with chickens............

 

[Chickapooh23]

We had chickens when I was a child and I decided last year to give it a try again so my youngest would have the same experiences (we had always live in town and couldn't before that). Now I am chicken crazy. Just ask my kids. I have 4 EE's, 4 Buckeye's, OEGB and a bator with a dozen eggs.

Great thread.

 

[mrsengeseth]

army brat here, we couldn't have anything on base ever, in the 18 years i was an army kid i secretly wanted to live on a farm. I live in the middle of a city now, but i finally talked dh into letting me get "just a few"...or ten. Ahem. Someday i will have my farm. for now we have the 11 (ten plus one extra criminal hen...only allowed ten in town). We started about a year ago.

 

[joshplus10]

I got my first chicks in December. After I met my new boyfriend's parents' flock, I pestered the boyfriend until he built a coop in my backyard. I ordered a surprise assortment and am now anxiously awaiting my first egg.

 

[camjac]

We moved to the country 5 years ago. Our new neighbors had horses and donkeys. I ended up going out to a farm with them to look at one of their horses. They had a barn full of chickens and I fell in love. They had all kinds. She offered to give me as many as would fit in a dog crate for free. It took all of my willpower to say no and leave empty handed. Anyway, DH last year finally relented and let me get 6 last June. I now have 4 more ordered to pick up April 6.

 

[enola]

Which time ???

The first time was when I was about 10, I won them at the fair, then my grandmother brought me a banty hen with a bunch of chicks. I kept chickens until I left home after graduating from high school.

The second time was during my second marriage. We had a small farm. I ordered from Murray McMurray many times.

The third time was 2 years ago when a co-worker mentioned that he had a game hen come up missing, but it was a false alarm. She had hatched out 14 babies and "came back". He was going to drown them, because he did not have another cage to put her in and he did not want the dog to learn to "play" with chickens.

So, I followed him home and became a chicken Mama again.

They spent the first 3 weeks of their life in a large dog crate, so the cat couldn't eat them !

Only 3 of them were hens

I gave the roosters away, because I didn't want siblings to breed. Then while I was moving from one side of the county to the other,

someone managed to steal 2 of my hens one night

Now, thanks to Nadine, I have 2 chickens again and am studying incubator directions so I can hatch chicks !

 

[mistylady]

Many many moons ago my frandmother had 4 houses 75 x 200 feet long of chickens. Three were fryers in different stages of growth and one was layers. She raised them for a large company. She had the cleanest farm around they say. When I was born she had left over chickens running all over the place. Chickens were part of the family.

I got my henny pennies last year and I can't imagine being without them. They're my babies.

 

[mmtillman]

Was born and raised in KC MO...never laid eyes on a chicken till some were given to me a couple of years ago.....we just put them in a fenced in area with a large dog house....and they thrived...till the foxes living behind us on the RR TRAX decided to invade last summer.

We lost our entire flock

And ...so now ...I am goin back into the chicken biz , but this time with a brand new, ''predator proof coop'' ....

Not even a skinny snake will be able to get in with these chickens!!!

I have 25 ordered to arrive in April and am counting down the days!!!!!

 

[brkuk]

I started my chicken life 3 weeks ago today. Never had chicken growing up in the city. We move to some acreage and my wife after 6 years said I can now start raising chickens. I hatched 10 chicks my first time. 1 silkie, 2 br, 1 rir, 2 wr and 3 light brahma. I culled my first chick last Saturday, It was very depressing. Gimpy had a leg that was straight out and could not bend. He was always slamming his face when tried to walk. He was very small and didn't eat. He also was my daughters favorite. It broke my heart. I told myself I would not get attached to these chickens. Too late.