They are the little bitty ones - not quite as small as fingerlings.
At four thirty, my mom gets up from her nap and we are having a family meeting thing to talk about birthday parties and getting some more chickens. I want to get some more layers because we are now selling eggs to the neighbors, only 3, but still, we only get 5-7 eggs a day. We have some pullets that should start laying within the next couple weeks, but that is only 6 or 7 more hens. I would like to get a good flock of 35 layers. Right now I have 15 layers including the pullets that aren't laying. 6 roos, of which two are still very young chicks. Along with 11 HUGE broilers that have one little guy with them that hatched the same day we got the broilers. He looks like a dwarf. He is maybe a eighth their size but is fine with being the small one. So in all 31 chickens, including broilers that will be gone in two months. Once the broilers are gone, 20 chickens will remain. All I want is another 20 hens to spread the roos out and get more eggs. I mean I have two coops already that are huge, enough to hold 40 chickens each, and not to mention the horse stall that is set up to hold some chicks. I don't think that it is that much to ask. I'll pay for the chicks and the egg money we get can pay for some of the food.
That was just a practice for the actual argument, whew.Think it will work?
Might also help if you had some more orders for eggs lined up. And maybe find a restaurant, nursing home or other place that will let you have their table scraps - especially for the winter months when they can't forage as much. (We bring along a couple of buckets when we visit my MIL in the nursing home - there is a LOT of food left on those plates and the staff is happy to fill the buckets instead of the garbage can.)Dang it had the whole story written out and somehow accidentally deleted it.
Anyway, long story short, I was a suck up and easily got mom on my side. Dad took a lot of answering to get him, he's still thinking about it but I'm pretty sure I got him. He was asking all the questions you guys said. How are you going to pay for all the food, where are you going to put them, and I don't want a light on all winter long. I told him that he would get half of our egg money, by the way, I get 2.50 a dozen and 3.00 if I deliver. I told him about all the room I have and that they won't need a light from probably somewhere around November. He thinks that it is too many, but 40 chickens in three coops, all of which free range, is not that much. Especially with all the kitchen scraps our family piles up! And I am also getting 8 chicks from my dads friend for free, all hens, sebright and brahmas. He said he'll try to decide by the end of the night. If all goes well this will be a great day!
Sounds like you're on the way to a larger flock! Good luck!
