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Barnyard Buddies:  All Things Chickens  |
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Mama Jewel
True Blue Farmgirl
435 Posts
Jewel
Sweet Peas Farmette,
Bend, OR
USA
435 Posts |
 Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 09:05:23 AM
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 I *think* I have my husband on board for allowing me to have chickens --whoo hoo! So, now begins the research, so by the time spring comes, we'll be all ready! So I'm hoping to start a new thread for newbie chicken owners, like me, to go to get info from all you veteran chicken owners.
I went ahead & am checking out a whole bunch of books from the library, but is there a favorite, go-to book that you recommend?
What poultry hatchery do you recommend? I looked to see if there was a local one, but didn't see anything when I googled it.
I live in a suburban area, so I checked the city laws & we can have a backyard flock. I'm thinking I'll only have 3 or 4... so here comes the hard question, that I hope won't upset anyone, but I'm vegetarian & won't be using the chickens as meat... what can I expect to be the length of time that a hen will stop laying eggs (I know that their lifespan is 10 yrs).
I'm really excited about the possibility of having fresh, organic eggs for my family, so any words of wisdom is greatly appreciated 
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
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SusieK
True Blue Farmgirl
167 Posts
Texas
167 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 09:28:12 AM
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| I cannot wait to hear more to this sound wonderful and I wish you really good luck with Chickens |
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1badmamawolf
True Blue Farmgirl
2199 Posts
Teresa
"Bent Fence Farms"
Ca
USA
2199 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 09:41:07 AM
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First off, if you are wanting chickens just for eggs, do you want a production breed, or a heritage breed? I personaly like the production breed called a "sex link", they lay large/extra large brown eggs, all year long in my area. They are not broody at all, which is great for an egg hen. They come in red or black, and I alternate color because then I know which are which from year to year, every 4-5 years I get new day olds of the oposite color and when they are of laying age, I find a new place for the older hens.
As far as books go, I like the 2 Storey book/booklets, "A Guide To Raising Chickens", and their publishing bulletin A-17, "Eggs and Chickens". There is also a magazine called "Backyard Poultry" that is really good. There are many other publications out there that are good, but, almost all will give yo the same basic info.
I use "Murray McMurray" hatcheries, never had a problem with them, chicks have always been healthy and high quality, they have a web site and a catalog.
Good luck, and I am sure you will get lots of differant Girls on here, with lots of differant advice, and you can mix and match to suite your area, and life style...
"Treat the earth well, it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children" |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 12:39:57 PM
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Jewel, that's great you are getting some chickens. That's a good point Teresa made about just getting laying hens as opposed to a dual purpose breed. Leghorns are a good laying hen also. And I have to say I love my Buffs. I got them last fall and they started laying and laid all winter and are still laying. I have not noticed any molting either. The roo is partial to about 4 of them and their poor backs are a little sad looking. I just read somewhere about someone having to get chicken saddles for hers.
Most hens lay for a good 3 years. Then they start slowing down. I will need to get more in about a year and a half.
Have fun picking them out and getting ready for them. That's the fun part. Also you might want to get a few extras just in case. There's always a chance a few might die.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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star-schipp
True Blue Farmgirl
942 Posts
Starletta
Middletown
Indiana
USA
942 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 12:45:27 PM
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I've always had good luck with McMurray's too and it is so fun to go pick up that little box of chicks at the post office. The postal workers always laugh! We have 40-some we bought, some we were given - some cochins, red stars and black stars. I need to look up that "chicken saddle" thing (that sounds funny!) cause some of my girls are looking pretty bald back there too. I have 5 roosters which is too many but each one seems to have his own little harem and there is minimal fussing between them. They seem to like chasing the pug puppy more than anything who thinks it is one big, fun game.
We can do no great things; only small things with great love - Mother Teresa
farmgirl sister #1927 |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 12:56:02 PM
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If you sew you could make your own. I just googled it and if you do look at the images of the hens. There is a picture of a Buff being held. Go there and she has pictuers of hers all laid out.
There are some cute ones. You could even color coordinate to each hen! Too cute.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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KellyWall
True Blue Farmgirl
336 Posts
Kelly
Apison
Tn
USA
336 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 3:19:24 PM
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I have 6 Barred Rock Hens, and one roo. I love them! they are good layers. The rooster is gentle. They are very vocal, I love listening to them jibber jabber. Good luck with your selection, I am sure you will love having hens and all the eggs to bake with : ) !
Kelly #238
May your bobbin always be full... |
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Ms.Lilly
True Blue Farmgirl
826 Posts
Lillian
Scotts Mills
OR
USA
826 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 7:05:35 PM
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I agree with Teresa about the Storey book "A Guide to Raising Chickens" it is a MUST read for anyone wanting to get chickens. I also use McMurray Hatcheries and am very happy with them, but you must buy at least 25 chicks. In the spring you should be able to order or buy chicks through your local feed store. You will just love your chickens, I can't imagine life without mine.
Lillian |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 8:36:54 PM
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i agree with the girls here. i love sexlinks. hardy quiet small easy keepers big egg reliable. and a brown egg. my customers do not think white eggs should come from a family farm. they want brown.just a thought happy days sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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Mama Jewel
True Blue Farmgirl
435 Posts
Jewel
Sweet Peas Farmette,
Bend, OR
USA
435 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2010 : 8:47:55 PM
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Saddles for your chickens? lol --I love it! Got some great suggestions to look things up... will do re: the Storey book & will get a catalog from McMurray. Good point re: the 25 min order... may have to try to split the order with someone(s) or purchase from our local farm & garden, like you suggested, Lillian.
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
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1badmamawolf
True Blue Farmgirl
2199 Posts
Teresa
"Bent Fence Farms"
Ca
USA
2199 Posts |
Posted - Aug 17 2010 : 08:23:25 AM
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Jewel, the 25 chick min can be a mix of different poultry...
"Treat the earth well, it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children" |
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lavenderfield
Farmgirl at Heart
3 Posts
Adrienne
Missouri
USA
3 Posts |
Posted - Aug 21 2010 : 2:08:45 PM
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Jewel,
Meyer Hatchery out of Ohio has a lower bird minimum to ship. I ordered 15 and they shipped 17. Every bird was a different breed per my order. There were no issues.
We looked at McMurray, but did not want that many chicks to start with.
Good Luck! It's been a great adventure. |
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grace gerber
True Blue Farmgirl
2804 Posts
grace
larkspur
colorado
USA
2804 Posts |
Posted - Aug 21 2010 : 2:51:21 PM
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I am doing the Happy Chicken Dance here at the Funny Farm because on Friday I ordered 30 Americana female chicks from McMurray and they are to be arriving Sept 1st. I have loved having chickens for more then 20 years now and when I got down to my last two hens I was telling myself the universe must be telling me something - maybe it was time to move to the next stage in life, maybe I was not to have this farm anymore. But for whatever reason my fingers could not resist those keys when I received my weekly email notice from McMurray. It was like my fingers where having a mind of their own and now there will be sweet little chicks back at the Funny Farm very soon.
I am excited for this thread - I can't tell you how many years it has been that I started with chicks - so from this old bird lady I will be starting anew. I look foreword to reading all the posts and since it has been so long since I have had little fluffy one's I am sure I too will have questions. Oh Happy Chicken Dance
Grace Gerber
Larkspur Funny Farm and Fiber Art Studio
Where the spirits are high and the fiber is deep
http://www.larkspurfunnyfarm.etsy.com
http://larkspurfunnyfarm.blogspot.com
http://larkspurfunnyfarm.artfire.com
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Aug 21 2010 : 8:55:47 PM
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well this will be fun. i have one buff. with 5 chicks now. they are 3 weeks. i had 4 hatch today to another buff. we have a banty leghorn from a 4 h project sitting on 3. i pull my broody girls and give them their own house. they sit in there and stay till babies are eating. about 4 days. then they go to a bigger run where they stay with mom till they go in coop. i love chickens. i always make a profit. fryers or layers the dollars are good. i crossed some of the broilers with welsummer rooster. the eggs are fertile and i am getting a welsummer broiler fryer. that was my goal. large bird fast grower. better than a regular broiler. i butcher around 150 a year for meat. so i think the cross will be a good thing. like grace i have had chickens for 20 years now.
happy days sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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Edited by - sherrye on Aug 21 2010 8:56:34 PM |
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homsteddinmom
True Blue Farmgirl
441 Posts
Brandee
bullard
tx
USA
441 Posts |
Posted - Aug 25 2010 : 06:02:13 AM
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If you go to www.mypetchicken.com you can oder as few as 3 at a time!
Homesteading Mom in East Texas. Raising chickens, Rabbits and goats here on my farm! |
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Mama Jewel
True Blue Farmgirl
435 Posts
Jewel
Sweet Peas Farmette,
Bend, OR
USA
435 Posts |
Posted - Aug 25 2010 : 09:48:10 AM
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After some initial research, I'm thinking Production Reds might be good, since I won't have a lot of chickens, but it looks like mypetchicken.com doesn't carry those in small qty. Here's maybe a silly question?? How do you know when you get chicks from the feed store if it's a hen or rooster? I guess what I'm seeing in some of my research is that people end up with roosters, so they either give them away or eat them. How can you guarantee that you're going to get a hen?
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Aug 25 2010 : 10:37:11 AM
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Jewel, if you are getting chicks from the feed store they are always separated into hens and roos. Also when you order from a hatchery. Unless of course you get straight run. And when you get chicks from someone's farm they will more than likely be straight run also. But you should be safe at the feed store for just getting all hens. Unless they only have SR. Just ask to be sure. Most feed store should start getting fall chicks in soon too. Just tell them you only want hens.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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coloquilter
True Blue Farmgirl
214 Posts
Susan
Co
USA
214 Posts |
Posted - Aug 27 2010 : 9:31:33 PM
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Hello. I am new to chickens as well. while my kids were growing up we had lots of pet ducks , geese and even a couple of pet turkeys(smiles they were meant for dinner but we never has the heart) but this is the first year for chickens. I did a little research and picked Black Australorps. I read where they average 250 to 300 eggs a year the record holder laid 364 I believe.They also lay during the winter and are cold hardy( something important for NW Colo) They are supposed to be a good meat bird as well, but I am not commited to eating them. I have really enjoyed them this summer. They are the class clowns .Out of 10 chicks 9 are thriving ! the neighbors cat got one.
Susan |
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Ms.Lilly
True Blue Farmgirl
826 Posts
Lillian
Scotts Mills
OR
USA
826 Posts |
Posted - Aug 28 2010 : 07:11:03 AM
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Jewel- When you buy from the feed store more than likely they will be marked pullets and those will be your females. Straight run will be exactly that, whatever was hatched they have sent to the store to be sold. Do keep in mind though, even if you buy pullets sometimes it isn't easy for the chicken sexer to tell what it is at hatch and you may end up with a rooster in the end. This is also true with hatcheries, most guarantee 90% accuracy. You could go with sex-links males and females are different colors when hatched. I have never had any of those so I can't tell you how well the egg production is.
Lillian |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Aug 28 2010 : 07:48:55 AM
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good morning girls, i love my chickens too. when i get mine i order the sexed ones like kris said. never a perfect way to get only girls you just have to hope for girls and ask for sexed birds. it is a good idea about the sexlinks color helping to be able to tell. when are you going to get chickens jewel? patti ann is not coming this weekend after all. darn. i am moving my chickens to a different area. away from the milk room. will start that project today. the coop they are in is only a year old. i am going to clean it out. papa is going to pour me a floor. we will use it as a clean room for the milk room milk next door. more convenient if i can strain milk and wash equipment right there. i will start now but not spend money on it till i know if we are staying here on the farm. so i have a bantam leghorn broody. i may pull her and put her in the rabbit hutch. the one in the hutch now has 2. i will give her a bigger place. fun on the farm. nice and cool today for shoveling chicken poop.
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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Mama Jewel
True Blue Farmgirl
435 Posts
Jewel
Sweet Peas Farmette,
Bend, OR
USA
435 Posts |
Posted - Aug 28 2010 : 11:48:37 AM
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Hey, Sherry! Yes, I've got it narrowed down to 4 breeds due to http://www.mypetchicken.com has a free feature that allows you to indicated whether you're needing a cold hearty, docile bird, etc. And with this being a backyard endeavor & with kids & since we get lots of cold weather, we needed those two traits. So, am looking at Rhode Island Reds, Australorp, Plymouth Rock & Sex Link (aka Star). Am thinking of getting them in the winter to baby the chicks indoors until the cold leaves, then move them outside with a heat lamp into their new digs. My husband said that he's going to have be do the MaryJane thing & build the coop --whoo hoo!! That will be great! I like working with hand tools so I ordered a book from the library on building coops & figure this'll be a winter project to do in the garage... kind of doing the nesting thing (pun intended).
Sorry to hear that Patti Ann's not able to come down. Would love to meet her, too! And Sherry, let me know if you need help shoveling chicken poop --seriously. I loved helping you the other day! I just don't ever want to be in the way
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
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LenaSassafrass
True Blue Farmgirl
69 Posts
Leanne
Hamilton
Montana
USA
69 Posts |
Posted - Aug 28 2010 : 11:12:58 PM
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Hey all-so could my chickens be laying somewhere to hatch out chicks? We have been leaving the coop open at night since hubby and I work nights. Usually all my hens are inside when I check on them to see if all were there. The other night I shut the coop after milking figuring all the ladies were in there as they usually are. The next morn one of my hens was waiting out front of the coop for the others. Everday for the last week we've been getting about 5 eggs a day where as we were getting about 9. We've still been letting the coop open at night since I found the one hen by herself in the am. What do yall think? I figured its probably too late in the season but ya never know!
Leanne
Maizy-brownswiss/jersey
Sassafrass-06/20/10 |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2010 : 07:20:19 AM
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i have a hen sitting now. she could be sitting. how old is she? its so fun raising chicken babies and goaties and cows.lol let us know if one is sitting for you. sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farm girl #1014
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grace gerber
True Blue Farmgirl
2804 Posts
grace
larkspur
colorado
USA
2804 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2010 : 2:29:51 PM
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I am so excited only three more days (keeping fingers crossed) before my new chicks arrive - and I must say I have re read my books three times now. It has been ages since I had chicks and want to make sure everything runs smoothly. What is so funny is all the extended family who do not live on the farm is just as excited - too bad they do not take over the work but I admit I would have them wearing masks and gloves so no one gets them sick... Oh Happy Dance!
Grace Gerber
Larkspur Funny Farm and Fiber Art Studio
Where the spirits are high and the fiber is deep
http://www.larkspurfunnyfarm.etsy.com
http://larkspurfunnyfarm.blogspot.com
http://larkspurfunnyfarm.artfire.com
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Mama Jewel
True Blue Farmgirl
435 Posts
Jewel
Sweet Peas Farmette,
Bend, OR
USA
435 Posts |
Posted - Aug 30 2010 : 07:26:42 AM
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Grace, how exciting!! Keep us posted. Is there a favorite book that you use as reference? What kinds did you get?
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
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Ms.Lilly
True Blue Farmgirl
826 Posts
Lillian
Scotts Mills
OR
USA
826 Posts |
Posted - Aug 31 2010 : 06:50:28 AM
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Jewel, we went to the state fair on Sunday (don't waste your money folks) and the only good thing we came across was a hatchery out of Canby Oregon. We met the owner and talked about his poultry and business, he seem like he really cares about his business. Any ways DH and I were looking for a local source of turkeys for this spring and I think we are going to give him a try. I have not been to his web site yet and do not know what his minimums are for shipping, but I did ask if there is a minimum for pick up and there is not. So this might be an option for you if you were willing to make a trip into the valley. I have his pamphlet here in front of me and he has 177 chicken breeds. Here is his web address: www.FarwestHatchery.com I myself am off to check it out. Hope this helps out a bit.
Lillian |
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Barnyard Buddies: All Things Chickens |
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All Things Chickens
