Back yard chickens

I have wanted to do it for years, and a few weeks ago I dove in head first and bought some chicks. They're growing really fast and will soon need to go outside to the coop, which is not 100% complete but will be soon (pictures will come soon). Has anyone here kept chickens? What did I get myself into?
My folks (who both grew up on farms) think I'm nuts...

Btw, these are Red Star hens and can supposedly produce an egg every 20 hours. I haven't had a fresh egg since I was a kid and can hardly wait!

Cool.

This definitely seems to be a growing trend. I even have a friend who makes a pretty good living as an Urban Chicken Consultant. She does say the eggs are lovely and raising the chickens is very rewarding -- even though it won't be enough to feed the family.

I'll look forward to seeing photos of the girls in their coop when it's complete -- and hearing about your first eggs.

The coop is still in the works, should be ready next week.
Here's a preliminary pic

Guard the birds - two local coops were ravages by foxes and coyotes.
Of course, that led to the fact that they were unlicensed and not legal in my town. The next town over has no issues with them. Of course, they also have a minimum of five acre lots.

Nice work Jason. That style coop really works well for small flocks. My wife's sister has one like that. They leave their birds run free in the daytime, if you keep them inside that run, I think you're going to find the grass will only last about 3 days before they have it scratched to bare dirt.

I'm a little late to this thread, but if you haven't already put the wire on your coop, be sure to use hardware cloth on the areas where the hens sleep. Don't use anything bigger than 1/2" x 1/2" openings, (I like 1/4" x 1/4"). A coon can reach through an opening the size of a quarter, and if they get ahold of a chicken, it's coming out through that hole. Trust me, this isn't fun to find and even less fun to clean up.

You'll be eating fresh eggs before you know it.

Tim

The ciggypoo makes it look like you were really concentrating, in 1956, if the photo was in B&W.

I miss cigarettes.

They're all grown up now, should have fresh eggs in just a few weeks!

How wonderful to see them full grown. Let us know how excellent the eggs are.

Good luck! Your city chickens will be as attractive to critters as my city grapes are! Finally had to put up an electric fence--only thing able to keep the coons and possums at bay. Amazing how many critters there are in the near-downtown!!

Geo

Q: what happens come winter?

My birds stay outside all year, but I'm in LA...

The guys at the local feed store where I bought the chickens tell me these can stay outside year round. They must be protected from the wind and obviously me=ust have a supply of water that is not frozen. The opening of the henhouse is underneath so that should protect them from the wind, and I will stuff it with a generous supply of straw. Im not quite sure yet what I'll be doing to keep the water from freezing...

JasonM wrote: Im not quite sure yet what I'll be doing to keep the water from freezing...

Hey Jason,

We use an electric dog bowl in the winter:


They make an electric version of a hanging chicken waterer, but they are pretty pricey and use more power than the dog bowl, you just have to clean this out more often. You can get them at TSC for around $20 and ours is going on the 5th or 6th winter.



Something else you are going to want to think about with the approaching winter is supplemental light. Your hens are going to all but quit laying in the short days of winter. We put a regular 60 watt bulb on a timer to give them the additional light to make a 12 - 14 hr day. Just make sure you add the light in the morning and not in the evening. It will really mess them up if they go from daytime to dark of night in the snap of a finger..... it will foul up their roosting habits and just generally stress them out. They don't seem to mind having daytime come in the blink of an eye though.

Good luck,
Tim

The dog dish is a great idea. I looked at the ones made for chickens and they start around $50
Thanks for the tip!

One of the chickens has started laying, and I've been getting an egg a day for the past week.
The other two are just a little younger so I should be getting more eggs soon

I ended up buying a 3 gallon heated water container. They seem pretty happy out in the cold and are still laying lots of eggs.

Gorgeous!!