Chickens, to have them or not.....

Posted on Friday, March 9, 2007 at 09:54

Well of course I think you should go for it!!!!

Posted by countrydreamn on Friday, March 9, 2007 at 10:01 - Link

I know what you mean about the dogs. I have tied up two of our dogs and I'm fixin' to tie a third. But all of these dogs are labs and have tried to get the chickens IN the coop. So I know that they would continue till they got one.
The new pups I think will be ok, they are Blue heeler and I think they might have some other work dog in them, we shall see. But then we got this other dog and not sure what's going to happen with her yet, DH hasn't met her.
But anyway I would say go for it. See if you can't find some one around you that might sell you a couple ready to go. If you find that you like them then go for it.
I will admit I am as nervous as going to the Hospital to have a baby with these 50 chicks coming. I just hope the coop/nursery we are building we keep them all alive.
But go for it. I keep hearing that they are habit forming!! In a very good way of course. Does that even make sense???LOL.

Blessings,
Debi

Buy eggs from your neighbor

Posted by maa on Friday, March 9, 2007 at 11:37 - Link

If you can get farm fresh eggs for a dollar a dozen then you are getting a good deal.
Chicken feed is expensive, then the caring for them is an every day thing. If they free range then most likely they will be in your yard and they are very messy. Ours get on the porch and the back steps so you know what get carried in on our shoes.Then the flies they draw near is another big problem, unless you like flies.If they are close to your house you will have to deal with the smell of them.

If I could get eggs for a dollar a dozen then no way would I be raising chickens for eggs.

To Have or to Have Not (Chickens)

Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, March 10, 2007 at 07:16 - Link

I had the same kind of dilemma: safety of the chickens. (We live in SW Colorado on 10 acres next to BLM land where there are sightings, tracks or sound of coyotes, mountain lions, and other predatory critters). We can't even let our dogs run totally 'free'. I have wanted chickens for the many years before we got here (from the suburbs of a Southern Calif. "megatropolis"). I have had to wait longer... since free-range chickens is not practical for keeping them safe. It takes time to devise a nice-looking chicken house with a large protected chicken run area, collect building supplies to house them and fence them in safely, and to actually build it. I'm still in the supplies-gathering phase after 1 year. (It's low-priority on the $needs scale). But I won't give this up!
I think alo that long-term planning is wise as far as protection from wild birds, just in case the bird flu were to become a national/regional concern. If THAT thought doesn't disuade you, then please don't let having dogs disuade you of this endeavor - your chickens will have a fun life even if they are protected "within certain areas". You can always 'herd' them home after letting them out for a time while someone is busy yet supervisory.
One advantage you have is the gardening you do - If your gardens are fenced off (no dogs running thru), then chickens would be an asset to you there, (eating bugs, scratching dirt, and leaving a bit of fertilzer) as well as have a free-range lifestyle while protected.
*If your garden areas aren't fenced, you could perhaps use a 'moveable' roll of chicken wire around chosen areas of roaming space for them.
Good luck & keep us all posted!
Your blog is a source of inspiration to MANY!!
-Illoura
http://ParadiseRanch.spaces.live.com/

I want chicken also !!!!!

Posted by patintenn on Saturday, March 10, 2007 at 10:12 - Link

But I think we need to build a coop and "play yard" for some. We have just too many uninvited guess come by here at night.

I just love your blog. I need to learn how to add some of things that you have here.

Have a good day!
Pat

Think about...why you want them.

Posted by HSBFrontPorch on Saturday, March 10, 2007 at 11:44 - Link

Is it for the eggs? For meat? Or for the experience/enjoyment?

If it was for the eggs, you've already got a great deal on that as Maa says. But if it's for the experience, I say go for it. And instead of building a chicken coop, I'd do a chicken tractor with a door on it that you can let the chickens in and out of. That way you could let them out to free range some, but you could also put them up safely at night or whenever needed.

Most of the people that I know that have chickens do also have dogs and they've learned to peacefully co-exist. If your dogs left the chickens alone for 3 weeks before, then you could just closely supervise them for awhile to make sure things are going to work out. We kept ours in the chicken tractor for years, but have finally decided to let them free range during the day and things are going fine now.

Blessings,
~Nancy

Dogs and chickens??? LOL

Posted by mulberrylane on Saturday, March 10, 2007 at 11:26 - Link

In our experience, we didn't have good luck with dogs that were not raised on the farm. When we first moved out, our town dog, a dalmation, came with us and we never could break her of chickens. Someone dumped a dog and that one also kept getting into the barn when we were away. We seem to have OK luck with our rat terrier when we are on watch, but sometimes we hear awful squacks and our peacocks are getting chased and tail feathers are all over... he chases the chickens, but hasn't killed one yet, just finds great pleasure in tormenting them. It is rather frustrating though to raise up a barnful of chickens and to leave for an afternoon and come home to a yard full of dead chickens and your dog playfully wagging his tail, holding ONE of those prized chickens. We've heard all these stories of how to break it, and we've tried them all. Dh even hung the dead chicken on the dog's collar (one often repeated lore on how to break a dog from chicken killing)... and it didn't work. I guess you'd have to decide which is best. We currently have no troubles with our dogs and chickens. And we need to replace our outdoor dog, we have one on order and hope to have it around the end of summer and that breed, and English shepherd, is supposed to be good with chickens... we will see. Also predators can be very irritating as well... we've had skunk, raccoons, weasels, fox, eagles, hawks... UGH! And Maa is right, the chicken food is horrible... especially in the winter, plus heat lamps... we figure about a buck a day... plus water heaters... I wonder why we do it sometimes... LOL, but we have alot of chickens, now... right now 13 hens and 5-7 roosters and we get 5-12 eggs a day. We also have 45 hen chicks raising up for Farmer's Market for Eggs... they will be free range once they are grown, but right now they need feed and it is more expensive than we anticipated. Plus corn prices are high right now as well. UGH! I love my chickens, I love the chores... getting eggs, taking out scraps, feeding them, penning them back in at night... it is peaceful at times.... Plus it teaches my kids good responsibility when I pair them up with me to do chores. Also, I know how the chickens are fed and raised... so I know the egg quality. I guess I have my reasons, but I'm not sure they are actually saving me any money!
Warmly, ~Melissa

Hi! Thanks for visiting!

Posted by ngabriel on Sunday, March 11, 2007 at 07:24 - Link

Well, the answer to your question is: We had to get rid of them because we live in a subdivision, we lwft them with someone when we went out of town and they ended up ALL over the neighborhood! If we were on our own property, farmland, we would have no problem at all!

It is a true joy yo have chickens! If you have a chance, you WANT to have them. They are so funny to watch, and they provide you with eggs and meat. It's wonderful. When we move, we will be doing it again, except this time, we will double the amount! :-D

n

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Posted by meme21713 on Sunday, March 11, 2007 at 10:41 - Link

I have chickens but no dogs, sooo...lol...I love to feed and locate the eggs. Oh and the grandkids love the hunt..Before I got my misses, I would also find eggs for $1 a dozen.I only let my misses out in late afternoon. I think maybe the dogs would be ok with the new ones if they were in a pen for awhile and the dogs would get use to them..Maybe anyway....I do find that fresh yard eggs are better flavored than the store bought yard eggs. Maybe just these old taste buds...lol Have a good one friend, Debbie

Edited by meme21713 on Sunday, March 11, 2007 at 10:44

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