7 replies to this topic

[WillowWonders]

Hi!

Were planning on getting two chicken soon, and I have a few questions...

 

1. What do they eat?

2. How big of an environment do they need?

3. We want to get baby chicks to grow up into hens, is there anything we need to know about that?

4. What is the best chicken coop for them?

 

We will be letting them roam around our back yard (about 1/10th of an acre yeah, kinda small...) and at night they will be in their coop at night.

 

Anything else you'd like to tell me pls lmk! 

[~AnimalLover4ever~]

I have 6 chickens and they are wonderful. Our chickens eat a food mix from a local farm and it is super good. We like this food because it has a lot of variety instead of just pellets. We also give them some greens and some seeds when possible (at least once a week I recommend). Our coop is 6x12 and we have a L shaped run so i'm not sure how to show you how large that is but it is very large. I recommend just giving them as much room as you possibly can. The only thing I recommend about raising them is just always giving them little checkups and make sure to check for pasty butt. And the more your chickens get used to you the more social your chickens will be. We had our coop custom made for our needs by a local carpenter so that is probable the #1 coop choice. you'll often find those little cheap ones from Lowe's or whatever DON'T BUY THEM. they are WAY to small. Another option is trying to find a smaller business like this one: https://carolinacoops.com/chicken-coops/

But try to find a fair sized one. Also some chickens are bigger than others so it all depends on the size of your chickens. I also recommend some enrichment toys for your chickens. You can scatter feed them some seeds in your backyard or run.  There's tons of other enrichment ideas online so I recommend doing some research on those! Also we bought a electric door to our coop so every night and every morning we do't have to go and open up the coop. It just opens and closes at sunset and and sun rise. We also have a waterer that heats up when it gets below 30 degrees Fahrenheit so I highly recommend one of those. Also just make sure you raise them with a heat pad or lamp inside or in a garage or something. (Also I might recommend getting 3 just because there so social so only 2 might not be enough) And just try to give them their best life!

Edited by ~HamsterLover4ever~, 19 March 2021 - 02:40 AM.

[Tater]

I cant really answer all your questions, but I have a recommendations!

I found this book at the library and it seems awesome! There are a few things I might not agree with 100% but overall it's pretty good

I can't find the name of it though- but I recommend looking at other books online

There's also a decent forum: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/

 

And to answer one of your question: Tbh I prefer building your own coop so you can make it customizable there are a lot of ideas online if you want! We built our last one and are going to build our soon-to-be one 

 

Also one question: Are you raising the hens for eggs? 

[WillowWonders]

I cant really answer all your questions, but I have a recommendations!

I found this book at the library and it seems awesome! There are a few things I might not agree with 100% but overall it's pretty good

I can't find the name of it though- but I recommend looking at other books online

There's also a decent forum: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/

 

And to answer one of your question: Tbh I prefer building your own coop so you can make it customizable there are a lot of ideas online if you want! We built our last one and are going to build our soon-to-be one 

 

Also one question: Are you raising the hens for eggs? 

 

Thanks!

Yup, just found out we're building our own.

Yes, we are raising them for eggs (and for me personally, the pleaser :3)

 

I have one more question, um, so, what do you do with them when they die..... 

Edited by WillowWonders, 19 March 2021 - 02:58 AM.

[Tater]

Thanks!

 

Yes, we are raising them for eggs (and for me personally, the pleaser :3)

 

I have one more question, um, so, what do you do with them when they die..... 

Okay, if you are raising for eggs you need to make sure they get enough calcium and stuff. Which you can actually feed them their eggshells as well (my family used to do this)

When they die, we buried them in our backyard. 

[~AnimalLover4ever~]

Yeah make sure they have enough grit in their diet

[~Bumble~]

Hi!

Were planning on getting two chicken soon, and I have a few questions... That's great!! I love chickens; they're so fun to raise and own. 

 

1. What do they eat? We buy a commercial pellet mix from our local feed store, but supplement it with scratch, and scraps from the table. They also looooove dried meal worms. 

2. How big of an environment do they need? I'd recommend building a large pen (ppl say the general rule is 8-10 feet per chicken), or you could just let them free range without a pen, but come to their coop at night to sleep. It depends on if you get have a lot of predators in your area or not. 

3. We want to get baby chicks to grow up into hens, is there anything we need to know about that? You can buy a brooder, or use a large bin or your bathtub instead. If you have other pets, then their brooder will need to be covered, though. Feed them a starter chick diet with a protein level between 10%-20%.  They'll need a red heat lamp, and you'll have to secure it so it's the right height, so they are getting just the right amount of heat, not too much or too little. Ummm...Idk that there's much else to say...I'd check out this website: https://www.almanac.com/raising-chickens-101-how-raise-baby-chickens

4. What is the best chicken coop for them? I'd build one, as the commercial ones can be pretty small, and that way you can customize it. 

 

We will be letting them roam around our back yard (about 1/10th of an acre yeah, kinda small...) and at night they will be in their coop at night. Sounds good!

 

Anything else you'd like to tell me pls lmk! 

I can't rlly think of anything else atm, GL w/ your chicken journey! 

[~Bumble~]

When our chickens die, we bury them in our backyard also. 

By the way, what types of chickens are you thinking about getting?? Standard size or bantams? I recommend silkies if you are interested in a bantam breed. They are super friendly little chickens, and soooooo cute and fluffy. (Google them if you don't know what they look like!)

If you are getting them more for eggs than for pets, though, then White Leghorns are AMAZING layers.