Chook Me!

Are we prepared to keep chickens? Some questions?

I asked this last night, but unfortunately did not get any answers. My mom has a friend who is giving us some eggs that we can raise up into chickens. She gave a great and informative book that i'm reading. She also gave us an automatic egg turner and an incubator. What else do we still need? I know a coop. Can you give me some designs or maybe pictures of your own coop?! Are they loud? I know roosters are louder than hens. Thanks to everyone who answers.

Public Comments

1. Well, you might want to get a nest when they get older. You can also get shreddings or hay. You are right, Roosters are louder then hens, but there both the same type. A hens a girl and a rooster is a boy. I think if you get boys as they get older they might get louder and maybe some of the hens will be loud, who knows. But best of luck with the chicks :)
2. We have had chickens for awhile now and I just raised 25 babies from day old babies. Do you have a feed, livestock supply nearby that can be able to supply you with what you need? It is getting warmer now but I still worry bout my babies. When we received our babies it was colder outside and the nites were frigid outside and they needed heat. I am not sure if you need a lamp to keep them warm. I used a big box with pine shaving in it with a thermoter. It should be 80 degrees when in there when they are tiny and have no feathers. you need to find out if you need a lamp now that it is getting warmer. I had 21 babies from one shipment and bought 4 more from our livestock supply place so they were a week apart in age. they eat alot of food. you need to supply water and chick starter food. you have to be careful to because they can easily die. If they get WET they can die. If they get cold they can DIE and if they get even to hot they can DIE. It is so crucial to give them the starter food because they can not eat what the adults eat. If they have to much calcium in their diets they can have kidney damage and of course not be healthy and probably die. they have special feeders and waterers for babies to help keep them from getting them wet. It is alot of work to make sure they stay safe and warm. My babies have been out inside their coop since the 19th of April and I still have their heat lamp out there for them. We have some chickens that are 1 year and some that are older and some that are younger. they eat a different food but please make sure you feed babies the proper food or you are only looking for trouble. I have 14 grown girls and 1 grown rooster. the rooster is loud and unfortunately he is not a very nice one. He is mean and is puling the feather out of my girls and will soon be leaving bacause they don't need to be abused by him. He had tried to kill another rooster before and we had to give the other rooster away, well now he will be going soon because he will even jump us and he hurts. we have to have a stick in order to go in the coop or the pen. We have 2 coops. one is 6x8 and the other is like 8x10. they also need to have pens because of predators that can come along an kill them. Good Luck
3. Chickens are relatively easy livestock to keep, provided you have a basic understanding of their health and nutritional needs. Once out of the incubator, your newly hatched chicks will need to go into a brood pen, with chick feed, starter grit, a small waterer, and a brood lamp (preferably red, I use the 250 watt bulbs). Chickens require a balanced feed, grit for digestion, crushed oyster shell for calcium, access to fresh water and a secured building to be kept in at night to prevent predation. You may need to fence in a run for them if you have neighbors close by - chickens do tend to wander a bit when free ranging, and your neighbors really don't appreciate them in their gardens. Before you get your eggs into the incubator, I'd really recommend picking up a copy of Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens. This is a great reference book for new poultry owners, and it covers all of the basics from incubation through adulthood. This book will give you more info than you'll ever find on here! For coop designs, try googling "chicken tractor" for some easy and inexpensive designs. Roosters can be quite loud, but hens don't make anywhere near as much noise. But all chickens will "talk amongst themselves" in a wide variety of vocalizations. It's actually pretty interesting to hear them get going. Good luck with your new flock.