Who has them? We are buying some for eggs. What should I expect? I have a feeling there could be some useful tips here others may benefit from along with me learning.
Chickens
- Thread starter hickslawns
- Start date
Buckmaster
Senior Member
This is on my to do list as well. I was at TSC today and looking at their ducks. I almost bought 2 for my kids for Easter. I smartened up and did not purchase.
Yep. Erin and I were there today. We checked out their coop and house. Not sure I want to drop $200 on it. I am confident I can build one for the cost of some 1x and staples. I already have some mesh. Might need a little more effort to build the house but nothing impossible.
Buckmaster
Senior Member
My old neighbors bought one of those sheds and spent one afternoon converting it into a coup.
Not much to it that I saw. Food, water, shelter, electric, and heat lamp is all they had.
Not much to it that I saw. Food, water, shelter, electric, and heat lamp is all they had.
Ricer2231
Senior Member
You will also need to buy crushed oyster shells, they will need that for the egg shells. And they will need rubble so they can get little pieces of rock in their craw, to grind up their corn. I'm pretty sure I'm not leading ya in the wrong direction, it's been a long time since we had chickens.
Phil chickens are a piece of cake. Andrea has had some for a few years, but if I was you I would shy away from getting chicks from TSC or make sure you don't get the straight run. 9 out of the 10 she got started to crow. Ended up checking out Craig's list and bought some hens. Good luck
Fullbore
Senior Member
My Dad raised chickens, a year before he passed. One thing for sure is, a roost is a must. A simple but necessary addition to your chicken coop. Stair step some 2 by 4's or anything comparable, approx. 1' apart. Depending the number of chickens, to the size of your roost.
As far as the chickens themselves, I would go with Rhode Island Reds or another variety that produces brown or the greenish colored eggs. They are the best eating eggs IMO. Dark yolks and better tasting!
As far as the chickens themselves, I would go with Rhode Island Reds or another variety that produces brown or the greenish colored eggs. They are the best eating eggs IMO. Dark yolks and better tasting!
Ohiosam
*Supporting Member*
If you want eggs be sure to buy pullets, not straight run. Unless you want to deal with butchering the cockerels in 2 months.
Personally I really like buff Orpingtons for a family flock. They are a real calm bird, hardy, and lays a reasonable amount of brown eggs. Orpingtons are great with kids compared to something like a leghorn or Rhode Island which tend to be more high strung.
I usually got mine from Murray McMurray hatchery. I'd avoid TSC, never know what you are getting.
Personally I really like buff Orpingtons for a family flock. They are a real calm bird, hardy, and lays a reasonable amount of brown eggs. Orpingtons are great with kids compared to something like a leghorn or Rhode Island which tend to be more high strung.
I usually got mine from Murray McMurray hatchery. I'd avoid TSC, never know what you are getting.
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k.stone
Junior Member
Not sure if it would work in Ohio, but this is a coop my bil built in Florida. I has wheels on one end so he can move it around the "yard". He lets them out part of the day and when they are ready to lay they jump up into that barn thingy which has a floor of wire mesh on an angle and their eggs roll out to the edge for easy gathering. Four chickens=4 eggs a day lol.
Perfect. Sounds like some great starter advice. KStone- that is what I had envisioned. Maybe a foot or two wider.
We have a 12'x12' concrete slab off the back of the garage. I used to have a hot tub on it. Quit working, got married, discarded it. Then it was my wood storage area. Now we have an outdoor wood boiler which sits away from the house. Now I have an empty slab. It has a fence on the west edge which would be great for blocking the wind and such. Would the concrete slab be a poor choice in location then from what I am hearing? Should we put them out in the yard somewhere or maybe behind the barn in gravel or dirt?
We have a 12'x12' concrete slab off the back of the garage. I used to have a hot tub on it. Quit working, got married, discarded it. Then it was my wood storage area. Now we have an outdoor wood boiler which sits away from the house. Now I have an empty slab. It has a fence on the west edge which would be great for blocking the wind and such. Would the concrete slab be a poor choice in location then from what I am hearing? Should we put them out in the yard somewhere or maybe behind the barn in gravel or dirt?
Huckleberry Finn
Senior Member
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Good point but electricity out by the garden doesn't exist. It would be tough to keep them warm.
If ya know some farmers with grain bins it's probably cheaper getting corn screenings from them instead of chicken grower from the elevator. Get crushed oyster shells for tougher eggs.
Big_Holla
Senior Member
Our chicken coop was a portion of our barn with a concrete floor. It was very beneficial to have that concrete when you needed to clean things out. Just a big wide flat shovel did the job. The door to the yard was like a pet door in the bottom of a big door so we could get in and out easy. That smaller door we hinged so in the winter we could keep all the chickens indoors and close it off when the weather got bad.
Got chickens about a year ago. They did well through the winter. Most of Erin's friends had low egg production. Our 6 chickens dropped off a little but we usually still got 3-4. When extremely cold maybe 2-3/day. Talk of adding chickens to avoid a gap where they aren't producing has been brought up. Talk of doing meat chickens has been mentioned as well. Probably have to get a bigger coop this year.
Joel
Senior Member
We have 6 egg layers and 25 meat chickens right now. The meat chickens live in a water trough with pine shavings and a heat lamp in the shed until they get 3-4 weeks old and then go into an 8'x8' pen that gets moved onto fresh grass once or twice a day. The hens have a small coop with a fenced in back yard but pretty much wander around the yard all day.
The meat chickens are about 6 weeks old and will be in the freezer in 3 weeks. We have 25 more chicks coming within the next week to start round 2 so we will have 50 nice fat chickens in the freezer to last until next year.
No eggs yet since these hens are new this year but should start getting 6 eggs a day pretty soon.
The meat chickens are about 6 weeks old and will be in the freezer in 3 weeks. We have 25 more chicks coming within the next week to start round 2 so we will have 50 nice fat chickens in the freezer to last until next year.
No eggs yet since these hens are new this year but should start getting 6 eggs a day pretty soon.