Hi All!
When I was planning the move to Georgia from the suburbs of Dallas, TX I knew right away I wanted a vegetable garden, an orchard and yard eggs. Last year I made a failed attempt at raising chickens by fencing and modifying an old shed that was already on the property. I liked the spot because I thought the overgrown brush and foliage would provide a comfortable atmosphere and natural cover from the predators around here. I chose Jersey Giants because I thought their adult size would also give them an advantage. Unfortunately I didn't take neighborhood dogs into account. After raising them and about a half a year of wonderful eggs, I went to the coop to find what I'm guessing was a small dog attack. A hole was dug under the fence and all my hens were dead. I know it was a dog because none of them were missing or eaten. This was of course devastating and at that point I considered giving up.
But being a critter lover and someone who likes to know what I'm eating, I decided to try again. This time with new chicken palace and a fully enclosed pen. This one is closer to the house so our dogs can keep a better watch from inside their fence and so the chickens can have supervised access into the garden. It's almost finished. It was designed by the hubby and I with the help of a friend and most of the materials were either used or free. The pen needs assembling and coop needs some trim work and waterproofing.
Since I knew we would not be finished with the coop before the local feed stores would run out of chicks and I wanted more color in the flock and the egg basket, I decided to order them online and wait for a fresh hatching. I did a lot of research from these forums in order to choose the hatchery and the breeds. I ended up going with eFowl and so far I'm happy. The chicks arrived yesterday which was the occasion that prompted me to finally join BYC.
Going by the 5 per breed/15 total minimum, I ordered 5 EE pullets, 4 Welsummer pullets and a roo and 4 Silver Laced Wyandotte pullets and a roo. I figured 14 pullets would be a little too much work for one roo. I know eFowl is just a drop shipper but I thought it was odd that after paying for it, they changed my order to add 1 Welsummer pullet and 1 Wyandotte pullet, I'm guessing to satisfy some rule of the hatchery they were shipping from. I checked, I didn't get charged for the extras. On top of that, they shipped an extra EE pullet giving me a total of 18 chicks! I'm glad I built extra nesting boxes. They shipped from Lebanon, MO so I'm pretty sure they came from Cackle.
As far as the chicks, it is now day 2 and they all seem healthy. Most perked right up once they were given some room to stretch out. A couple started out a little groggy so I put a little sugar in their water and dipped their little beaks in it. It wasn't long before they perked right up. I could watch them for hours. I can already tell I have some serious attitude in this group.
I couldn't be happier with the variations in the EEs. If I'm identifying them correctly, they are the ones with the poofy cheeks. we have one mostly black, one mostly silver/grey, one tan with a grey back, one mostly tan with a slightly darker tan back, one grey and tan with a dark grey stripe down the back and one tan with speckles and a dark brown stripe down the back. I'm hoping this means their feathering will be as varied.
Maybe next week when I'm satisfied they're sufficiently healthy and acclimated, I'll take them outside for some grass and bug time. Hopefully I can get some better pictures then. The red lamp doesn't do them justice. I don't want to handle them too much yet, they're still getting spooked when the dogs bark and I don't want to stress them more. Still, they don't seem to mind me coming in and talking to them. They even chase the laser pointer on the IR thermometer I've been using to check the brooder temp.
The BYC forum has already helped me tremendously up to this point and I know I'll enjoy sharing my chicky experience from here on out. Thank-you for having such a valuable resource!
Well I guess I've yapped enough.
Kim
When I was planning the move to Georgia from the suburbs of Dallas, TX I knew right away I wanted a vegetable garden, an orchard and yard eggs. Last year I made a failed attempt at raising chickens by fencing and modifying an old shed that was already on the property. I liked the spot because I thought the overgrown brush and foliage would provide a comfortable atmosphere and natural cover from the predators around here. I chose Jersey Giants because I thought their adult size would also give them an advantage. Unfortunately I didn't take neighborhood dogs into account. After raising them and about a half a year of wonderful eggs, I went to the coop to find what I'm guessing was a small dog attack. A hole was dug under the fence and all my hens were dead. I know it was a dog because none of them were missing or eaten. This was of course devastating and at that point I considered giving up.
But being a critter lover and someone who likes to know what I'm eating, I decided to try again. This time with new chicken palace and a fully enclosed pen. This one is closer to the house so our dogs can keep a better watch from inside their fence and so the chickens can have supervised access into the garden. It's almost finished. It was designed by the hubby and I with the help of a friend and most of the materials were either used or free. The pen needs assembling and coop needs some trim work and waterproofing.
Since I knew we would not be finished with the coop before the local feed stores would run out of chicks and I wanted more color in the flock and the egg basket, I decided to order them online and wait for a fresh hatching. I did a lot of research from these forums in order to choose the hatchery and the breeds. I ended up going with eFowl and so far I'm happy. The chicks arrived yesterday which was the occasion that prompted me to finally join BYC.
Going by the 5 per breed/15 total minimum, I ordered 5 EE pullets, 4 Welsummer pullets and a roo and 4 Silver Laced Wyandotte pullets and a roo. I figured 14 pullets would be a little too much work for one roo. I know eFowl is just a drop shipper but I thought it was odd that after paying for it, they changed my order to add 1 Welsummer pullet and 1 Wyandotte pullet, I'm guessing to satisfy some rule of the hatchery they were shipping from. I checked, I didn't get charged for the extras. On top of that, they shipped an extra EE pullet giving me a total of 18 chicks! I'm glad I built extra nesting boxes. They shipped from Lebanon, MO so I'm pretty sure they came from Cackle.
As far as the chicks, it is now day 2 and they all seem healthy. Most perked right up once they were given some room to stretch out. A couple started out a little groggy so I put a little sugar in their water and dipped their little beaks in it. It wasn't long before they perked right up. I could watch them for hours. I can already tell I have some serious attitude in this group.
I couldn't be happier with the variations in the EEs. If I'm identifying them correctly, they are the ones with the poofy cheeks. we have one mostly black, one mostly silver/grey, one tan with a grey back, one mostly tan with a slightly darker tan back, one grey and tan with a dark grey stripe down the back and one tan with speckles and a dark brown stripe down the back. I'm hoping this means their feathering will be as varied.
Maybe next week when I'm satisfied they're sufficiently healthy and acclimated, I'll take them outside for some grass and bug time. Hopefully I can get some better pictures then. The red lamp doesn't do them justice. I don't want to handle them too much yet, they're still getting spooked when the dogs bark and I don't want to stress them more. Still, they don't seem to mind me coming in and talking to them. They even chase the laser pointer on the IR thermometer I've been using to check the brooder temp.
The BYC forum has already helped me tremendously up to this point and I know I'll enjoy sharing my chicky experience from here on out. Thank-you for having such a valuable resource!
Well I guess I've yapped enough.
Kim
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and Welcome To BYC! Sounds like you have put together a nice little flock and will have a very colorful egg basket. Sorry about the loss of your first flock, that new coop looks like it will be wonderful.
