New to chickens in Keezletown, VA

[KtownChick]

Hi!

I ordered baby chicks last week. They will arrive in April. That gives me just over 2 months to figure out what I’m doing, as I am new to chickens.

Six female chicks were ordered:
2 - Black Australorp
2 - Amber Star
2 - Colombian Wyandotte

If you live in or near Rockingham County, VA I would love to hear about your set-up (coop, run, etc). We have 5 acres with a fenced-in backyard that goes underground. No problem with ground predators inside the fence. I’ve been looking a coops built by a family in West Augusta county. They advertise on FB Marketplace. Is anyone familiar with their coops?

I’ll admit that I am a little nervous about this endeavor. Chickens seem like a natural extension of gardening, which I have enjoyed immensely over the last 3 years (since we moved to this property). I hope I’m not in over my head!

 

[SilverBirds]

Welcome to BYC!

You can chat with other Virginians in the Virginia state thread. I'd also check out the Chicken Coops page for some ideas as well. Best of luck, and let us know if you have any questions!

 

[Blue Raptor]

Hi!

I ordered baby chicks last week. They will arrive in April. That gives me just over 2 months to figure out what I’m doing, as I am new to chickens.

Six female chicks were ordered:
2 - Black Australorp
2 - Amber Star
2 - Colombian Wyandotte

If you live in or near Rockingham County, VA I would love to hear about your set-up (coop, run, etc). We have 5 acres with a fenced-in backyard that goes underground. No problem with ground predators inside the fence. I’ve been looking a coops built by a family in West Augusta county. They advertise on FB Marketplace. Is anyone familiar with their coops?

I’ll admit that I am a little nervous about this endeavor. Chickens seem like a natural extension of gardening, which I have enjoyed immensely over the last 3 years (since we moved to this property). I hope I’m not in over my head!

Welcome to BYC!! Good luck with your new chicks!

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello and welcome to BYC!

Congrats on your soon to be new flock of chicks! You picked some nice breeds. @SilverBirds has left you with the link to the Virginia state thread.

Chickens can seem daunting at first, but eventually they get you trained up well.

Make yourself at home here and welcome aboard!

 

[007Sean]

Howdy, and Welcome to Backyard Chickens.

Happy to have you here with us. Enjoy your time here at BYC!

Thanks for joining our community!

 

[DobieLover]

Hello and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined.

 

[Tookie]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

 

[swampfox440]

Welcome to BYC! good luck with your new flock.

 

[Boppo]

Glad to meet you, and welcome to BYC. That is a wonderful sounding fenced yard!

Is this the FB place you are looking for coops? Some of them look good. Be careful about size. You will want to get a coop that's bigger than you think you need, both because coop suppliers seem to exaggerate how many birds will be happy in their coop, and because you may end up adding birds to your lovely flock. Here is a nice estimate from Farmer's Almanac.

Here are my favorite beginning articles that helped me as a newbie. All articles are short, and have illustrations, and reviews, which are often worth looking at for the comments.

1. Intro to chicken keeping

2. Common mistakes & how to fix them

3. Ventilation (important to chicken health), with helpful links to coop designs organized by climate (because what is just right for my New England hens won't work for my brother's Arizona chickens)

4. Predator protection for new & existing coops

5. Dealing with a muddy coop and run

6. (are you where winter is starting??) Winter chicken care

7. Chickens in Garden 1, Chickens in Garden 2 - chickens can be very destructive, especially to young seedlings. BUT they are very good at eating up the bad bugs (but also the good bugs). It can depend on how much space they have per chicken, and how supervised they are. A lot of people fence off parts of their garden for all or part of the grow season, then let the chickens come in and help scratch in the compost for next year. Others co-garden happily with their birds. Some plant a special garden just for the chickens.

8. Plants for Chickens

To look for articles on your own:

A. Use the SEARCH button, but use the Advanced Search choice, and select ARTICLES at the top of the box. Just enter your keyword(s) and scroll through your results!

B. I find it helpful to notice the rating and reviews. All articles are by BYC members, and all the reviews/ratings are as well. The ratings help a newbie like me sort the most useful and reliable articles.

C. You can bookmark the articles or posts you think you want to refer to again using that bookmark icon at the top of articles or posts. You can find them again by clicking on your own avatar and looking at the list of bookmarks you have built up!

Notes about where to put a coop.

1. As far as you can, put a coop and run on high ground, that drains well, so you won't have so much muddy coop problems. Chickens need to be dry, dry, dry.

2. As far as you can, put a coop with the ventilation lined up with your prevailing breezes, and away from the direction of your storms. If you are not sure of these (who is these days?), check with your local National Weather Service website.

3. As far as you can, arrange for some sort of shade over your coop and run. Preferably deciduous so the girls will enjoy winter sun, but summer shade.

 

[swampfox440]

Welcome to BY:C! thanks for joining us.