Liz, My mother took me to the local library as soon as I could read. Every Saturday. That started a lifelong reading habit. So I would suggest you go to your local library and get books on chickens. As for egg laying breeds, my favorite is the black australorp. The first fall we were here in KY. I ordered 25 pullets from Strombergs. They sent 26, all lived and all were pullets. By the following spring they were laying. They have been great hens for me. I free range and they grew up with Shamo so their mind set is a little different than a regular australorp. It is amazing how far out in the pasture they range. As for a coops go, I'm dead set again a stationary coop. Read lee's chicken tractor book for the reasons.
--- In CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com, "Liz" <lizsimmons@...> wrote:
>
> Hello everyone. I've been reading this list for a few weeks, since my husband and I have decided to prepare this summer for keeping chickens. I am trying to learn more about this all and have made a list of the breed(s) I am interested in getting, primarily average to above-average layers with good temperament. This brings me to my first question; I'm sure there are cautionary measures to take when purchasing chicks or young chickens and I've seen that some people actually will ship them - perhaps this is the eggs being shipped and not the chicks. I guess I'm wondering how most of you acquired your chicks? And would late summer be a poor or impossible time in NY to acquire baby or young chicks? Another question I have is about the run. We will begin to build the coop and run soon, and the main concern of course is protecting them from predators. We are considering covering the top of their daytime run to protect them from hawks as we have had a pair of red-tailed hawks frequent our backyard in the past. Do you think this is necessary, and if so, will it make the chickens unhappy - I've read that some breeds can be "fliers." Thanks everyone in advance; I'm so glad to have found a forum full of experts on chickens!
>
CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com
No comments:
Post a Comment