I've always wanted chickens and I have recently left my job to spend more time with my family so I now have a lot of time on my hands! The last few weeks I have taken out multiple books from the library and reached out to many people I know who currently have backyard chickens
Great information:
Kid's Guide to Keeping Chickens by Melissa Caughey. What I liked about this book is that it was written for children but I learned so much from it. The organization was very easy to read through, it had great pictures and extremely interesting. I took this book out of the library but I will definitely be purchasing it and hopefully having her sign it at one of her speaking engagementsStorey's Guide to Raising Chickens by Gail Damerow. What I like about this book is that it reads like an encyclopedia and will be a great reference to use as the chickens grow. It has a great section on building the coops as well as a large section on "Laying- Hen Management".
the joy of keeping chickens- The Ultimate Guide to Raising Poultry for Fun or Profit by Jennifer Megyesi. This book was a very easy and enjoyable read. Each chapter started out with what seemed like a journal entry from the author. This book didn't get into as much detail as the above book but it was still very enjoyable. I also liked that she provided recipes for eggs and the meat.
Living with Chickens- by Jay Rossier. I liked this book because of the layout and that each chapter started with really great quotes. The section on coop design and raising chicks were both entertaining and engaging. I also like that the author is from Vermont so we share a very similar climate.
Now that I have read some books and done countless hours of internet searching its now time to commit to a coop layout and design. We have an acre of land and our yard abuts about a 100 acres of conservation land so it seems to go on for miles! We have decided to turn what was going to be my daughter's swing set into the base of the coop. Next weekend we will be breaking ground so I will be sure to post pictures. My plan was to start with a small flock (6 hens) but make the coop large enough that we could expand since everyone says that owning chickens is addicting and the flocks grow larger and larger. When I went to the farm store to purchase the chicks I ended up leaving with an order of 7 chickens!!!
Deciding on the chicks:
In my area there are a lot of places that sell chickens both as chicks and as pullets. In thinking about what I want from my flock I decided these few things were the most important:
*Productive egg layers
*Different breeds so I had a colorfull flock
*Different colored eggs
*Cold weather tolerant- living in Massachusetts we will have low temperatures as well as snow
I ultimately decided to go with purchasing my chicks from NewFarm in Orleans, Ma (NewFarm link here). If I had ordered chicks from Tractor Supply or a few other Farm Stands I would only be able to get a few different breeds. I also couldn't find a good mix of the breeds that I wanted (the chicks should all be bought within a short time frame so they are the same age and get along better). At NewFarm they had about 15-20 different breeds to choose from and only a 3 chick minimum. So I was able to get the chicks that I wanted!!! My day old chicks will arrive on March 21st and I will need to pick them up within 24 hours. So far I have bought a watering container, a feed container and an egg collecting basket(better to be prepared). I will do a complete post about my chick set up!
My Girls:
Black Australorp (1)
Plymouth Barred Rock (2)
Golden Buff/Red Star (1)
Easter Egger -Araucana/Ameraucana cross (2)
Silver Laced Wyandotte (1)
These chickens are very docile breeds and are great for children because they don't mind being held.
