I'm new to Dave's Garden, and I just stumbled across this forum.
All the chickens and turkeys are just adorable.
I'm a city girl, though. Chickens make good apartment pets, right? They perch on towel racks and nest in drawers, I've read.
My neighbors wouldn't even notice -- how loud can a rooster be, anyway?
All I'd have to do is potty-train the chickens and teach them not to peck at things.
I could even teach them how to ride the subway, so they could visit the ducks in the pond at the Public Garden.
(I am kidding.)
This message was edited Apr 11, 2007 3:39 PM
Sigh ... chicken envy
Awwww Weather, just get a pair of tiny bantams like My Japs and put them in a really roomy bird cage!!! They will just need a paper change every day, just like a parrot!!!!
And.......Welcome!!!!
City girl - hate to tell you this - chickens can't swim. FYI - even little roosters crow loud and they have an attitude!
Eufaula, I don't think my apartment is big enough for a chicken cage. I was thinking that they'd be house chickens -- bringing me my slippers at the end of the day and all that.
AYankeeCat, since chickens can't swim, can I just put them in the center of an inflatable inner tube? Or maybe put little water wings on them?
Maybe I could find a rooster that's quiet. A shy, introverted one -- like a feathery Woody Allen.
Weather, Welcome to the board!!!
Get a rabbit cage its small enough for them. They make great
pets and change the paper day to day and you will be just fine..
Tracey
I'm going to stop joking for a second here -- Eufaula and Nicksmom30, are you serious about keeping chickens indoors?
You can not tell?
These are some serious enablers, wait till Zeppy chimes in with "Wherever chickens are outlawed
only outlaws will keep chickens."
Nadine
Hey, you all aren't teasing!
According to http://www.birdhobbyist.com/articles/BirdHobbyist/Species/PetChickens.html
"A single banty hen might be OK in a city apartment or house .... A single banty - or even two or three - does very well with a dog carrier for sleeping quarters and a small patch of dirt to scratch..."
[Edited to add: This is a news story about it that mentions a $1,500 "Henspa" for indoor chickens. http://www.rense.com/general27/chickensbecoming.htm]
This message was edited Apr 11, 2007 5:36 PM
OH NO you don't! Iif you are going to spend a ridiculous amount of money do what I did...............google this ..........omelet eglu
Remeber that chickens are a social animal and keeping just 1 is not such a good idea.
We domesticated cats and dogs and we keep them in the house - they no longer work, I think animals are happier if they are doing their job. An example would be a sheep dog - you think it would be happier in a house with nothing to do all day are out there rounding up sheep..........dogs have owners, cats have servants........I still think they are happier out in the barn killing mice "protecting" the chickens...........SOOOOOOOOO........keeping a pet chicken is actually a VERY human thing to do......just my opinion not trying to enable or anything (Looking to the sky and whistling hoping no one notices..........)
Yes you can have chickens indoors... I have friends that have them as pets indoors and in their own room as well... But out side is okay too... I had mine indoors for 4 months and they where fine and it's fun they cheep and watching them is cool.
I love my chickens and do any thing for them..
Tracey
DUH! Weather, you are on a Gardening forum talking about chickens and you are living in an apartment, Girl you need to buy yourself a house. I take back what I said before, do not whatever you do go to that site. I now recommend going to Oprah site and get going on a budget so you can buy a house so you can garden and have chickens, then you will see JUST how enabling we all are.
I was worried about ordinances about keeping chickens here in town so I actually considered making over the lean-to portion of my house into a permant coop. Then I rememebered that half the reason I want them is to eat bugs in my yard. The animal control officer said that if my neighbors complained I would have to get rid of them, then I find out that its all about whether are not the are a "pet". I talked to my neighbors they are fine with it, so I now own a pink eglu and 4 baby chicks - 2 americauna's and 2 bantam's have had them since last Thursday evening (took Friday off I was....cough...cough...sick).....so good luck, doing things in the proper order. I used to have a new car and great furniture and a trendy apartment now I have a beater car, second hand furniture, a mortgage, an eglu, and a very expensive plant habit.
Uhhhhh! Well lets see! Heres one chickie bird cage! WITH doggie night Patrol!
Heres number two teenie weenie itty biddy birdie cage! In the house I might add!
And as all of us enablers know... a super must is taking chickie babies everywhere including Camping! Oh and of course Chicken Tractors for farming too!
Eufaula, You tell them!!! It's no joke and its true to the word and you can have them as pets..
Tracey
What cute pictures!
"... a super must is taking chickie babies everywhere including Camping! Oh and of course Chicken Tractors for farming too!"
Eufaula, I can believe that chickens like to go camping, but can they really drive tractors for farming?
Weather,
Welcome, welcome, welcome - - - as you can tell, you are swarmed by all of us "chick enablers", literally. Hope you feel the passion that we all have for them. I too have a room with 3-brooders (and a doggie patrol, too); another room with 4-incubators and well, needless to say..............we manage chicks in the casa, easily! lol Stear clear from those rowdy roo's, your neighbors will cuss you good - - - LOL! Oh, and yes, I'm sure Eufaulas chicks can camp, and drive tractors.........lolololol!
Belinda
Weather,
look at all my pics and you see every body loves chickens as much as we all do...
Tracey
Hers anouther, Tracey
Last pic. I will have more soon..
Tracey
okay here I am! I couldnt stand it! Im on my Mom's computer! she is doing great, but I was having DG withdrawal!
Shoot yeah, these Georgia Chickens can drive tractors and weed the garden too!
Weather cant you tell by now we Chicken people cultivate a lot of NUTs!!!!! LOL!!!
We love to tease and we love the attention and we love our chickies! So glad we have you now to banter with!!!
What great chicken pictures! Awwww.
Weather, I too will share a few with ya! And, Eufaula, SO glad you're back! Hope your mom is doing much better now.
Belinda
This is on of my Blue Salmon Faverolles that I hatched a few weeks back.
To cute and Belinda glade to see your mom is doing good.
Texasgardenmom, I have new pics. But have truoble sending them. I have some questions to ask you ladys my silkies are not
laying eggs its 8 days now and still no eggs why???
Weather, you will do great with chicks !!!! Good Luck!!!! Weather.
Tracey
Oh yes, definitely . oh chickens are so wonderful! And you could get a cat carrier and bring them to the park! And you could train them to do tricks! ( really) and sit on your shoulder, like a city pirate ( only sort of really)
but do get at least 2. One hen alone is a sad sad girl.
Here in NH we tie all our hens together and they pull us along in the snow on our sleds. Haven't you ever heard of the chick-diterod? It is a very elite race.
The roosters shovel the walkways and drive the plow trucks.
Texas, what a charming little fluffball!
BackyardHens, that's hysterical! The chick-diterod and the "parrot," especially.
Okay, so the truth is I actually have a chicken who likes to do that. that's where I got the idea. haha. no, really.
Hey Im popping in here , between road trips to Moms!
With all this Chicken talent going on, did you all know that you can actually "Google" Chicken diapers??? Yep now you can take them any where, and dress them appropriately! Soooooo, if you have the tendency for the Pirate Parrot Attitude, you can dress your chicky in diapers and go about your business! Then while in Wally World you just make a trip to the public restroom and the diaper changer table! Ahhh , such conveniences, make us chicken lovers sooooo Happy!!!!
BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
Okay, even though I HAVE joked about that............
Who could do that to such a noble creature as the chicken! I think my girls would be very put out!
AHHH!
Chicken diapers!
I did Google it, and went to the photo gallery. THERE'S A CHICKEN DOING THE PARROT THING!
http://www.chickendiapers.com/Gallery.html
(It might be a roo, it's got a comb.)
LOL, a rooster wearing a diaper, he must not know what's going on. I would love to have a chicken living in the house, I just can't get DH to agree, not even with a diaper, LOL.
You know, I hate all this crazy weather, but it does give me a chance to have all my delicate tiny Japanese in the house with me! They are all still in the brooder cage and very well behaved! As a matter of fact, a whole lot less noisy than my friends Cockatiel and definitely less noisy than her parrot! ( 'scuse me "Mc Caw")
I change out their paper and feed them once a day. I get to hold and pet them and see the changes in their appearances more often! And they do change daily! Here is little "Happy Feet " ,"Mijikai" and "Suna" ,today looking very scruffy with the new feathers now trying to replace baby Down! But they are still so small and Cuddly! Looks like tiny "Miji" is going to be a Roo after all!
Well, weather, now that you mention it, I do happen to have a little video of my chicken jumping up onto my shoulder on youtube.... and one of me blowdrying one of my silkie chickens....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8A3jPK1DKHY the parrot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqU2YNVZHyY the hairdo
I love Eufaula's new little chicks! Chicks look like Thomas Jefferson, don't they? The beak and serious eyes.
BackyardHens, I watched both videos twice! That is adorable.
Your video's are great, I had to blow dry 2 of my silkies alot this winter, they liked dipping there heads in there water. I would go up to the coop and have 2 silkies with frozen heads, they kept it up for a long time, I think they liked the blow dryer, LOL.
hi all just to stop and say hi...
...loved reading this thread!
last year [2006] i was so involved with my 75 chcks, but found my hands weren't strong enough to finish their coop. i had a vivid dream on the Saturday night before Easter that i had full grown chickens still living in the house! so after church i got up the nerve to ask this fellow to help me out with finishing my chicken pen since he had offered to help with my house.
the short story is we are now married with a new baby, & i thank God for my chicken obsession, & my son who wanted them so badly!!!
my new dh is not so excited about the expense of new chicks in the spring, so i may have to limit myself LOL
tf