Hello, I'm new to this site. Was given this site by LoraK. I've been on several times, but just registered. A little about myself. I live in NH. I'm 31 with 2 kiddos. I currently have 19hens (aracaunas, RIR, black beauties, cant remember the name of the black and green ones) and I have one aracauna rooster who is a sweetie. I have 6 PBR chicks coming on April 28th. I've enjoyed reading everyones threads on here. My husband thinks I'm a nerd because I'm on a chicken forum and I also am part of a saltwater fish forum. I am an avid animal lover, with way too many to count. Thought I would say Hi and look forward to posting here.
New Here
Hi Jan,
I raised chickens a long time ago and now I'm expecting my first ones in about 25 years!
Welcome to the forum!
MollyD
Welcome janastasio!
It sounds like you have a wonderful flock. Are black beauties production hybirds? Sex-linked?
My DH sneers, "Talking with your chicken friends again?", when he sees me on the computer. But he built a very nice coop and lets the chicks stay in the bedroom, brooder light and all, until they are old enough to go out. Maybe your husband is just jealous that you have such an interesting life:0)
Thanks for the welcome! My husband picks on me, but he is also very good! Puts up with alot pets that he's not so nuts about. I'm not sure what the black beauties are. I would have to recheck the hatchery that I purchased them from. They are black on top, and have brown on their chests. May just be a name that that hatchery came up with! We will be building a new coop this spring. My chickens are currently in our old dog pen which is very large and has a sheltered part underneath that we chickenwired and put up a door to protect them. We would like to put the dog back in again this year. She's killer on the lawn and she has taken out several chickens when she has gotten off her line. So that should be an interesting project!
hello and welcome by the sounds of it you are no newbie to chickens so hopefully u can help us to if we get any questions glad to have you on the site
HI Jan, and welcome to Dave's! We are all nuts here about our chickens!!! My husband is the same way, very tolerant and yet has to say something to pick on me. Even one of my sons walks up to the computer and says, "oh, chicken stuff again" LOL
sounds like your black beauties are black sex links. they are good layers and also good broody hens i understand!
please, tell me what PBRs are??? i can only think of Peanut Butter and Raisins.... can't place those intials with poultry...
i have three boys who have three puppies and two Nubian goats. And we share all the chickens, but i pretty much take care of them ;-)
So far we have: Buckeyes, Rose combed Brown Leghorns, Black Australorps, Black Jersey Giants, Crested White Polish, Bantam Cochins in Black, White and Buff, and Partridge; Bantam Brahmas in Buff and Light; Plymouth Barred Rocks [by accident], Old English Game in Blue Wheaten and Self-Blue; Golden Seabrights; Muscovy Ducks, White Embden and White Chinese Geese, White Pekin Ducks, and Last But ALWAYS FIRST---~ Guineas!
Whew, i have always been scared to list them all, and now i see why LOL.
Looking forward to hearing of your daily escapades, trials and triumphs, and seeing lots of pics...
^_^
tf
Hi Jan! You'll really enjoy it here on the poultry forum. Everyone here is very friendly just like we're all neighbors!
At the present time, I've got Khaki Campbell ducks, Buff Orpington chicks, silkie chicks, 2 young steers, too many dogs!(1 cocker spaniel, 12; german shepard/bull terrier, 4; and two 9 month old springer spaniels), and a black cat(no I'm not superstitious!). And a couple white Peking ducks coming in May.
Hey, tf, I feel a bit better when I see you have 3 pups!! Everyone I know thinks I'm nuts!!
Sue
we saved them from the pound, they are heeler mix. you can see each pup has a different mix LOL
so DH built a new goat pen and we agreed the pups would stay with the goats after taking my Giant roo down [he is OK]. DH has not spent ANY time with the pups, and mine [welll, the baby's] didn't like that he had taken the goats and other pups, so when he reached for him, he BIT him! i say good dog, because he thought DH was a stranger!
most of our neighbors love driving by or looking over and seeing the animals. they have plenty of space and don't make too much mess LOL, so it is kind of a beneift to living here, they can feel like they are in the country, but they don't have to take care of the animals. visiting here can be dangerous, like a drive through wildlife refuge. i told DH we need a sign "Secure car doors and windows. Not responsible for hitch-hikers. Return at your own risk!"
maybe Lora knows what PBR is???
Wow, glad to see others with as many pets as me! I didnt list all my pets, but since others are, then I will tag in! We have 6 cats, 2 dogs (a 1 and a half year old lab), 13 yr old pug, 2 ferrets, 2 guinea pigs, 6 rats, 3 bunnies that are in the pen with the chickens, the 20 chickens, and 2 saltwater fish tanks. PBR's are plymouth barred rocks. I cant wait to get them. The black and green chicken is the astrlorps, and the black and browns are the black sex links. My chickens are all good layers, they are such good girls. I'm currently looking into getting silkies. I've read great things about them, and have heard they make great chickens for kids, although most of my chickens are pretty friendly. I'm a firm believer in handling them alot as little babies. If anyone knows of anyone I can get pure silkies from in NH, I'm looking. I was going to get some from Lora, but that did not work out. I have a lady who is somewhat close by that has silkies, but they are already 6-8 weeks old. Any thoughts on getting them already at that age and integrating them into my flock?
PBR, i should kno wthat! i have a whole pen full!!! Privett Hatchery shipped them in place of Black Australorps LOL... have only three pullets out of the original 20!!!
we want rabbitrs, but wil wait a couple mor eyears. we have our hands full. used to have fish till we got ducks. when DH builds me a deep pond by the house, i will get goldfish and koi again...
i bet BYH or SC will chime in, they are near you. can't recall, CrestedChik might be in your area too!
will have to ask DH if he knows where Walpole is, he hails from Vermont!
tf
TF, Walpole is in southern NH, just outside of Keene (Keene does the whole pumpkin festival thing), we are just accross the river from Vermont, so very close by. Most people know Walpole because of a great chocolate place here called Burdicks. Its sooooo good! I would love to have others chime in on where to get the silkies. I dont want to order online because I dont want that many. I only want about 4. The lady that has the older ones has 7-8 and said if I bought them all, she would make a really good deal on them, like $3.50 a pc. Still feel a little hesitant about not getting them young. 6-8 weeks seems pretty mature for a chicken. I'm in limbo!
SC is in PA and CC in NY. is that too far to drive? you will have to excuse my ignorance, i am from a state where it takes 24 hours to drive from one end to the other, so everything up there seems "close enough" to me...
if i were you i woul dwant them smaller. and i woul dwant to choose, not just "take all". at least they are fully feathered though and might not need heat....?
can't belivee DH hasn't told me about the chocolate place. he grew up right across from Ben & Jerry's, if that tell syou something... Lake Champlain was hi sbackyard...
Burdicks has been around for about 12 years in Walpole, so depending how long ago he was in the area. Yes, my gut instinct tells me to get younger ones too. I'm just being inpatient. I was originally supposed to get them this week/weekend, so now that I'm not, I want to find some! I've tried calling our local feed stores and they will not be getting any any time soon, and they get mixtures of all the different types of bantoms, so no guarentee on them being silkies. I'm sure something will come up. NY and PA are a bit of a drive from here. Def. not 24 hours though! Wow, it really takes 24 hours to get accross TX? Thats nuts!
This is a pic of our chicken pen. When we are home the chickens are out in the yard. Some of the chickens actually fly out into the yard if we dont let them out! I am impressed at the height they get!
and another of the chickens in the pen from last summer.
they look like a hpapy bunch!
Welcome! Wow you have a brood of animals don't you.
We have one dog, 2 cats, a gerbil and about 50 chickens.
And yes, it takes forever to get across Texas. You feel like you never to get the border (unless you live on the border, ha) When we visit the in-laws in MO almost half of the time it takes to get there is spent getting out of TX.
Guess I cant complain when we drive thru Pennsylvania anymore! I thought that state was bad to drive thru! I'm pretty fortunate where we are located. It doesnt take too long to get to most places in NH, and we are very close to Vermont, Massachusetts and CT. Some parts of NY arent too bad either. My problem is I have a hard time convincing hubby its worth while to drive 3-4 hours for chicks. I see no problem with it!!! He looks at the fuel cost, blah blah blah!!
you just need to stop at a tool store on the way back LOL
very good point! More likely an electronics store in his case! As much as he complains, he doesnt mind selling eggs to his co workers. I think he finds it kind of cool! Cool guy with fresh eggs! Everyone loves fresh eggs. I cant keep up with the demand! Especially with the cost of eggs in the stores now.
janastasio I love your chicken yard! They look so safe in there!!
MollyD
Thankyou! Its always really nice in the summer, everythings gets so green and I have flowers planted all around the fence. So far so good as far as safety. We live out in the wilderness and havent had any problems yet. I have a friend who lost half her flock last summer to multiple racoons, and during the day! How scary. Only thing I mostly get are skunks. Cant tell you how many times last summer I would go into the pen after dark to collect eggs and close everyone in, and there would be a skunk in the pen. It woudl be running around panicked trying to find its way out, I would be running into the coop to close myself in. Would be a funny site for someone to see! We have a family of skunks that live near our garage every year. Mom usually has 3-4 babies each year. They are sooo cute.
I'm in the wilderness too but so far (knock on wood) no skunks. raccoons , coyotes, bears, stray dogs and hawks. My chicks are due to arrive sometime around 5/7 and I worry about all these would be predators. I'm getting 25 chicks and a pair of geese in that shipment. I'm also getting two doe goats on May 6th. We already have a horse and two dogs here so our menagerie is growing ^_^
MollyD
I am suffering from chicken yard envy now......
You guys are too sweet! Molly, you must be so excited to get your chicks and geese. I have a friend who has 3 geese. They are sooo funny the way they follow us around the yard! I really like them, but know better than to push my luck with Hubby on getting any! Think I just found someone with little baby silky chicks! Very excited, may be getting them tomorrow! Yeah, Yeah, Yeah.
Welcome, neighbor - I'm in Maine. I have Serama bantams and Wyandottes (mostly). We're one big happy family here.
Oh - for the record - this isn't a forum - it's "chicken chat'. LOL...Scott
LOL, sorry!! My saltwater site is a forum, and is the first I had ever joined, so the name stuck! Chat sounds much friendlier! Nice to chat with you Scott! So do you have bantoms only? Looks like I will prob. be heading over to Seabrook tomorrow to get my new babies. I feel like its Christmas eve!!! We are going to go to the Beach since we will be over in that direction. Weather should be good for looking for some little treasures on the beach, and then off to get some peeps! I will post some pics as soon as I get them!
Yippeeeeeee!
All my Wyandottes are standards. I have them in white, black, blue, buff, gold laced, silver laced, Columbian, partridge, silver pencilled, and soon to be blue-laced reds (my previous BLR's all died, they came sick from MMH - see the threads). Bantams, I have the Seramas (which are awesome), and Rocks in barred, Columbian, and partridge. I also just hatched out some really nice standard Buff Orp's that are from SQ parents. I lost a total of 35 chicks this spring to that cussed AE virus, but I believe it has run its course through my flock. All of my birds, sans the BO chicks, are together now.
Hey do all of your Amer. have tails, and is that a partridge color Amer. hen in the first pic you posted?
Yes I am janastasio ! I'm getting two straight runs of 10 of New Hampshires and Buff Orpingtons. Also 5 Delaware roosters. Could not get my hands on pullets :-( These are coming from Ideal so I may have to wait another year to get both pullets and a rooster Delaware. Just can't justify buying 25 more chicks when all I want is 5 pullets. Next year I'll try again. In the meantime these 5 roos will tell me something about the breed to see if I want to pursue these or try another breed.
MollyD
Scott, not sure if the aracuana you saw pictured is considered a partridge. The only aracuanas I have ever seen as adults are my own! At some point I can individual pics of my chickens and maybe you guys could help me out a little with what they are! I only know their basic breed name from when I purchased them. I know how you feed Molly D about not wanting to purchase 25 birds. I have only done that once and it was a very possitive experience, healthy babies, but I ended up getting 31 chicks! This was when I first started out with chickens. Thats alot of birds for a newbie! I kept them all for awhile and then sold 10 to the lady we had bought our puppy from, so it all worked out ok. It was kind of comical in a way. I bought a $700.00 puppy from her, and she kind of guffawed at the price of $4.00 per chicken!!!!
so when an expensive pup plays with and kills cheap chickens, does it increase the pups value? LOL. only kidding. we had a nieghbor who only lived here breifly last fall, long enough for their adult dog to get a taste of guineas and then bring the 1500 dollar pup over for "Playtime". the owner was so mad that i accused his dogs, but was perfectly willing to watch the video! hiw wife was so apologetic, but he was a big jerkO, and never paid the $10 for the breeding duck we lost. i couldn't put a price on the laying hen or my PerfectBuckeye [RIP]...
yes, Lora, how are your ortho patients doing?
Oh, I would have been so mad TF. No unfortun. I dont think the value of the dog increased! Thankly that has not happened in a long time. Shes bigger now so I'm hoping she has matured (as much as a hyper yellow lab can!), and she has gotten bigger so she doesnt slip her collar on her run like she used to. I swear we went thru about 15 collars last spring! After she would slip them, she would then eat them as is to say, "so there"!
what a dog! luv it ^_^
Well we just got home from our excursion! What a fun day. We went to the beach, which was very cold and windy. We were not dressed appropriately at all! We only stayed there for about an hour. Then we went to get the babies. The lady that we bought them from lives only about 15min.from the beach. She's so lucky!!! I got four baby silkies from her. I believe if I remember correctly she said they were born Thursday. They are such peanuts! I got 2 partridge silkies, 1 gray (blue) silkie, and one whitish yellow (? maybe a splash, she wasnt sure). I hoping for a splash, but of course I will love whatever feathers out! So I thought I had alot of animals! They had a dog with a litter of puppies one week old (too cute), goats, tons of different chickens, bunnies with a litter of baby bunnies (I wanted one so bad, only a week old though, and my husband would have killed me!). She had lots of silkies! I could have gotten ones a little older, already feathered out, but I wanted the wee ones! I'll post pics tomorrow! Its late and I'm sitting relaxing, enjoying a strawberry margharita. Yum!
OMG, keep me & the kids away from BUNNIES!
PHOOEY, I'M HOLDING a gassy baby & can't reach my wine!
congrats! can't wait to see pics!
cant wait to take some. I'm going to have to find my card reader so I can post the pics. You have a gassy baby, I have a gassy kitten sitting next to me! Makes me need the margharita more! We got this kitten about a month and half ago. Have no idea what its issue is, although I'm sure the kitten food must not be agreeing with her. Your baby is 1 I think I remember you saying? My son who is 3 now was like that. He was such a miserable baby! Definitely helped make up my mind about being done with kids!
well, we changed water in his formula. he refused it several times. i was too ill ro go get good water... now i will pay 4 it LOL
yeah, my first baby seemedso easy... Orion is just now almost sleeping through a very short night. but NOT TONIGHT!
I'm sorry to hear that! I thought it seemed like you were up pretty late! I'm a night owl, so I'm always up late. During the week I have to take ambien to be able to fall asleep. Wish I didnt have to, but I've tried everything, and boy does your health start to deplete with lack of sleep. My son was an awful sleeper, and still isnt the best and he's 3. He wakes up alot through the night. He ends up crawling into bed with us, which I dont mind! Bad habit, but I love having my kids sleep with me. I love snuggling with them! My son had alot of digestion and breathing problems as an infant. We tried soy formula which improved things slightly. He also was sick for most of his first year. He had so many chest xrays, multiple bouts of pneumonia, and was using steroids twice a day along with albuterol. Argh, dont miss those days. He grew out of it, thank goodness, as will your son. Have you thought about food allergies? So many people have a very difficult time digesting cow milk. He could very well have a lactose problem. Goat milk is an excellent source of milk and easily digested because it is the closest the human milk. I wonder if that would improve things for him.