Having Chickens
I truly think chicken's are the very prettiest when it is this time of year!
They are very fat and they have all their feathers!
I have had the pleasure of having chickens for years!
I love getting fresh eggs!!
During the long winter months they stop laying completely for a few months.
But as soon as it starts to warm up they start blessing us again!
I do not let them free range very often because they really are
They also will start laying their eggs in spots that you may never find them!
Also, we have foxes and coyotes that would love a chicken dinner!
Plus we have three dogs and I feel that it is such a great temptation for them!
I usually get a new batch of baby chicks about every two years;
Then I can keep a newer, younger hen in the flock.
But I have some very old hens that are just plain fat and I am sure they don't
Lay eggs anymore. But they are like the old girls in the flock.
Just because they are old I still love having them!
They are just fat and fluffy!
I have had a few that are really mean!
Those ones don't stay around very long
(Can't trust them with the grandkids)
One thing that I have enjoyed about having chickens other than
Then I don't feel bad that something has gone bad;
I just feed it to the chickens!!
We have two roosters and it gives just enough competition for the top rooster!
My plan is to order some new chicks real soon!
I order from a company called
MCMURRAY HATCHERY DOT COM
MCMURRAY HATCHERY DOT COM
I have a small special box I keep in the barn with a heating lamp!
I keep them there till they can't fit through the holes in the chicken wire.
And they hop around like a jackrabbit!
Do you have some funny memories of chickens?
Actually, many people are afraid of chickens!
Blessings,
Do not give up hope Spring is a coming...
Do not give up hope Spring is a coming...
We live in the city and are allowed to have a maximum of 3 chickens but NO roosters are allowed. I have always wanted chickens but I haven't convinced Hubby of that yet. I have horrible memories of the chickens on my uncles farm in Nebraska. They used to send me, the city girl, out to gather eggs when I visited. Those chickens knew I was terrified of them, (I was afraid of my own shadow in those days,) and they would fly at me and peck at me. I would go back to the house with bloody hands from the chickens pecking me when I reached for the eggs. My Uncle and my cousins would laugh at me. I'll never forget that. However, I know not all chickens are like that. Our daughter-in-law has chickens and they let the grandkids carry them around in their arms! Kyleigh has been gathering eggs since she could walk and the chickens love her. Such different experiences we've had. :-)
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Betsy
ReplyDeleteLove the picture of your chickens. I have four laying hens and a roaster, had five but let them out and one never came back. Thinking it became a meal for a fox:o(
I am planning on getting some eating chickens and a few more hens this year, would like some hens that lay colored eggs.
Love the fresh eggs, but also just like watching them!
Blessings,
Cheryl
We live in Maryland very near Washington, DC. It is not lawful to have chickens. A few families who were used to rural living tried it, but there is not enough space. Lots are not big enough, and homes are just a few feet apart.
ReplyDeleteMy son just spent a week at a nature science camp near Chesapeake Bay with his 6th grade class. He loved it. There was much to do outdoors (and no electronics), and some of the kids got to hold or pat the chickens. I think they look pretty. I like the varied colors of feathers on your chickens. Fresh eggs sound good. I'd be timid approaching chickens especially if they get to fluttering up in the air and squawking. Eek! Alexine in Maryland
One of my favorite memories of my grandma was that she ALWAYS had chickens. I would love them as well, but we don't live in a place to have them. Maybe one day:)
ReplyDeleteI so love that you have chickens!!! What a wonderful part of life in the county. Fresh eggs and company. I love listening to them mulling around a coop. One day in my dreams I'll have a home where we can have chickens.
ReplyDeleteHave fun with your new additions that you'll have soon. :)
I have always loved chickens too, Roxy. When I was a little girl, I remember my dad bringing home a box of baby chicks and we kept them in a pen in our back yard. I remember one of them poked it's head through the expanded metal gate and got it stuck. My mom had to kill it to get it out and we had her for Sunday lunch...LOL! I could have never done that but she was raised on a farm and knew exactly what needed to be done! My son, Aaron has about a dozen chickens and we regularly get fresh eggs from him. Also, our backdoor neighbor has some hens and I enjoy seeing "the girls" and converse with them whenever I am out. My dream is having a chicken coop of my very own when we move to TN and to the country in a year or so! :)
ReplyDeleteFunny memories of chickens?! Really?! You know my story so I won't type it all out. I love fresh eggs and those little ladies are pretty from a distance or behind the chicken wire. Hahaha!
ReplyDeleteYou better get them ordered soon...Spring's a coming! ;)
Enjoy your week!
Hugs,
Amy
Love seeing you chickens, Roxy! We used to keep a few. Such a pleasure, and chickens can have real character. I miss the fresh eggs! So nice to have a comment from you! J.
ReplyDeleteI wish we could have chickens where we are, but we can't. Lord willing, we will get to move soon and may be able to have chickens then. We have coyotes here too! We think coyotes may have eaten our cats before, so we never let out our current kitty. We don't want her to be coyote dinner!
ReplyDeleteI always enjoy your posts.
I never realized how social chickens can be!
ReplyDeleteLoved this post! Growing up my parents ordered chickens from McMurray. It was always an exciting day to receive the call from our post office letting us know our chicks had arrived! Adam and I have 6 hens, they are Isa Browns. I love to watch them out my window throughout the day. They have been so pleased with the unseasonably warm days. : )
ReplyDeleteCount me as one who is a little intimidated by the girls. In fact, I have just such a story somewhere on the blog. My niece raises chickens and I do think that they are pretty. I like taking my leftover scraps there for the chickens...They love watermelon rinds.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed your post on chickens :) You know me, and how much I love my sweet girls and two handsome fellas! I have had eggs all winter long, not as many of course as in springtime, but still, a good supply. I keep an LED light on for about 12 hours a day, and this seems to be all they need to keep laying. My sweet girls are so friendly, and come running to meet me whenever I leave the house. You are right, they are a bit destructive. I can't have any flowers out in the yard, only in my garden, where they can't get in. Enjoyed your post very much :)
ReplyDeleteHey Roxy! I miss my chickens here in VA. I kept a running flock for over 15 years in NC. SO many great times watching 'chick fights' over grub worms! :) My children loved to throw one in the run at a time and watch the girls run around chasing each other. No harm was ever done. We had a young rooster once that when he was learning how to crow, it sounded just like Beethoven's 5th! Hence, we named him Beethoven. There's really so many stories to cherish when you raise chickens. They each have their own personality, which is something I didn't realize until I became a chicken hobbyist! Enjoyed reading this post. :)
ReplyDeleteWe need to order some more chicks too! Our girls are just getting too old. We usually get comets but this year, I would like to maybe get a few different kinds as well! :o)
ReplyDelete