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Boo

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Hello all .
I have alot of questions to ask so ill try to keep it simple and neat as i can .

1 we like the look of the silkie s i want to keep 3 or 4 hens and have 2 children what would you sugest ?

2 Im not allowed to keep a male as i will get complaints and i want to make the chick from eggs do i have any options ?

3 whats the best feed to get for them after they have grown ?
 
Hi Boo,
Here's my answers for you- I'm sure someone else will be along soon to give you more advice.

1. Silkies are generally a calm breed and should be fine with children - just make sure the children are gentle with them and they should soon become really tame.

2. If you are looking to hatch eggs you can buy fertile eggs and put them under one of your silkies when they get broody BUT if you are hatching eggs you need to remember that you will hatch cockerels as well as pullets and that someone must be prepared to dispatch them as it is very difficult to rehome cockerels.

3. Layers pellets provide a complete diet for your grown chickens.

Have a look here http://poultrykeeper.com/chickens/general-chickens/absolute-beginners-guide-to-keeping-chickens.html to find lots more advice to help you get ready for your chickens.
 
Thanks i will go have a read of the link :)

By dispatch that would mean kill ? I no 100% i could not do that myself which will make this desision very hard , I no i sound like a wuss but i need to ask these things as ill be the one bringing them into the world i need to make sure i can care for them throuout there lives ,
 
Light Sussex are sweet natured and very friendly, also Pekin Bantams. I have 5 Warrens, and one of my original two, Sally, is the sweetest, tamest, girl who is always with me in the garden, in the kitchen- if she can get there - she regularly cleans out the remains of the cat bowl! She watches and hangs around all the time, and comes on behalf of them all if the afternoon bread is not delivered on time. They all come
running to my imperious call of "Ladies.....". So I think my Warrens get my vote for kindly, VERY productive girls, who are friendly and very funny. I have two granddaughters of 7 and 10 who are chicken mad thanks to Sally and her cohorts, and my original Pekin, Yoko, who regularly courts my 7 year old granddaughter with his little sideways dances and constant nattering. SO start wherever the mood takes, whatever you put in with chicken cuddles, you will will reap the rewards thousandfold. Regards, VB.
 
You are asking some of the the right questions but:
Why do you want chicks ? Why not start with adults or some which are half grown so that you know they are female. Do you want them just as pets or to provide the household with eggs ?
 
I agree with chuck - if you are starting up - why start with chicks - they are a lot of work - depending on age etc you will need extras - except if you get autosexing you will have to deal with culls - spend a bit of money (that you would have spent anyway rearing chicks and time wasted getting nothing from them in terms of eggs - I would buy point of lay ( POL) - you know what you are getting then :-)17
 
I Want chicks so they get usto there surroundings and us from as earley as posible and so we can get them as tame as posible .
Well thats my thinking anyway , I would like them as pets but also to give eggs also ,
 
Will they get usto you the same if they are older ? probabley a silly question but i want my 2 children of 7 and 10 to be able to handle them also with me , I gues as pets go ive been there from day 1 with the animals i have allready months of chousing then contact from day 1 , i may be overthinking things as i do but want to make sure i do whats right for the animals and us as a familey ,
 
Yes they'll get used to you. At that age, your children should be able to learn to look after and handle adult chickens as long as long as you haven't chosen one of the really flighty breeds. Chickens/ bantams are much more adaptable than humans provided their basic needs are met. So if you concentrate on what the needs of the chickens are and not 'overthink' as you put it, the need to rear the chickens from chicks you will succeed. A compromise could be that you look out for 'growers' which may be two or three months old at a time when you can tell they are females. At that stage they will be on adult food and they will no longer need heat (have you considered that chicks will need heat for at least 6-8 weeks and need more skills to look after them than older stock ?)

Some of the 'cuddly' breeds will contribute very few eggs but will still need feeding, cleaning out etc.

At 9 years old I had my own laying chickens. I had the support of knowledgeable parents but they were mine and I looked after them completely. At that time (after the second world war) few could afford to keep anything other than utility laying stock which had to pay their way on far less sophisticated feed than is available today.
 
Dear Boo
My granddaughters are 7 and 10. All of my chicks apart from the Warrens have been handled by them from day 1, the Warrens were POL and two ex-batts. I think handling them with cuddles and much care as they grow is the answer. Regards, VB
 
valerie- I deleted your duplicate post for you :D

Sorry Boo, I didn't realise that you were talking about starting out with chicks. As others have said you'd be better starting out with older pullets -it is a much better way to start out and learn about chickens and they will soon become very friendly with careful handling and care - lots of the birds I have bought in are just as tame as ones I hatch myself- a lot of it depends on the breed.

Also, with older birds they would be sexed and you definitely wouldn't have to worry about ending up with cockerels and then what to do with them.

When you have decided what breed you would like and are all set up ready for them you could post in the wanted section on the forum and see if there are any forum members near you with some stock for sale- someone may well be able to help you out!
 
pebojuno - ta for the deletion.
Are all cream legbars as shy as mine? she is my only hen who refuses to be cuddled and is so unfriendly, not aggressive, just totally distant, and impossible to catch!!
 
Ty all for your help .
I have some books and some reading up to do now .
I need to decide on a breed and then find the perfect home for them to live in :) My children are very good at handling hens as they have spent alot of time with my mums 2 which are super tame and folow the kids about the garden :)
 
If you want them to be tame, friendly, etc you don't need chicks. We have some ex-battery & ex-barn hens as well as some "posh" birds. The ex-batts & barns were around 18 months- 2 years old when we got them, the ex-batts hadn't had much human contact & the ex-barns a little more. Out of all our hens the ex-batts & barns are the friendliest & tamest. The posher birds are a tad more wary of us (& while the Leghorns are cheekier, they're really scatty), though saying that my daughters Silkies (which we've only had for a few weeks) have become very tame & friendly very quickly. Only "down side" to Silkies (from what I've read/been told) is that they don't lay v many eggs (don't really lay through the summer like other hens) & can go broody at the drop of a hat, but if you're wanting them more for pets rather than egg-laying that doesn't really matter.

Really they're the same as any pet/animal - if handled correctly & looked after properly with lots of interaction & care from you/your family (along with a bit of bribery in the form of a few treats) they'll soon become used to you & quite tame & friendly. Some may take longer than others & some breeds are more likely to be happier than others when it comes to being handled.
 
Thanks all for the info been looking at ex batery hens (i know i want silkies but seams a good idea to give a well worked lady or 3 a nice home :D )
I need to visit my local vets soon so i will need to ask him if he deals with hens .particually if im getting some that havent been as loved as pets .

I also have been looking at homes and like the look of the Omlet Eglu will 3 ladies fit into this and a 3m run ok ? Thay look like they can be cleaned easy and if they are fox proof my cats will have time to get usto them without harming them at all .

Dose anyone know of any shows or local events to manchester that i could attend ? i would llike to go and speak to people and have a look at the birds , and pick some ears while im there :-)17
 
You'll find the hens shouldn't come to any harm from your cats. Our 2 cats learnt from day 1 of our hens free-ranging that it wasn't a good idea to mess with chickens. Poor Sox thought the little hen lagging behind the others was ideal prey - he stalked her, pounced & found that she had a sharp beak & claws. He tried to back away but before he could the other 7 all mobbed him too. Our big, mad tabby won't go for them either as he got the same treatment - he will still stalk them, but he keeps his distance & if they so much as look at him he runs away :lol: . Saying that though when 1 of ours raised a few chicks last year he did his utmost to get at the chicks (he never got to them but sadly a couple of strays did).

Have a pic somewhere of 6 of our ex-batts/barns sun-bathing in our driveway with Sox. Remember watching them & discovering that yawning isn't just contagious in people - Sox yawned & seconds later the hens were all yawning too :lol:
 
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