Backyard Chickens 101: An Introduction
Two years ago Jon and I bought four cute little hens that we named Inky, Pinky, Blinky, and Clyde. The only problem?
Pinky and Blinky were roosters. And they made an awful lot of noise in the morning. So I called around and found a nice farmer who let us trade in the roosters for two real hens, who we called Bumble and Boo. Since springtime is just around the corner, and bunches of fluffy little chicks are showing up at feed stores and garden centers, I’ve decided to put together a series of posts called Backyard Chickens 101. I’m going to share some basic chicken advice, show off a few inspirational coops, name my favorite resources, and let you in on how we trained our 85-pound mutt to coexist peacefully with our hens.
First, let me introduce you to our girls:
Meet Clyde. She is a lovely Araucana who lays exceptionally large blue eggs. Don’t you just love her silly, feather-y sideburns? Clyde, like many Araucanas, is a little bit aloof. She looks a bit fierce in this photo, but in real life she actually has a funny, cooky personality and makes the cutest cooing noises when you pet her.
Bumble and Boo are Buff Orpingtons. If they were human, they would definitely be the bad girls who like to sneak out of the house and drive around with older boys in fast cars. They stay up later than our other girls, sleep in longer, and always manage to find a way into the vegetable garden for some unauthorized snacking. Luckily, they have very cute, downy rear ends and lovable bird-brained personalities. They also lay lots of pale brown eggs.
Inky is my favorite chicken. I know you’re not supposed to have favorites, but I can’t help it. Inky is a Black Australorp and she is crazy curious. Last summer I left the backdoor open and a few minutes later I found Inky in our kitchen checking herself out in the door of the dishwasher. She also loves to follow our dog, Domino, around the backyard and she lays beautiful almond colored eggs.
Now that you’ve seen our chickens’ glamour shots, don’t you want a few of your own? Good! Here are a few more details about Inky, Clyde, Bumble and Boo Boo:
Chicks or Pullets: Chicks are newborn chickens and they require lots of warmth, attention, and room to grow. Since we have a very small house, we bought pullets, which are 12-week-old hens. The nice thing about pullets is they can go outside into the coop immediately (no need for a brooder light) and they start laying eggs in about 3 months (instead of 6 with chicks).
Where to find chickens: We found ads for pullets on Craig’s List and bought Inky and Clyde from Barnyard Gardens–a small nursery and farm on the Kitsap Peninusla that I highly recommend. We also found the boys—Pinky and Blinky—on Craig’s List. So it is not entirely reliable. If you can’t find pullets on Craig’s List, call your local 4-H, feed stores, or look on meetup.com or Yahoo! Groups to see if there is a chicken enthusiast group in your area (I belong to Seattle’s Chicken Lovers Group).
Breeds: One Araucana, two Buff Orpingtons, and one Black Australorp
Free range vs. Cooped Up: We let them range in our backyard when we are home, which is a slight risk because some predators, especially raccoons, do prowl around during the day. But our dog does a good job patrolling our yard, so we feel pretty comfortable letting the chickens roam free when we are within earshot. When we’re away from home, we lock them into their coop and attached, covered outdoor run.
Eggs: Approximately 3 each day from February through November, their laying tapers off during the darkest months. The eggs are gorgeous and we eat them all the time. FYI, you don’t need roosters to get eggs—you only need them if you want chicks.
Food: Organic layer mash (we get it at Hayes Feed & Country Store in Burien for about $28 a bag), cracked corn, grass, worms and insects, and table scraps. Our hens’ eggs have bright orange yolks because the green grass they nibble on everyday contains healthful carotenoid pigments that contribute to the color of the yolks.
Coop Bedding: Aspen shavings. We found that straw gets slimey and smelly. The aspen bedding and chicken manure composts quickly when mixed with grass clippings or green garden waste, making it easy for us to recycle all the bedding right in our own yard.
Will We Eat Them When They Get Old? Jon is a vegetarian. Enough said.
Tomorrow I’ll give you a few pointers on getting your first flock and some advice on coops and pictures of awesome coops from The Seattle Tilth City Chickens Coop Tour (coming up this year on July 11 ).
I love chicks!
March 17th, 2009 at 8:11 amI am looking forward to this series of posts! How long does their mash last? I have some friends getting chickens this year. I have to break my new landlord in a little more before asking about chickens…
March 17th, 2009 at 9:19 amHey Willi,
Fun post! I’ve grown up with chickens all my life. My parents have had all types for as long as I can remember. I’m going to eventually get some for my yard as soon as I can convince the wife that it’s a good thing! lol!
I’m looking forward to the series. I’ll have to forward you some photos of my dad’s coops.
March 17th, 2009 at 9:40 amReally enjoyed your article about chickens!
We have 7 girls in our backyard. Like you described, they slow down during dark winter month. We only got 2-3 eggs for a while… But recent sunlight woke them up! We are now getting 4-5 eggs/day. I love sunshine!
One thing about predators – Dogs can be their predators. Usually not your dog, but somebody else’s dog. We lost our first batch of chickens by two akita dogs 2 years ago. They escaped from their house, wandered around about 20 blocks, found our chickens… Though our chicken run was 100′ away from our street, they jumped over the 4′-5′ tall fence, and killed them all. It was awful.
Some people walk their dogs w/o leash, or don’t have solid fence/door for dog run, so they escape… I cannot blame dogs, because that’s their instinct to catch the bird… But dog owner should be aware of the possibility, and always use leash when they are not in secured dog run. Even the sweetest dogs who play with cat, they still have the instinct…
Btw, where do you get Aspen shavings? I agree with you that straw gets easily slimy… I would love to try Aspen shavings!
We go to Bothell Feed Center for straw & feed. I should also ask them if they have shavings…
March 17th, 2009 at 9:55 amNow you are inspiring me even more to get chickens. We were going to wait until we have a bigger yard, but even my husband heard you on the radio this morning and I think it piqued his interest more. thanks!
March 17th, 2009 at 11:12 amMatt–I love chicks too! Some day when we have a house with a basement I want to raise some chicks because they are so cute, and hand raised birds are really gentle and like to be picked up.
Jaspenelle–The mash lasts about 6 weeks and I just found out that the newly formed urban farm coop is buying the mash in bulk and the price will only be $14 per 55 pound bag. A big savings! The coop has a Yahoo! Group and is also active on the Chicken Lovers meetup group.
Alan–How lucky that you grew up with chickens. I love the photos from your bird cam at your parents. Especially the one of the chickens pecking in a line. It’s the best! I bet your wife will cave in eventually!
C–I am so sorry about your chickens! That is so sad. We get the Aspen shavings at Pet-Co. They sell them for rodent bedding and come in a big compressed cube. If you ask at the Bothell Feed Center, they might start carryign them for you.
Elle–You should definitely get chickens! They are so much fun!
March 18th, 2009 at 6:03 pmOh whoops, should have read this post first before I commented on the more recent one. Sorry! Didn’t realize you’d had the “girls” for two years. So, overall, seems like they are fun and funny (if a bit prone to pooping in strange places).
March 18th, 2009 at 9:40 pm[...] Food put together a multipart Backyard Chickens 101 – part one, part two, part three, part four. (that’s Willi’s hen-with-an-attitude Bumble up [...]
March 24th, 2009 at 7:01 amI’m so jealous of your chickens. I have been lusting after my small flock but our city forbids them. I’m half tempted to get them anyway.
April 6th, 2009 at 11:47 amHi Willi,
I have a chicken/gardening question. I use pine shavings for bedding. Is the used bedding suitable for the “brown” portion of my compost and how much is too much? Can I also use it for mulching later in the summer or is it too hot? What do you use for bedding and how do you incorporate it in your garden.
Thanks!
April 18th, 2009 at 1:35 pmMegan–Your question is so timely! I also use pine shavings as bedding and need to change mine out. I’ve been composting my bedding. I found that even with the manure mixed in, it still needs a little more nitrogen to get going and lots of water. I use grass clippings. This time though I think that I am going to use mine as mulch in my ornamental garden. I wouldn’t use it in the veggie garden as I have a feeling it will break down slowly.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:28 pmHello Willi,
October 10th, 2009 at 10:35 pmI’m enjoying your blog almost as much I enjoy hearing you on Steve Sher’s show.
So, about not eating your chickens when they stop laying. This is the hurdle I have to overcome to become a chicken owner. I’d love to have them for the eggs and for my son to have a connection with his food. But I don’t think I could kill one (I’ve seen it done several times – nuf said). How long do they live after they stop laying? Will I have a pet chicken for a couple of years, or a decade? I suppose I could always give it away when there were no more eggs forthcoming…
Thanks for any advice!
Frith
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August 14th, 2010 at 9:20 pmThese are the most humorous dogs I ever seen! You must take a look! Check this: Lol! Funny Dogs
August 14th, 2010 at 10:36 pmI bought my first chicks the first part of April. I too have a Black Australorp, a Jersey Giant and the very bossy Wyndott. They are all the same age but Athena, the Wyndott is much larger then the other 2 and by far the most agressive. She haqs even pecked my large dog on the nose when she thought the dog was just getting to personal. All three of them peck at the dogs long hair if Mitzy, the dog, is looking at me and does not notice them.
I am so anxious to get my first eggs. I too let the girls out during the day and they go to their perch at sundown and I shut the doo. So nice to read about your girls.
June 7th, 2011 at 6:25 pmBeveryly–Your chickens sound cute. It’s so exciting when you find your first egg! I hope they start laying soon for you.
June 8th, 2011 at 10:42 amThank you for sharing this with us!
August 6th, 2011 at 3:37 pm<3
hi I own lots of chickens all differnt kind of breeds i rase all my chickens full stock for sell at low prices i use old wood in the woods for there pins so they have something to scrach at and hey in the nestings well i can say chickens is a lot of work if you are a chicken famer like me with 100 chickens and growing got a 600 egg incubator today so now am ready to have more chicks
January 9th, 2012 at 12:41 pm