4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[Puffin]

Hello, We are have our eglu all set up and are hoping to get our first three hens tomorrow - I was going to go to Merrydale but they dont seem to have much in. Does anyone have any experience of Rand Farm Park in Lincs and what they are likely to offer - I know they have pullets available but have no other info.

 

Thanks

[Egluntyne]

Hello Muffin. Welcome to the forum.

 

Congratulations on getting an Eglu and good luck in your search for hens.

[Chickens@61]

where abouts are you? i don't know about the breeds/prices at rand farm park (its a fab day out though!)

 

we have just got a lovely friendly and healthy ross lohmann (a brown hybrid) from manor farm shop at leasingham. their vacinated pol hens are £4.95.

 

if you wanted any tomorrow though, you have to ring tonight as the chap catches them in the barn before he lets them all out to free range

 

website is www.manorfarmpoultry.co.uk

 

it is about 40 minutes south of where rand farm park is

 

 

hope this helps x

[Puffin]

Thanks - we're south of newark on the notts/lincs border. I thought of going to Rand farm park as the kids would enjoy it as well. I had looked at the manor farm website but it doesnt tell you much. Maybe we will just go to Rand and see how we get on.

[Chickens@61]

we got our bantams from here: www.westawaypoultry.co.uk

 

it is not far from rutland water. the couple that own it are lovely and let the children look round and choose birds.. that is how we ended up with our freeloading bantees they also gave the children free goose eggs, which they loved!

 

have fun tomorrow whatever you decide, getting new chickens is SO exciting (and addictive )

 

x

[Puffin]

I didnt know about westaway, this may seem a silly question but how small are bantams... I was keen to get a medium weight chicken as I was worried about cats and thought the bigger the better. The other confusing thing is that on the omlet guide to buying chickens it says heavy weight birds are not suitable for eglus but alot of people on the forum seem to have them... I dont think my son would cope if I postponed getting chickens any longer!

[Chickens@61]

westaway has other breeds as well as bantams, i think sussex, orpingtons (they are big!) and wyandottes, maybe some others too.

 

they also have geese and ducks (wishful sigh!)

 

here is a picture of our pekins alongside holly, who is what i would call an average sized hen - i think about gingernut ranger size

 

 

[Chickens@61]

sorry its so big, i did resize for message board - honest

[Puffin]

so I ended up going to Westaway and now have three warrens which look very similar to Holly. The kids have named them Mary, Mildred and Henny and we have had one egg already from Henny!!

[Chickens@61]

congratulations

 

and at getting an egg already - what a clever chicken!

 

i have been bad today i went to merrydale poultry and got one of their crested hybrids that has an 80% chance of laying blue/green eggs (so fingers crossed)

 

glad you got set up with some chickens & i hope you will all be very happy together