Mattie457 Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 I have already said Hello in the welcome bit but will say hello again in here! I have a question! I am planning on buying my wife a Eglu just saving up the cash at the moment and was wondering is it worth buying the first chickens from Eglu or worth shopping about for them? If it being the latter where do you go to buy chickens as im pretty sure Mr Tesco doesnt sell the live ones! All replies gratefully recieved! Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
half dozen Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Welcome Matt can I ask where abouts you live? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chelsea Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Welcome to the forum You're wife is so lucky, what a nice present! It depends on where you live with regards to the chickens as we are in Devon and outside the chicken delivery area, so we sourced locally. It also depends on the breeds, Omlet only do hybrid chickens....if you want pure breeds you could also source near to where you live. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quickcluck Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Hello Matt and welcome to your new life on Omlet!!! You are obviously the most wonderful husband! But as for your question it really does depend on where you are based, so let us know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweety Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Hello Matt, and welcome to the forum. I would say that it all depends on what you and your (very lucky!) wife want from your hens. If you are getting them for eggs, I would definitely recommend the hybrids that you can get from Omlet. I got 2 Gingernut Rangers and 2 Miss Pepperpots with my Cube, and they are lovely hens for a novice - they are friendly and lay regularly throughout the year. Omlet have a list of recommended breeders too, in case you are not within the delivery area for their chickens. Alternatively, you could look for some pure breeds or rare breeds, or some bantams. Have a look in the Breeds section- there are lots of beautiful hens to inspire you! Good luck with whatever you decide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mccroft Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 I have already said Hello in the welcome bit but will say hello again in here! I have a question! I am planning on buying my wife a Eglu just saving up the cash at the moment and was wondering is it worth buying the first chickens from Eglu or worth shopping about for them? If it being the latter where do you go to buy chickens as im pretty sure Mr Tesco doesnt sell the live ones! All replies gratefully recieved! Matt well your within the delivery area so they'll put the eglu together for you and should you buy the chickens from them they will wing clicp them and go through holding them etc. Omlet only supply two breeds and as it's a present for your wife why not take her to your local poultry farm and let her choose them. You can get a local poultry farm list from omlet. I would love this sort of present. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chillicat Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Hi Matt - your wife will love you forever! I couldn't think of a better present! We love our Omlet girls and they lay more eggs than pure breeds. To be honest, whatever you go for you will want more! I would highly recommend getting the entire set up from Omlet. Good luck - you can't go wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattie457 Posted January 26, 2009 Author Share Posted January 26, 2009 We live in a little village on the outskirts of swindon and have a old fasioned cottage garden very long and narrow so the plan is for the chickens to live down near the veggie patch! You talked about hybrids that come from Eglu whats the diffrence? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattie457 Posted January 26, 2009 Author Share Posted January 26, 2009 Spent so long time the reply and everyone posted while i was typing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quickcluck Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Ha see, we know your every thought Hybrids tend to be more hardy and produce more eggies Omlet sell 2 types! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinnamon Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Hi Matt, Right, firstly you are in a great county for chicken shopping Plety of good hen shops in Wilts. The hens that Omlet provide are hybrids & excellent 'starter' hens. Both breeds are docile, & good layers. But there are many more hybrids you can choose too, for instance if you want a few different coloured hens or hens that lay a variety of colour of egg (useful to know who has laid what sometimes). Hybrids are specially bred to lay all year round eggs, so if eggs 12 months of the year are important,then they are the hen to go for. They are usually well natured, but shorter lived than their pure breed counterparts, who can live up to 3 times as long but stop laying over the winter months. Personally I have a mix of both For hybrids you can Google sellers in your area of try Meadowsweet hens who have outlets all over the country. Good luck & happy hen shopping Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattie457 Posted January 26, 2009 Author Share Posted January 26, 2009 Understand now. Thanks! Have done shed loads of Overtime this month so we shall see how much we have got left! Eglu's quite pricey but from what i have read everyone rates them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 If it being the latter where do you go to buy chickens as im pretty sure Mr Tesco doesnt sell the live ones! Matt ooooooh - Two for a fiver!!! Now that would be a bargain!!!! Louise PS: Hughs on tonight! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattie457 Posted January 26, 2009 Author Share Posted January 26, 2009 Got the sky+ ready to record him! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 I posted a reply here ages ago ..... but it's disappeared . Never mind, it just said what everybody else has said . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
half dozen Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 I had a problem yesterday twice with disappearing messages Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haltonshappyhens Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Hello I was given a black rock, silver campine and cream legbar from my parents for my birthday .. (my OH is still coming to terms with them....the chickens not my folks.. although he might still be coming to terms with them too.... ) But I love the fact that they all lay different coloured eggs so we should in theory( when they all manage to lay at the same time) be getting a light brown , blue and white egg each day!!.. worth thinking about justine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Different coloured eggs are definitely worth getting . Apart from looking great on the egg skelter, you can then tell who's laying what and when . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hen Watch Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Hi Matt, Some good basic info on this guide below but the prices are a bit out of date ..... 2 years ago my Meadowsweet hybrid was £9 and now they are £15. http://www.omlet.co.uk/files/public/omlet_guide_buying_chickens.pdf I got Omlet hybrids to start with as I wanted them delivered with the eglu and not worry about how to choose a chicken etc. They are great chickens, docile, friendly etc. 1 month later I went and bought another hybrid from an agent but felt more confident with a few weeks of chicken ownership under my belt. If I ever add to the flock in future I would like to go for pure breeds I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
