Lewis Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 Welcome to the forum Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frowstyspink Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 Hello! I'm Clare and we just picked up our three girls yesterday evening! I can't tear myself away from them this morning, they are just so very lovely. We have a Sussex Star, a Warren and a Blackrock who have bee named (by our eldest daughter) Gertie, Rose and Hickety Pickety! We go them from Pimlett's poultry who were billiant, really friendly and informative and great at explaining things to the children. I could very easily see myself becoming obsessed Clare Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jo n al Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Hi Im Jo and finally taken the plunge and had my eglu and hens as a birthday present from my husband Alan. Having been recently made redundant it seemed likethe right time to get my girls as I have a lot of time on my hands! My Eglu was second hand but was immaculate till my lot moved in! I have Gloria a very tame Bovans Nera who laid her first egg on my birthday - what a present!!! Betty a Goldline and very bossy Lucy a lazy, laid back Silver Nick I also have three rabbits - George, Nibbles and Rossi who really dont know what has hit them since the girls have arrived! The buns are occasionally brave and investigate the girls. Unfortunately the buns havn't realised the girls work as a team and when they think they have got away with something (chewing daffodils at the moment!) they get a short sharp peck or flap! Its early days yet and think they will end up living in harmony! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortle Chook Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 (edited) Hello all Newbies. Hope to hear all about your new girls on the main area of the forum very soon jo n al - sorry to hear about the redundancy. One thing's for sure, even when you are feeling blue as hell about applics ect, just look at your girls and you'll smile. Trouble is, you might not want to go back to work By the way, my aunt had a rabbit and an ex-bat who were the best of buddies . . . along with a tabby cat. Edited March 15, 2011 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JillM Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Welcome to all our latest forum friends You'll have fun on here, and I haven't heard a nasty comment from anyone yet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tishy Posted March 17, 2011 Share Posted March 17, 2011 Hello.. Im new here! The forum is great, Ive been having a good look around I work on a care farm in the midlands, where I have to look after 2 miniature horses, 6 cows, 2 llamas, 3 ducks and 2 peacocks! I also have my own horse, 2 cats, and just recently lost my pet rats Im hoping to get some chickens very soon, as I love all our boys and girls at work, and needed some for myself! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jo n al Posted March 17, 2011 Share Posted March 17, 2011 Thank you for all your welcomes, my friends think im mad till they meet the girls them they are as captivated as me. Must admit my girls are such a time waste, very little gets done except watch them and clear up after them! I dont think they could handle it when I finally get a job and out all day (dont think i could either!!) I love the way they come running up to me - mum, mum where are you ......!! as they fall over their feet and get their wings in a flap! When they start laying do they settle down and get over this 'puberty' phase? My Goldline is going through all the motions - loud and crouching down a lot, combs and wattles bright red but still no eggs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peckingham palace Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Hi, I'm Dee Have been reading the forums for about a week checking out all the advice from experienced people out there, our delivery of cube and chickens eagerly awaited on 31st March. Not had chooks before so DH and I are prepping a special area for the new arrivals, think he is as excited as me! xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emzy Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Hi Everyone, Just joined today after having a good look around, hopefully Ill get to know you all better soon and really join in with the other crazy chicken people Em x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanarock Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Hi This all new to me as I havent even been on a chat forum before. I am just about to purchase three chickens to put into my second hand Eglu which I am collecting this evening. I have been told the Amber Star chickens are friendly. I am really excited and cant wait to get started. I have 3 small grandchildren the oldest is two and a half and I want them to be involved. I am married and we have 3 sons who have all fled the nest and are married to 3 lovely girls. Our oldest, has one son called Oscar who is 9 months old and we mind him on a Monday. He is asleep at the moment. My middle son and his wife have Libby and Liam. Libby is the 2 year old and Liam is a month old. My youngest son and his wife are expecting their first baby in June. So its all very exciting. I work part-time (three and a half days a week ) in a GP surgery as a Practice Nurse and have been there 21 years. Its a Great Job. I love baking and sugar craft and have made quite a few wedding and celebration cakes. So the egg production will be useful. Well thats a start look forward to chatting about chickens and making new friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henergy Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Lovely to meet you nanarock. I'm quite new too and can say that everyone here is very friendly. Good luck with your chickens. Your family sound lovely. How nice that you get to spend lots of time with the grandchildren. I have 3 young sons myself - and they all love to 'help' with the hens so I am sure the grandchildren will have lots of fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanarock Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Hi Thanks for the reply, sorry didnt answer sooner, just finished looking after Oscar for the day and now going to collect Eglu. Must work out how to use this forum correctly and add photos. When I get my chickens I am going to call them Clarissa and Jennifer after "the two fat ladies" and the 3rd one Nigela. Even considered buying 4th one to call Delia, but might be a bit cramped with four in the Eglu. Speak soon bye for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Hi Nanarock - what brilliant names and welcome to the forum Please do post pictures - we love pictures here! What chickens are you getting? How exciting Sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanarock Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Hi Sam I have 3 Amber star chickens one completely white, one with a few peckles of brown and the third with a bit more brown. They all settled in the eglu ok, and this morning they were very imquisative. took well to drinking and eating out of glug and grub. Just one question do you all hang your chickens upside down to calm them. I was shown how to do this when I bought them and was told to do it daily as part of the handling process? It just feels wrong to do it? But if its important I will do it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortle Chook Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Hello nanarock Welcome to the forum On the subject of how to hold a chook, I have to say I wouldn't dream of haning my chickens upside down. In fact I have seen somewhere that you should never hold a chicken by the legs. Like holding a bunny by the ears, it is something the tougho farmers may do but . . . I think it is different if you are going to kill one as that would appear to be the right hold before you do something to their necks. The other time to hold them upside down is if you are trying to help a chicken that is crop bound (more about this in the chook health section). When I pick up my chooks, I make sure I hold down their wings so they can't flap and that seems to work just fine Perhaps if you post something about this on the main area you'll get other views. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheeky Chicken Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Hi, I was passed on the details of this site from a friend, I'm not really a chatty person but she said it's great for any advice I may need either now or in the future. So here I am. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
candy-quackenbush Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Hi, I am new to this site also,and new to chickens! We lost our beloved English Bull Terrier Molly last August (at the age of 13 and a half) and our lives and garden havnt quite been the same without her. My husband and daughter got onto the idea of keeping chickens but I resisted and really wasnt up for more pets just yet. However, I was over ruled and am secretly glad - tho I will never admit it! Our 4 Welsummers are a pleasure and I find myself sitting on our Thinking Bench watching them for ages. We have a rather large garden, so we sectioned the bottom off for them which is fully woodchipped with lots of trees and shrubs, and they have our old two berth caravan as a coop. They settled in really quickly and the 'top dog' was eating out of my daughters hands (literally) within a week. I miss Molly more than I can say, but having our four girls now, scratching around where we laid Molly, is quite theraputic. I go out and chat to them all and am enjoying having pets again. I found this site helpful when we were looking at getting chickens, and I hope at some point, I can be of help to someone too. TTFN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Welcome to the forum all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doncat5 Posted April 9, 2011 Share Posted April 9, 2011 Hello. I'm a new chicken keeper and about 6 weeks ago I adopted 4 ex free range laying hens, Violet, Rosie, Indigo and Iris. I'm smitten witho our new pets, they're lovely friendly birds who are producing huge tasty eggs. I was kind of thrown in at the deep end, as Rosie needed an operation for an inpacted crop (due to eating sand) in the first 2 weeks of owning them, fortunately the op went very well and she's fully recovered now. This week I've just wormed them all for the first time (Flubenvet) and this morning I discovered a large dead worm in the coop while cleaning out... the wormer is obviously doing its job but I'm looking for some tips on sanitising the ground as they're part free range. I look forward to reading all about your birds and getting plenty of tips. Donna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyLynsted Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 Hi, this is all new to me but I have had a few questions lately and found the forum very helpful in providing advice. I have been thrown in to the world of chickens after being left with a flock of 30 hens and 3 cockerels after grandad (my father-in-law) got slightly carried away with having a free run of our garden. Grandad was asked to leave, nothing to do with the chickens but he was unable to take them with him. I agreed to sell them for him at a local small animal and poultry auction. Well now I am completely smitten with my chickens and am really enjoying the hobby. I now have no cockerels (this was a requirement from my husband who has his in the garden not too far from the chickens), and only 18 hens. I now have 6 bluebells, 2 brahma's, 1 gold lace, 4 black sussex, 1 black orpington, 2 ex battery hens, 1 brown and white speckled hen which I'm sure what breed and 1 legbar called 'Heckerty' who has her own coop as she can't run very fast and I think may have had a stroke, but her character is brilliant, and she is a hit with all the family. Our girls live in a big converted shed with their own paddock with lots of shade under trees, I let them out in the paddock every morning and they always put themselves to bed at dusk and we just shut the coop door. As I said I know very little about keeping chickens but am learning fast, they have a feeder full of layers pellets in the coop and we throw corn and s"Ooops, word censored!"s in every day. I think the sraps are making the eggs taste nicer as this is something grandad didn't do and the neighbours have commented how much nicer the eggs are tasting. I have never wormed them and would appreciate some guidance and also one of the bluebells is poorly, she is crouching, being sick and the crop is always full, she also has black in her comb. Do I need to seperate her from the others or should she go to the vets, she has been like it for about 2 weeks now, she's still eating, but is very unstable on her feet and looks very sorry for herself. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks for reading this xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyChickenLover- Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 Welcome to the forum, Doncat5 and LucyLynsted ! I have never wormed them and would appreciate some guidance and also one of the bluebells is poorly, she is crouching, being sick and the crop is always full, she also has black in her comb. Do I need to seperate her from the others or should she go to the vets, she has been like it for about 2 weeks now, she's still eating, but is very unstable on her feet and looks very sorry for herself. Any help would be appreciated. You'll get more replies if you post a topic about this in the CHICKEN CLINIC section of the forum. I myself am not sure what is wrong with her, but more experienced chicken keepers will be able to provide guidence if you post there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntonyMJones Posted April 12, 2011 Share Posted April 12, 2011 Well ... here goes then! My wife (Sharon) and I went on the fabulous Clare Taylor's beginners chicken keeping course last Sunday, bought a purple Iglu Cube earlier today! Planning on buying 3 bantams in two or three weeks time ... suspect we'll be pestering you all for a lot of help over the coming weeks and months Wish us luck ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortle Chook Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 Good Luck, Antony and Sharon You won't, I think, regret taking on some feathered friends. Do let us know on the main area of the Chicken forum what breeds you are thinking about and what ones you get. All of us who can't have any more chooks just love to hear about any new arrivals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haehnchen Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 (edited) Hello from Frankfurt, Germany. We live in a suburban setting with agricultural land over the back fence that's been used for horses and sheep for decades, and we have been doing the same for about eight years. A few weeks ago our daughter expressed interest in raising a few chickens, and she arranged to not only obtain five fertilized eggs from the local farmer where we purchase our hay, but also to borrow her school's egg incubator. 21 days later, like clockwork, all five hatched in rapid succession, and we kept them in an aquarium under a poultry heat lamp in the dining room (since moved to the greenhouse). My daughter named them Trudi, Brownie, , and Mambo (actually, I named the last one since little chicks walk as if dancing to mambo music). Since I can never remember two of the names, I called them The Jackson Five (which everyone always seems to remember as Michael, Jermaine, , and Tito). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jackson_5 . I'll get the names straight eventually. The original plan was for them to live up the hill at a neighbor's horse operation which already has chickens, but it's a bit of a hike and I was soon lobbied into planning a chicken house down by my vegetable garden in our lower meadow right over the rear garden fence. After a bit of research we decided that the Eglu Cube with a run extension was right for us, as 1) it can be moved around, 2) the easy clean-up and protection against mites and foxes held a lot of appeal and 3) just in case the hobby every loses its appeal over time, the aftermarket on Ebay appears quite robust or we can donate it to a local school. It arrived on Monday from Oxfordshire and it took us exactly 2.5 hours as advertised. I was very impressed with the engineering. For the past two days, my daughter has waited until things warm up in the early afternoon and then has taken them down in a big plastic tub for a few minutes of acclimitization in the run. It's been a lot of fun to watch them develop; the only thig we can't tell is if any are roosters ... our land out back is zoned agricultural, but we're awfully close to neighbors for a daily sunrise wake-up call, so any males would likely have to go live up the hill. I think they'll need a few more weeks under the lamp in the greenhouse, plus it has to warm up a bit more as it's been a cool spring so far. We're looking forward to learning as we go; this forum appears to be an excellent place to start. Edited May 8, 2011 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sage Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 Guten Tag Sorry but thats as far as my German goes (hangs head in shame), it sounds like your having great fun with your new arrivals. Sage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
