Anyone else have chickens? My quote from UncleJoe's recent thread: My daughter got 4 hens and a rooster supplied by the UofA for 4-H kids to show. Golden Sex-Links, absolute egg laying machines. The 4 hens average 26-28 eggs a week, brown eggs so large the egg cartons don't close well. She has been selling eggs and incubator chicks as fast as she can get them. The flock free ranges on ten acres. She saved 4 more pullets from the first hatch which should be laying soon. I enjoy her interest, insect control and delicious fresh brown eggs that are supposedly much healthier than commercial eggs.
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I got 6 hens and a rooster. If I let them free range I get more eggs on a day to day basis. I keep them in a tractor when the garden is going though.
We have one hen setting right now. From what I've read, pretty unusual for "production" bred hens. The broodiness trait has been almost bred out of them because it interferes with egg production. We recently traded a sex-link chick for a cochin/thai cross hen to use as a brood hen. She would set non-stop before we got her but hasn't went broody for us. We've only had her a few weeks so maybe she just hasn't settled in yet.
I've got four left. Hope to hold them through winter, so I can get more in the spring. I haven't bought store eggs for 3 years now. I'm down to a golden laced Wyandotte, red, and 2 jersey giant (white).
Basically a chicken coop on wheels. That way you can move the chickens around to fresh grass/food frequently.
You got it. I move them about once a week or so but it still is not as good as free range. They are limited to whichever bugs get in and only the grass inside.
Mine will turn a patch to dust in one day. They were free ranging but decided to go too far one day so they've been cooped up since then. I found one egg in the tractor yesterday.
I need to chop the heads off mine. Not worth it at all with how cheap eggs are. Sure I get an egg or two a day, but it also costs $10-15 in feed a month and $20-30 in electric in the winter to keep the coop at 35ish* I give them table scraps, grass, hay and all that but they still need regular feed too. A dozen eggs at the store is around $3, so it costs more to keep the chickens. Sure I guess there is a bit of meat, but not that much. I can't tell a difference in taste from a store egg and my chicken's eggs either. Only way I can tell is they are harder to crack.
