Son wants Chickens

[ssramage]

So my family just recently moved into a house with plenty of room to spread out. Evidently my 4yo son now wants a farm.

I tried my hand at chickens about 5 years ago and failed miserably. I jumped in, with no clue what I was doing. The chicks I got from TSC caught some sort of illness at about 7 weeks and they all died.

So...starting over. I’ve decided to buy a coop vs build this time, looking at 4-6 birds. I can get a pretty nice looking setup for around $600 from this guy:
https://m.facebook.com/SouthEast-Ga...042845/?tsid=0.4777936011708329&source=result
Looking at an option that is a 4x6 coop with a 4x6 run attached. I may add an additional 5x10 run later down the road. Birds will free range on days I’m home.

A few questions:
Thoughts on the coop idea above?

Thinking of ordering started pullers from somewhere like McMurray Hatchery. Thoughts?

Monthly costs associated with 4-6 chickens?

How many eggs should I expect from a flock that size?

Overall maintenance requirements for flock this size? I travel for work some (1-2 days a week), just want to make sure I’m not putting too much on my wife.

 

[Havana Dude]

We have chickens. 600 bucks will buy a butt load of eggs. Your 4 yo Son will do nothing to help. It’s all on you. If you travel a day or 2, chickens will be fine without wife having to deal with. Again, 600 bucks will buy a lot of eggs.

 

[ssramage]

We have chickens. 600 bucks will buy a butt load of eggs. Your 4 yo Son will do nothing to help. It’s all on you. If you travel a day or 2, chickens will be fine without wife having to deal with. Again, 600 bucks will buy a lot of eggs.

I’m not worried about the start up cost. Really not worried about the monthly cost, as long as it’s not completely out of sight. I’m figuring about $40/month for food and straw.

 

[Jack Ryan]

Any place that has chickens long enough will have rats.

It's a lot easier to kill all the chickens and bull doze the coup before the rats show up than it is to kill all the rats once they start coming to the chickens.

 

[Jeff Raines]

50 lb bag of laying pellets is less than $10 and that lasts me a month for 5 chickens.

 

[Jeff Raines]

I built this hen house for around $50

 

[ssramage]

That’s a good looking coop. I have thought about building my own, but once I started adding up what I’d want, it got expensive and would take a while to do. I may still go that route but I’m leaning towards just paying the $400-600 and being set up.

 

[Cmp1]

We have chickens. 600 bucks will buy a butt load of eggs. Your 4 yo Son will do nothing to help. It’s all on you. If you travel a day or 2, chickens will be fine without wife having to deal with. Again, 600 bucks will buy a lot of eggs.

True,,,, but the taste of a fresh egg,,,,

 

[karen936]

good luck with your chickens

 

[Cmp1]

So my family just recently moved into a house with plenty of room to spread out. Evidently my 4yo son now wants a farm.

I tried my hand at chickens about 5 years ago and failed miserably. I jumped in, with no clue what I was doing. The chicks I got from TSC caught some sort of illness at about 7 weeks and they all died.

So...starting over. I’ve decided to buy a coop vs build this time, looking at 4-6 birds. I can get a pretty nice looking setup for around $600 from this guy:
https://m.facebook.com/SouthEast-Ga...042845/?tsid=0.4777936011708329&source=result
Looking at an option that is a 4x6 coop with a 4x6 run attached. I may add an additional 5x10 run later down the road. Birds will free range on days I’m home.

A few questions:
Thoughts on the coop idea above?

Thinking of ordering started pullers from somewhere like McMurray Hatchery. Thoughts?

Monthly costs associated with 4-6 chickens?

How many eggs should I expect from a flock that size?

Overall maintenance requirements for flock this size? I travel for work some (1-2 days a week), just want to make sure I’m not putting too much on my wife.

Just remember that if you let them free range,,,, they will lay somewhere,,,, we found a bunch of eggs under our raspberries,,,,

 

[Cmp1]

I built this hen house for around $50

Nice coop,,,, how are you keeping the critters out?

 

[Capt Quirk]

Our biggest issue with chickens, was there is always something that wants to kill your birds. We lost at least 2-3 flocks before giving in, but not giving up. I have an idea for 2-3 layers of fenced in dog runs, with the chickens in the middle. I'd like to see something get past the pack of dogs. Of course, I also have to worry about the dogs getting to the birds, but one battle at a time.

 

[Havana Dude]

True,,,, but the taste of a fresh egg,,,,

I can’t/won’t argue with that. At one point, we had so many eggs, I made a sign, put out by the road. Sold em cheap, 3 bucks for 18. Kept a jar in the kitchen, that was our go out to eat money. They can be fun, but also can be a pain. If fresh eggs are the ONLY reason to get chickens, find someone around you that sells them.

 

[kmckinnie]

Our dogs and chickens get along fine. The chickens know our dogs. If a stranger dog comes around they raise cane.

If u have 5-6 hens and they lay 3 eggs every day they will add up.

 

[Nicodemus]

Predator proof your coop. We did fine for nearly 10 years, but since the second week in January we`ve lost 14 hens as of last week.

 

[blood on the ground]

The only problem I've had with raising chickens is ...... Chicken are on every critters menu and I meam every critter!

 

[Capt Quirk]

There is also something satisfying, about eating a fresh chicken dinner, when you have raised it yourself. The inbetween part of having to dispatch and process the bird isn't nearly as satisfying as the eating part, but still part of it. But, when it comes to that one bad rooster, the one that always gets you... then it is just a little gratifying to dispatch it

 

[karen936]

could you not utilize a electric fence system
around the outside of the coop

 

[karen936]

 

[Nicodemus]

could you not utilize a electric fence system
around the outside of the coop

I could but I don`t want to pull power out yonder. I fully predator proofed the coop the other day. Only thing that can get in there at night now is a weasel. Nothing can dig under that fence either.

Two reds, two grays, and 3 possums so far.