Hello all. I am new to the idea of backyard livestock. I wanted to see if anyone had advice. Really I would love to have someone come look at my space, who has raised three or so chickens. That is what I hope to have. And look at my space, and see what is possible for me. But any advice would help. Love what this group stands for.
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Matthew, you're only three miles from us!
We've taught our chickens to stay off our patio, but they can be rather headstrong if there's food available in the "no-no zone." That said, we have a 3' fence around our garden and they don't enter. We trained our first birds, and they tend to teach the birds that come along afterwards.
My husband and I have a mini-farm on Greenfield Rd that we're turning into an educational farm. Our first classes are starting this month, and the first four are free! On Tues. the 26th we're offering "From Clucks to Ducks," which works through the issues of having backyard poultry. Can you come? Go to http://SupUrbanFarm.com to sign up. The other free classes are about sustainability, gardening, and dairy animals.
Also, the VPA runs chicken classes from time to time. However you get the information, it's wise to learn what you can before making the leap!
I don't see an address anywhere on your site. Was that intentional?
Well, kind of. I guess it's time to come out of hiding. :) Until now we've been staying as a private residence & are transitioning into this business. We're located at near Baseline & Greenfield Rds in Gilbert: 2664 E. Desert Lane.
Thanks for bringing that to my attention. It's surprising how much you can miss when you stare at something all day long!
Matthew, Karen mentioned a kiddie pool - which I forgot to. It is vital to your girls health that they have a wading pool when the temperatures are in the hight 80s and above - a small dish won't do it because it heats up too much. Several inches of water in one of the inexpensive kiddie pools will do the trick and then you can dump every couple of days into your garden and refill.
I will echo the people who say that it *seems* like a good and romantic idea to let your chickens roam all over your property, and I'm sure it depends on the amount of space you have, but I haven't found them compatable with gardens...Let me tell you a little story to illustrate. One morning, I looked out my bathroom window at about 6 am when I woke up. they sun had been up maybe 15 minutes at that point. I noticed that my coop door was open. Maybe it wasn't completely latched and it blew open with a wind. I expected to go out and find all of my chickens had flown over my wall into my neighbor's yard where their 3 large dogs had promptly made a snack for them. I was very pleased to find that all of the girls were still in the coop and hadn't wandered far from their feeder and waterer. There was only one unaccounted for. My smallest bantam sized chicken, who also happens to be the alpha, was brave enough to wander outside into my orchard and east garden. Once chicken, in about 15 minutes, had eaten 4 large butternut squash vines, 2 large pumpkin vines, 4 kale plants, 6 rows of spinach and 2 blackberry bushes...and I mean 2 whole entire blackberry bushes. Literally, my entire east garden, and months of growing, was ruined in 1 minutes by one chicken. Mine have a large coup and a run that is the entire length of the east side of my property. They have several trees and bushes that are inside their run, and frankly, I don't think they know that they aren't free range.
I have 2 that even with only 1 wing clipped can fly over a 12 foot wall or high up into my eucalyptus tree. I tell you this tale as a warning that you may not actually be pleased with letting your chickens completely roam. If you get heavier breeds and clip wing they probably won't fly far. they are fun and worth it, but they will need a secure fence and run for their protection and your sanity.
Oh lord. There are so many typos in that. I wrote it too late last night...
Karis what a 'teaching moment' your alpha must have thought she was in chicken heaven having the garden all to herself. WOW.
Yes. She just thought she was the best thing ever that day. I don't know how she physically fit all that food in her little body.
These are all great points, you need to put alot of thought into getting chickens. I have to say they are really fun to keep, but they don't mix well with gardens, they can be pretty destructive, but on the other hand you can move them around and use them as little rototillers. That's how I use mine, once a garden bed is finished producing, I let the chickens in to clean it up. Here is a link with a lengthy article about different ways of raising chickens, chicken breeds, even a video on how to process a chicken.
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