FedUpWithItAll's "broody" thread has inspired me

I will have chickens in a few months. Be prepared for silly questions :)

I'm thinking a 4x8 coop with covered run, size undetermined yet, for 4-5 Rhode Island Reds.

I'm bouncing ideas for coop design around at this point. Getting a lot of info from http://www.backyardchickens.com/

Just a heads up :D

:hi:

:hug:

I think you'll be glad you got them. :7 You'll have to show us pictures of your coop as it progresses.

Last year I bought a bunch of materials for a greenhouse to extend growing season and decided against it, so I have a start. I'm one of those "the planning is half the fun" sort of guys. I'm learning a lot already.

:)

Chickens are the gateway drug to all kinds of feathered mischief. This year, I'm going to try some geese. I'll be placing my order to reserve the eggs in just a few weeks, for shipment in late March.

RIR's are good. I've got 3 of those right now. But, last spring, I got 6 Isa Browns, which are a cross between set lines of RIR's and white leghorns. They were developed in France specifically for egg production. I am just amazed at the size of the eggs these birds are laying. I'm putting them into recycled Xlarge and Jumbo cartons, and some of these are so big I literally can't shut the lids on the cartons for fear of breaking the eggs. The Isa Browns look just like a RIR, except that the plumage is has just a little bit of white around the "roots" -- they kind of remind me of an older lady I used to work with who dyed her hair red, but wasn't so good about doing the follow ups, so she usually had gray roots showing.

From left to right:

Isa Brown, Rouen duck, Rhode Island Red, and Button Quail.

She has let off this winter since we do not provide artificial light. She is a good little ol' lady. She is not the most social bird in the flock and the others certainly give her a wide berth in spite of her comparative smallness. But she is intelligent, and entertaining and she quickly learned who carries the treats. ;)

Your olive egg is from a duck? The color is lovely. I really love olive eggs.

:hi:

You're not kidding. I think chickens are also a gateway to farming because they do such a nice job of eating those pesky bugs.

They are very addictive and you get endless hours of chicken stories to share with friends.

Because I'll want more :D

I've not actually reserved my new laidies or anything. I want to have house in place first. I'll look into Isa Browns. It is weird around here. I may need to drive 40 miles to go to a proper retail store or restaurant, but according to Craig's List access to chickens is MUCH closer.

Those eggs are huge!

:hi:

It was a double yolker, as I suspected.

ALL of the ISA Brown eggs are consistently bigger than my RIR eggs, but not all of them are quite THAT big, by any means.

And i have to agree because we're about to build our second coop in as many years :)

I started with 4 chickens in 2008. I got 4 ducks in 2009. Now, I've got 9 chickens, 9 ducks, 6 turkeys, about 65 quail, and 7 doves.

Geese this year. I am planning to order Pilgrim eggs next week from a breeder in MA.

And, I'll probably incubate some of my birds own eggs and do some more quail. I don't need any more ducks or turkeys right now. And, having only hens, I don't see much of a future in incubating any of their eggs.