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Raising chickens has been a very fun adventure so
far. My chickens have gone from cute,
adorable fluff balls, to crazy velociraptor
look a likes. Nowadays they actual look,
and sound like real grown up chickens.
Today marks their 13th week with us.
I thought, in honor of their 13th week, I'd share 13 things about
chickens today.
1. They are
messy. When they are babies they love to
scratch through their shavings, which gets them all over the place. As they get older, like most animals, have no
idea that things need to stay tidy. They
scatter food around, and produce copious amounts of magic dust (where if comes
from is a mystery!). As adults, they
shed feathers EVERYWHERE, love to play in dirt, and have no problem pooping
pretty much everywhere they go. Even on
or in food and water dishes.
2. They are not
domestic animals. Unlike dogs, chickens
do not try to please you. They are just
themselves. This means that they are
scared of you sometimes, and may act irrationally if you are wearing bright
fingernail polish.
3. They grow
fast. They are only adorable fluff balls
for a few weeks, and you can almost see the growth difference daily. They've become big chickens so quickly!
4. They love
treats. When you walk up to our chickens
coop they run to you, excited to get their treats! A lot of people said they love, love, love
mealworms, but instead mine went gaga over blueberries. Nowadays they don't seem to have favorites,
and love anything tossed in.
6. They don't have
to live in a mansion. Our chickens live
in a hoop house. Part of it is covered
with a tarp, and they have two large sticks as perches. We move their house as often as they need
it. It is not fancy, and it doesn't look
amazing. We were more concerned about
them getting in fresh grass, and having protections from the predators than
them living the large life.
7. They are
entertaining. You wouldn't think
chickens would be, but they really are.
They run around, chase each other, try to steal each other's treats,
they cluck and jabber, and are pretty darn cute.
8. There are lots
of different types of chickens. There
are chickens that lay brown eggs, and white eggs. There are chickens that lay green, blue, and
light pink eggs. There are large, heavy
breed chickens, and bantam chickens which weigh just a few pounds. There are cold hardy, heat hardy, and even
heirloom chickens.
9. They don't
constantly lay eggs. Chickens don't
constantly lay eggs. They may lay eggs
for five days straight, but will then take a break.
11. They don't
need roosters. It's true you do not need
a rooster to have eggs. Hens have eggs
regardless. Roosters are a bit braver
though and help protect the hens.
12. They are a
great first time farm animal. Chickens
are hardy, and fairly easy to care for.
They require feed, water, and shelter, but are pretty low key
otherwise. They have made for a great
first time livestock animal for me.
13. You can have
chickens. Well, maybe. A lot of cities allow residents to have a
certain amount of chickens, provided they are within certain guidelines. Having chickens in your backyard is pretty
common these days!
Well, there you go, 13 things about chickens! If anyone is interested in learning more
about chickens, I'd love to help you if I can.
So feel free to ask in questions, also you can check out Back YardChickens. They are a GREAT free resource.
Linked To...
Deep Roots At Home
Raising Arrows
Frugally Sustainable
Linked To...
Deep Roots At Home
Raising Arrows
Frugally Sustainable
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