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Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Meet the New Girls

Last Friday we got the new girls, and they are just so cute. In the past we have waited until April or May to get baby chicks, but then we don't end up getting eggs until August (because it takes about 4 months for them to mature enough and start laying). We decided to get a head start this year. 
 
The Araucanas
(from left to right)
Augness, Ben Ten, and Percy Jackson
will lay green or blue eggs

The Black Sexlinks
Mrs. Featherbottom-red beak
Jane Doe-black beak
will lay brown eggs, chosen because they are exceptional egg layers


The Barred Rock
Basil- she is my chicken, she is so petite and cute with a little patch of white on top of her head
She will lay brown eggs and I chose her because I love the look of them when they are full grown. 

Do you have chickens, are you going to get chickens this year, still debating, or is it out of the question?

~marisa




35 comments:

katiegirl said...

Very cute, and I love Barred Rocks too! I'm debating firing up the incubator soon. And I am buying some started red sex link pullets in March. Like you, I didn't want to have to wait for them to lay so I figured I'd buy them started!

Dale Johnson said...

One of the most exciting days of the year! Good timing two. You will get a good egg yield for several months before production goes down next winter.

Victoria Williams said...

Your new babies are adorable! We have three chickens, a Barred Rock, Silver Wyandotte and an Araucana who has never laid the blue/green eggs she's supposed to but we love her anyway.

Shelly said...

Last year we took the plunge and got two aracaunas and two delawares. About two weeks later I decided I wanted a barred rock... Thankfully they had them at the local feed store! I love the way the barred rock looks and she is our quietest (we live in a neighborhood in the city) and lays very well. My aracaunas haven't layed at all since it's gotten colder but their eggs are so beautiful! I actually took one of their eggs up to the paint store and matched some paint for my kitchen. Your chicks make me want to get more! But, the husband says no until we get some land.

Rachel said...

We currently have 4 Speckeled Sussex, 2 Buff Orpingtons, 2 Black Austrolorps, 4 Ameracaunas, and 2 Rhode Island Reds. I just ordered 5 White Rocks, 5 Dark Cornish, and 5 Buckeyes.

Mariah said...

Awwwwww, the babies are gorgeous! I think a farm experience would be great for my kids. Something like this would teach them to respect what they have and understand that we all come from the same place... the land.

How well do chickens do in the city? I see Shelly lives in the city and has a few (hi Shelly). 'm actually looking into starting a co-op neighborhood farm. Any suggestions for what we should get started with or how much land we might need for a small group?

Karen said...

I have it the best. I gave my dad some cochans -- I'm not sure on the spelling... and now he gives us at least a dozen eggs every time we see him. Saturday I got three dozen. Hurray!

Reading those names reminds me just how much of a fun family you guys are!

Cheryl said...

No chickens for us, yet. I'm still working on getting the whole gardening thing down! Baby steps...

P.S. Those chicks are so adorable!

Pearl said...

I want chickens soooo bad! It's not very practical for me though. Perhaps I can buy eggs from you when they start laying.

teekaroo said...

Out of the question for me right now. I just don't think the landlady would smile on them. As soon as I can though. I really want some chickens.

Amy said...

We finally found our new farmstead! We move on April 15, so hubby has agreed to let me go ahead and order our chicks now, so by the time we move, it won't be long before we have fresh eggs.

You like the Barred Rock...have you ever heard of the Barred American Holland breed? They look nearly the same as the Barred Plymouth Rock, but they lay white eggs. They are a heritage breed that is critically endangered. The breed originated in USA. It is one of the endangered breeds we have chosen to breed and keep a good flock of and "get the word out" abut them.

You can see the info here:
http://albc-usa.org/cpl/holland.html
The only two places I can find them is Sandhill Preservation Hatchery and Ideal Hatchery.
Just wanted to share about the Hollands, since you like the barred chickens :-)

Shaunika said...

We got chickens last year and we love them! They're great layers. As a matter of fact, I sold a dozen eggs yesterday--our first sale! We have 2 Rhode Island Reds, 2 Buff Orpingtons, and 2 Ameraucanas.

Alison said...

I'm picking up MY girls next month!
So excited!

A Work In Progress said...

Aww, so cute!

I have mixed breed chickens, not sure what exactly they are. They're smart, hardy and breed like rabbits, though. I have been toying with the idea of getting some Barred Rocks, though. My hens like to hide their eggs when they get broody and I get tired of tracking them down. I've heard the Barred Rocks don't go broody, and they're pretty, too!

Kim said...

Oh they are sooo adorable!!! I would love to have chickens but my fiance is totally against anything that resembles a farm animal. I'm still hopeful that once we get our house in order and he sees how great a veggie garden is he'll want fresh eggs. I'm not giving up yet! :)

Unknown said...

How fun for you! Who can resist little chicks? Our 4H group is going to hatch eggs this year - mostly meat birds, but I'm going to slip in a few layers as well: Marans, Rhode Island Reds, and Orpingtons.

Have fun with the little girls!

maryberry said...

We have a barred Rock and a Rhode Island Red. We also had a Delaware, but "she" turned out to be a "he"...so back to the feed store he went. Our neighbors are too close to have a rooster! We brought our girls home in July, they were a week old, and they started laying the day after Christmas. I'd love to get one more, but how should I introduce a baby? We're still pretty new at this, but love it! Thanks :)

Unknown said...

Mayberry,

Good question, if you introduce a baby chick to the other girls, most likely she would be pecked to death. You would have to raise her separate then when she got to be the same size as the other two, you could introduce them. Chickens are social and like companionship, so if you are going to get more, I suggest getting at least 2 more.

MAYBELLINE said...

Out of the question. The only way I enjoy eggs is in pastry! There's no way I could butcher them for meat. So, I will enjoy your chicken ranch from a far.

brandon said...

I see the box but can't make out the company name -- where did you get them from? a local farm? were they delivered?

daisy g said...

I don't think the HOA would approve...they can't even handle a rain barrel in front of the house.
Someday...

Enjoy your new girls!

Anna said...

We have 4 cochin hens.... 2 blue and 2 black. We hatched them 2 years ago, and I can't imagine life without them now. :) Love my girls. We have chicken-fever soooo bad right now, and this blog post probably just pushed me over the edge. Mypetchicken here I come! LOL!

Unknown said...

Help me! I can't get over how freaking cool this is! GREAT names, thx for the awesome pics, that is IT ... we are getting chickens too this Spring. Love it!

courtneyb said...

We first got chickens in a town home. There was nothing in the CC&R's about it so we had 3. Now that we have moved and have a MUCH bigger yard, I think I need to add a few more ladies to the little backyard farm. I've always wanted a Buff Orpington. Our Barred Rock is gorgeous but the Rhode Island Red is my favorite, I love her personality.

Unknown said...

I just love it, I love that there are other people out there that have a passion for this and love their girls as much as I do!

Brandon, I actually got the chicks from the local feed store, the breeds I wanted on mypetchicken.con wouldn't ship until the middle of March and I wanted them now. But, if you aren't really picky about the breed you can get them much sooner.

Daisy, sorry you can't get some girls of your own! If they can't handle a rain barrel, there is no way they will allow chickens. Some day!

Michael, you can do it. We will help!

Courtney, way to go having chickens in a town home!

Mona @ Healthy Homesteading said...

I love chicks! I have 38 chickens right now. My favorite breed is probably the Ameraucanas (or Araucanas). They are hardy, friendly, unique and I love the egg color. When I chose the chickens I have I focused on buying breeds with varying egg colors. Now I have have "eggs rainbows". I love it. I also love displaying the eggs in the cartons from light to dark :).

Jamie said...

For you all wanting to order,look up hatcheries and there are some that will ship 10 and some that require more up to 25.
We have been raising and hatching our own chicks for several year now.They are great for our homeschool room,when we hatch.It teaches my son to true meaning to KNOW WHERE YOUR FOOD COMES FROM.

We have had Red stars(red sex links)which start laying at 16 wks all the way to Silkies and lots in between.
Go for it and purchase some.Once SPring comes a lot of feed stores will start getting them.Just call and ask if they do!!!!!!
I love a nice backyard flock,which consists of a mixture.Right now we have the Original Dark RIR and lots of silkies.WE are going to hatch and sell chicks this year to help with the feed cost that seems to go up.
HAVE FUN WITH YOUR GIRLS,they are the best thing to add to your little homestead.

Wendy said...

We've had chickens since 2006, and LOVE them! They have been such an amazing addition to our little suburban homestead and really make it feel like we're moving in the right direction toward some sort of self-sufficiency. In fact, it was getting the chickens that helped to spur us faster in that direction :).

We also have ducks, which are a hoot!

By the way, to your readers who live in HOA restrictive suburbs, maybe they should look into raising quail - which are much quieter than chickens and take up consierably less space ;). In fact, depending on how private their yards are, it's quite likely that the neighbors would never even know ;).

Turtles In Northern Florida said...

I have 3 chickens right now. Not sure of the breed as they were given to me and they didnt know what they were.The hen didnt start laying until almost a year. I am going to check out the red star!

I want more though and have been waiting to order. I was thrilled to see you get yours. I am going to see how much longer I have to wait.

Been contemplating the whole incubater thing but am unsure of how that all works with shipping n stuff. I need to do more research.

The Apple Pie Gal said...

Gosh they sure are cute! We are getting our first peeps in just a couple of weeks!

Unknown said...

When we purchase a farm in the next year or two I will have many chickens and all the other farm critters too!

Alice said...

Yea for new chicks. We're getting partridge chanteclers this year.

We've had chickens in the past, but just moved - we're looking forward to NOT buying eggs at the store anymore. :)

Donna said...

We've had chickens for the last couple of years. The feed store had a nice selection. We have 3 Araucanas and they lay from a robins egg blue to a olive green eggs. 3 barred rocks and 5 rhode island reds. I'm working my way up to processing the current bunch and replacing my flock. Still studying up on how to do it humanely.

sharon said...

We are going to have our first chickens this spring, I'm so excited....but, like you in the past, probably not until May. The coop won't be ready for a while yet as we are up to our waists in snow!

Cat Hill said...

Very nice blog, I just wanted to let you know that the ones you cal Araucana's are not Araucana's. They are a mixed breed called easter eggers collectively. I raise the true Araucana's. They are rumpless (no tail) and have a bit of skin by the ears that have feathers growing from it to look like earrings. You can visit my website to see some real Araucana's search for fivehillsfarm or visit the Araucana Club of America