For Traditional Farmer,,and anyone interested

larry@stinescorner · Nov 10, 2021

With the happenings,,,the backyard garden idea seems to make sense now

You said rabbits and chickens are needed

The wife would never go for rabbits,,and I do know they are the best bang for the buck

But,,,seriously,,how many chickens (if Im gonna go for it),,,would be sensible?

I would like to build a chicken tractor(moveable chicken yard and hutch) out of pallets and wire,,etc

Just getting some thoughts together,,,would value any input,,,

Thanks in advance!

DeltaRed · Nov 10, 2021

3 to 5 chickens will keep a single family in egs.If you want meat,figure out how many chicken dinners you plan on eating.Do the math.

1939farmall · Nov 10, 2021

We started out with 8 laying hens and ended up with more eggs than we could possibly eat. We have 5 now and it seems just about right for us. I would agree with DeltaReds 3 to 5 number. We keep ours in a 10x10 shed we turned into a coop with a 10x20 run for them. We also compost the manure and use it on the garden.

Gtidwell · Nov 10, 2021

I also agree with Deltared. Three to five is a good number. The laying hens will lay good to just over 2yo. After that the laying drops way off. I have about 40 hens in the laying pen now and I have right at 20 that have not started laying yet. I have some egg customers and I keep my neighbors in eggs. I have had laying hens since I was a young in. At one time my parents had 80 laying hens. If you do get some and have any questions, please feel free to contact me. My mom had an uncle that raised meat birds. He had two large houses.

dahlin · Nov 10, 2021

We had two hens and they kept my wife and I with all the eggs we wanted

bmack95hd · Nov 10, 2021

Son and DIL have 5 in their residential backyard and that provides enough for them and at times extras for family and friends.

4520BW · Nov 10, 2021

Hey a few Rhode island reds. They lay good and are friendly.

Traditional Farmer · Nov 10, 2021

4 or 5 hens will make it worth the effort and with all the vegetables you grow and table scraps you'll have a good portion of their feed.A chicken can make good use of about anything.I have
30 eight week old Black Australorp and White Rock pullets I'm raising now.Be a lot of eggs when they get to laying.Come on down one day I'll give you some pullets to get you started.

Geo-TH,In · Nov 10, 2021

Are eggs on your diet?

As for me I won't get close to chickens after getting Histoplasmosis from chickens.

Didn't you have histo?
If you did, how compromised is your
immune system after cancer treatments and do you want to do histo again?
I don't.

larry@stinescorner · Nov 10, 2021

They thought I Did,,but a specialist ruled it out

Bruce from Can. · Nov 10, 2021

A few hens sounds like a great idea for you Larry. I dont keep any hens for two reasons. The first reason is there is just too much wild vermin around here that like chicken too. And the second reason is , when I was a kid, my folks had 3-400 laying hens all the time. And as a child, I spent many unhappy hours washing and crating eggs.

Farmaller · Nov 10, 2021

Using those crates for nesting is a great idea!

1939farmall · Nov 10, 2021

Thanks! They make clean up bedding easy.

paul · Nov 10, 2021

I was going to also complement on the crate design, very nice!

Paul

RJKeith · Nov 10, 2021

I got 4 pullets and three roosters over the summer (straight run) Plan to get rid of one rooster, and pullets should start laying soo. Think I will get about two dozen eggs a week.

For Traditional Farmer,,and anyone interested

larry@stinescorner

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DeltaRed

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1939farmall

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Gtidwell

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dahlin

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bmack95hd

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4520BW

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Traditional Farmer

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Geo-TH,In

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larry@stinescorner

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Bruce from Can.

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Farmaller

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1939farmall

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paul

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RJKeith

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