Our chicks are here!
We were expecting 5-6lb hens, but we got chicks instead. I’m embracing the task of raising these babies so thaat this fall they will be laying eggs for my family. It’s exciting to know we won’t have to rely on a grocery store for eggs, especially with the cost of organic and cage free eggs.
Until they can go in their coop, they are in a 50g aquarium with pine shavings on the bottom. There is a heat lamp to keep them warm, chick feed, and water. I am going to buy a nice waterer today because they are spilling all over their shavings when I water them. With the cost of the waterer, I have put in about $20 so far for them in the chick stage.
When they can go outside, they will be in a coop at my parent’s house. We spent about $60 on hinges, fencing, and stakes. We used an old building already on their property for the coop and changed it to fit our needs like adding a small door for them to get outside. We also used scrap wood and the skills of family to build nesting boxes.
This is just one step in our goal to live more simply and more independently. Be sure to check back to read about how our garden is growing!
My parents own quite a bit of land and have offered to share a garden with us and to house chickens! How exciting is this! We are using a building that is already on their land and equipping it with a fence and some nesting boxes (which DH’s father is going to make for us out of scrap wood). Then we are going to fill the coop with sawdust from the nesting box project. Our chickens will be arriving in the beginning of May. We are pretty sure we will only be using our chickens for eggs at this point and not for meat.
