Researching Chickens and overwhelmed!!

[~gd]

We have Buckeyes. They are wonderful birds. Very friendly, cold hardy, and fairly productive layers. They do pretty well in the heat as well. They are the only chicken breed (that I know of!) That was produced by a woman, Nettie Metcalf, in Ohio. I think you made a great choice with the Buckeyes. There is a facebook group that is dedicated to the buckeyes as well, pretty active and friendly bunch, if you would like to join it's called American Buckeye Club.

Why would you worry about cold hardy in Jacksonville NC? that is one of the places that ducks and geese fly south to spend the winter [also snow birds as winter yankees are sometimes called] The city was built around the US Marine bases. I am a little father south and more inland [Fort Bragg paratroops and Pope AFB to transport the paratroops] Welcome I must have missed you all this time....~gd

 

[Denim Deb]

I would say these are first year chickens and they do lay all winter the first year because they just came into lay. Or production layers.

Right on Bee! I forgot about the First year layers.Most of my ladies have been through their second molt and should be sent to Cambell's for noodle soup but I love the large eggs. They were production layers. I wonder if Tractor Supply will have chicks this year and what their policvy will be? I could use six but a full dozen would mean that some of the ladies would need to go to freezer camp. I had to get rid of my cock I am outside city limits but the people across the road [inside limits] kept calling because he would crow. ~gd

If there's no feed store in the area that sells chicks, they should have them. I know the TSC closest to the farm doesn't carry chicks because the one feed store does. But, others in the general area do since they're farther away from that feed store. As far as I know, if you buy their chicks, you have to get at least 6.

 

[nachoqtpie]

Why would you worry about cold hardy in Jacksonville NC? that is one of the places that ducks and geese fly south to spend the winter [also snow birds as winter yankees are sometimes called] The city was built around the US Marine bases. I am a little father south and more inland [Fort Bragg paratroops and Pope AFB to transport the paratroops] Welcome I must have missed you all this time....~gd

OP said they wanted cold hardy birds. I'm not worried about cold hardy here. I thought it was SUPER cold her the last couple days... It was below 50!! Lol I do enjoy my Buckeyes tho.

 

[Denim Deb]

And depending on how close to 50 it was, it would have felt like a heat wave to some. We got up into the 60s last week and I was ready to break out my shorts!

 

[nachoqtpie]

Since moving here 6 years ago, I seemed to have lost every stitch of Ohio blood I have. I look at temps back home and I shiver! It was 40 the other day and I got out my giant parka coat! Lol

 

[~gd]

Why would you worry about cold hardy in Jacksonville NC? that is one of the places that ducks and geese fly south to spend the winter [also snow birds as winter yankees are sometimes called] The city was built around the US Marine bases. I am a little father south and more inland [Fort Bragg paratroops and Pope AFB to transport the paratroops] Welcome I must have missed you all this time....~gd

OP said they wanted cold hardy birds. I'm not worried about cold hardy here. I thought it was SUPER cold her the last couple days... It was below 50!! Lol I do enjoy my Buckeyes tho.

Sorry my short term memory [the first to go] must have failed me again, I though you were the OP. Yep transplanted Yankee 25+ years. I now manage to just smile at the natives dressed in Parkas with shorts and flip flops rather than laughing out loud.

 

[Cindlady2]

Wow... I think my birds (even the guineas) are happier at 50* than they are at 80*! Even at 30* they are out ... they just don't seem to like snow! LOL

 

[Hinotori]

Snow is like Lava according to my birds. It burns if you touch it. They get over that after a while, sort of. Mine will try and fly as far as they can before they have to touch it. Last year they did figure out they can scratch it out of the way and eat the grass underneath.

 

[Bettacreek]

Chickens are basically only as complicated as you make them. I've got 41 birds here, 31 of them being chickens, and I don't really have much hassle. I converted a room under the porch addition into a "coop", have no run and don't really have to muck with them much. I change the room out every month or so, collect eggs throughout the day and feed them at lunch and at bedtime. Other than that, there isn't much to it. I spend a lot of time with them, but that's purely for my enjoyment.

 

[DebFred]

I am feeling a lot better about the chickens. I tend to overthink a lot of things, not just chickens! Found a place to get the chicks, and hope they have the buckeyes. Will try the deep litter method, and take it from there!

Thank you!