Its great that chickens can pretty much ship across country safely without food or water :) Gotta love newborn chickies

Amen to this! I've never shipped livestock before so this was very nerve wracking :3

OH MY GOODNESS IT'S ADORABLE
So why did you order chickens? :o

Eggs :3 Plus they're a TON of fun to raise.

That is true! My dad wanted to get chickens (I was totally for it) but we don't know the difficulty level of raising them, and also we don't know where to put them once winter comes!

I know! Winter is going to be the big thing, but we're going to keep them on the back porch(Which is screened but have a wooden bottom half so it shouldn't be too bad. Gonna expand their box as they need it, and put in some more heat lamps. We'll let them play in the pen every few days to get used to it after they hit 2-3 weeks. I figure for winter we'll either A) Keep them on the back porch w/ extra heat lamps or B) Put a heat lamp in the roof of their coop to keep it toasty in there for them(Once they're fully grown of course)

Whens dinner :D

In about 9 months. lol.

oooo home made chicken..... i bet its yummy ! all humane raised too :D

No chemicals in the process? Holy shit I'm looking foreward to tasting chicken for the first time. But I'm secretly hoping none of them will be aggressive(Although one of them already CLEARLY is.. he might be irritated because of the long, stressful trip, so hopefully he'll chill- although my poking aroun dhis ass for 20 mins probably didn't help his mood!)

yeah...id be a little irritable too.
id so love to raise egg and meat chickens, but i have enough on my plate ;p

Hahaha I know the feeling :3 This wasn't the BEST idea to do as a project during medschool/while making fursuits, lol. BUT OH WELL.

NEW FRIENDS XD

Plus after 8 weeks they aren't too hard to take care of :3 Compared to other livestock anyways.

i was at a camp where they had chickens...couldnt handle them but id allways slip grass and leftovers into thier cage for em

YAAAAY they made it! But, aw for the dead one... and how does the one with the broken neck survive?? o_o Like... it can't heal, can it? Is that common with chickens, my goodness...

Just checked on them, the broken neck one died :( I'm so dissapointed.

And no, broken necks don't heal. Chickens are notorious for medical anomalies though.

Awwwrh. ;_; Best lil' courageous not-giving-up broken-necked baby anything I have ever known though, I think...

Lol I know I'm sad! But I've got loads of feathery friends so I can't be too sad :3 OH MAN IM SO EXCITED

BABYYYYYY CHICKENSSS

That chicken is secretly one of the X-Men, hense why it survived.

There are so cute. ^^

BRUCE WAYNE WILL BE THE GREATEST.
Or you could name him Christopher Reeve. =P Just saying...

What are you going to be doing with the chickens?

ARGH HE DIED D:< His name will be christopher reeve for being a DEAD parapalegic chicken :( SAD ;_;

Raising them for eggs, and if any get really aggressive, meat. But they're super fun to raise :3 If any are super super awesome I'll show them.

Oh NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!! WHYYYYYYYYYYY?!?!?1

That actually kinda makes me sad. =(

Oh well, he will be missed. And the name change is appropriate, since Batman can't die! =P


Is this your first time raising chickens (hence the shipment in) or are you just adding to your pre-existing colony/flock thing?

This is my very first (personal) flock XD I'm sooo excited. So far so good. :X I'm terrified I'll have like, NOT read something and it will end up killing all the chickens(Although I've raised them before but they were all about 8 weeks old at that point), but I'm also super excited to have NEW FRIENDS TO SPOIL! XD

What does it mean to be pasted up?

Sitting around in their own poop, it gets clogged up in their vents(An extra hole type deal in birds) and if their vent isnt open they can't poop, so they die of sepsis.

Oh okay, you learn something new everyday. :D Super cute chipmunk chick

IM SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS CHIPMUNK CHICK. I think I'm going to name him chunky.

I'll get the frying pan and butter ready.....

Aaaawww....they look so fluffy and adorable. ;3; You should name one of them Sean Connery. <<8

Fluffy chicks, do you live on a farm now or something? :P Or just have a lot of land? Or will your neighbors refer to you from now on as the crazy chicken lady?

Ima be the KRAZY CHICKEN LADY XD

If you start dressing them in cute little outfits I'll die. XP

I
I like your voice
also you speak in such a way that you're like me. i refer to how cute things are in the weirdest ways and how I show my excitement by cursing pretty often
but these are adorable I wanna chicken :(((

yes absolutely

lets buy some chickens

right now XD

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fN_6K8MWscE

we will toss them everywhere

so cute!!!
I want chickens.

Peep

OH MY GOD CHICKENS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! <3

Chickies! I never got to hold one o' the little fluffy guys, but they look sooo cute ^^

theyre SOOOO delicate I feel like I'm going to break them :O Theyre tiny stick bones covered in fluff!

X3 Do they make the adorable peeping sounds?

THE MOST ADORABLE PEEPS. All the time, gently and quietly until you pick them up, then they protest qute vehemently.

the one in the photo looks just like my rooster when he was a bby! awwwawww i want chickens again so bad!

dawww, PEEEP! they are the cuitest at this age

Let us know when you live cast your first Peep Show.

LOL thats a good idea. Whenever they're running around in the yard, I guess XD THE PEEP SHOW

Daww I miss my ducks when they were this age.
When I get my own place, I'll get a couple to keep my dog happy.
One time found a baby mockingbird on the ground in the heat and he wouldn't finish the walk without me picking it up.
The mockingbird is still around and likes to taunt him when he flies in the neighborhood lol

Thats so cute XD I found a baby mockingbird but he died :,( He got an infection in a wound we didn't see(He was attacked by a hawk who sliced him up along the ribcage really good). Thats cool your friend hangs around your neighborhood :D

That's sad but its part of nature.
He's a cool bird, but ever since he learned to mimick my laugh, he swoops down and laughs like he learned.
Used to also have a Stellar Blue Jay my cat played with and slept with. It was funny.
Have fun with your chickies ^^

Yea, it happens. Death is still kind of traumatising at 25, lol. Oh well. At least I know I'm not desensitised or anything. Oh man! They can mimic stuff like CRAZY. Ours used to mimic the heavy machinery in my step da's machine shop. 3 am and suddenly DUDUDUDUDUDUDUDUD CHZZZZZZING CHZZZING and I'm like WHAT OH GOD WHY IS HE WORKING, and the mockingbird(Petey) would be there, like "CHZZZZING" and I'd be like OH GOD. YOU GODDAMN BIRD. and go back to sleep.

LMAO mine never did that but I'd have put him in the garage if he did that.. or outside if he's too loud.

very cute... I have done this many times myself and as for the ones that were doa all I can say is that it happens... chicks at that age can literally be scared to death or trampled to death and if you are concerned McMurray should replace them as a loss at least Ideal does who is the supplier I use when I get them for myself and getting them for layers as I do numbers matter. if you have any questions or concerns please feel free to ask me I do enjoy talking about chickens. ~.=.0

I figured the one w/ the broken neck had been trampled during shipment, and the dead one died of stress. TBH I'm glad it died along the way because it makes me VERY sad to hold something while it dies :( At least the one w/ the broken neck died warm, full and comfortable.

Anyways- Mcmurray refunded me for the two losses and informed me of rhteir 48 hour policy(2 days after you pick them up from teh post office they're guaranteed). So if I lose anymore I might take those credits to buy some gamebirds next season. I'm going to get the jump on pheasants/ducks/turkeys.

I'm definately going to ask you some chickeny questions :D

OH I HAVE ONE ALREADY
We got one chick who was pasted up REALLY badly, like- his vent is chapped(Dry, yellow colour) and it took alot of careful work to remove the blockage(Which was the size of a pea). His vent is very swollen- i rubbed it gently with a damp paper towel- is there anything you can suggest to help bring the swelling down? I dont' want to lose him from sepsis :X We had two with large blockages(Not nearly as large) that bled a little when we removed them(Probably more due to clumsy human hands than the blockage itself, but IDK)- i cleaned them in a similar manner and tomorrow will check everybody and clean them again. Any suggestions for the care of these 3's vents?

best thing to put in their little rumps is petroleum jelly... (I know haha- but moving on) it is an inert thing that will keep most thongs out of wounds and keeps them from getting dry and cracking, but only a little bit (about the same as putting on lip balm) if to much is put on it can be counter productive. I suggest getting a large thing of it as it will be more or less a cure all for chickens especially when they get older and start peckin at each other.

The blockages you are talking about remind me of what might happen if you feed them the wrong food. They can't yet digest a whole lot, so special "crackle feeds" need to be fed to them. I suggest a "chick rearing formula crackle feed" and depending on what you are raising them for, some places have specific "layer" and "cooker" formulas but if not a general blend is just as good. They have certain nutrients and minerals a growing chick needs. I would start to mix in some "lay mash" (kinda powdery with bits of oyster shell in it) type feed in with what is left of their "chick crackle" (so not to shock them with a sudden change) and slowly replace the "crackle" (as you run out) with a "scratch" (cracked corn and grains) around the time they start getting their adult feathers, so to end up with a "lay mash" and "scratch" mix. They will love you and be healthy from it.

hope this helps... if you wanna ask directly feel free to IM me on AIM (NuumTheDragon) or my yahoo (kenchen_the_batosi@yahoo.com) or G-Mail (kindred.dragon@gmail.com) and feel free to ask any more ~.=.0

Cheers,
Nuum ^.=.^

I got a chick starter(50lb bag) especially for game birds and exotic chicken breeds. I was WONDERING about their grinding-stone-stomache thingies.. I got oyster shell BUT its too big so I figured I'd put it through a mortar and pestle to crush it up to chick-sized pieces.

I figured around week 6-8(Since there's a ton of breeds I expect growth rates to differ) I'd start changing the feed over to crackle.

Thanks so much btw :3 I'll pick up some petroleum jelly tonight!!

Epicness!

Do not nail these cute little buggers to anything.

I promise not to do anythign to these animals XD I LUBS DEM!!!

theyre gonna get named tomorrow. lol

Give them royal names so you don't mind giving them the axe when the time comes. Americans seem to not mind killing royalty or rich sounding people names as much as common-folk names. "Pass the Loius XIV, won't you?"

Haha, I was going to be lame and name them after my friends XD Or character traits. There's one that has a FABULOUS hairdo that I'm going to food-colour pink(I'm going to do the old food colour ID, his/hers will be pink) and I'm going to name it after my hipster lady pal XD

Gotta have at least one Henrietta chicken per brood... I doubt you have any green food colors (very unsavory!) but my characters are called Zoransis and Unktehila, the latter being a Lakota word for Reptilian Monster (Raptor?)...

I knew Unktehila from when I played some Mokole lol. AH WORLD OF DARKNESS... *sigh*

I don't have the facilities to raise ones this little but now has two new 4-5 month old hens to add in with mine. http://www.furaffinity.net/view/4635693/ I love chickens.

Daww! XD WOW that darker one is GORGEOUS looking. Its got very raptorish features.

they are also very tame and will happily sit on a shoulder or arm. We've had them for two days and thought they would take a couple of weeks to tame down. Not sure what cross breed they are but don't care. *hugs* good luck with your brood.

yay chiggens!

Oh, cute little pecker...

Gosh, I'm so funny. I crack me up.

PEEPERS FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
CANT LAUGH
COMEDY LOST ON EXCITED MONSTER
SO EXCITE
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
BABIESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Your gona have lots of egg’s for breakfast ^_^

BRING THEM TO FURFRIGHT

YOU WANT A PEEP PEEP:! YOU CANT HAVE THEM D:<

(I might bring one next year, but this year they'll need to have a constant temperature of 85 degrees >.>' so i dont reant to roast to death. I COULD KEEP IT IN MY FURSUIT AND TITTIES. Just what i always wanted, to be covered in chicken piss :d

you can be like midori and bring every animal

LMAO no thanks I'll pass XD

Chickens are love. <3 They will be my favorite animal for life. <3

I have a bunch of chickens, and live on a farm. If you need any chicken advice and sort, I might be able to help you. ^^ I've had chickens all my life. Getting more this year, and I can't wait. x3

CHICKENS! :D I'll be posting chicken questions here, so many people have offered their expertise <3 thanks

Picking up chicks? But I thought you had a boyfriend?

Yay for chickens. I got to show you the picture of my coop. Its currently empty but it won't always be.

:P Listen here you! Man these guys are some work though! I expanded their coop today and I had to check all their vent openings AGAIN(At least a dozen were blocked). They say they need at least a square foot per chick- now I know why X.X Its just super hard to find a heated 25' sq. area I can keep at a constant 90 degrees lol. So instead they've got a 6 by 3 area atm until Wednesday. Then I cn double it up and they'll be all over the back porch lmao. But holy shit they're so cute :3 And I've got a mixed bag of all sorts of breeds.

Adorable!! They usually include an extra or two to make up for the shipping losses. Loosing one or two to shipping isn't uncommon. Good luck with them! I looooove baby chickens XD and guinea fowl.
Please post more pics as they get older!

Yea, they shipped an extra 1, but it arrived dead so it was like ok good. We lost a total of 4 chicks I think.. 3 were MYSTERY DEATHS but 1 was my fault :/ It was pasted up REALLY BAD when I got it, and i removed what was the apparent blockage but there was in fact a SECOND blockage which just looked like a swollen, chapped vent, and was in fact a bunch of yellow-y buildup. ;_; Well, I know better now :( I still feel terrible though.

BUT i managed to save one that was dying :3 And hes one with a funny feather-hat, too! So I'm really happy :D

I let them out for their first runaround in the coop/pen today :3 They had so much fun scratching the ground. They're getting SO BIG. One of them is ALREADY TWO POUNDS!!!!!

Awww, well it is sad but don't blame yourself. Baby birds in general are pretty fragile in the grand scheme of things. Baby guineas can't take getting wet and cold. When the moms would take them out in the morning dew, they'd loose a LOT even in the heat of summer, just the morning air was too much. Sounds like you're taking good care of them tho if you didn't loose many!

Wow i'm glad they are growing quickly! How big will they get? I LOVE giant chickens like buff orpingtons and barred rocks! Please share pics of your chickens! I miss having some around.

I don;t know! I got a mixed bag so I'll surprise myself :3 Although I think one is a jumbo sized bird because she is growing WAY faster than the rest :3 I hope she's a good layer though, having a ginormous bird around is a huge benefit to keep away coons, foxes and rats. Although foxes don't come in our yard anymore(We have a renard and a she-fox locally, and the renard got beaten up by our old cat so many times he doesnt come around anymore).

Ooh yes, glad you don't have a lot of predators around. Also beware of hawks, we used to loose a lot to them. To prevent raccoons we always locked them up in their coop at night. During the day ours ran free around the yard, if they are caged it negates the hawk problems.
Yay for cat protection!
I hope you get some really pretty ones out of the mix!
Going to let them breed or just take the eggs?

Debating so far. It depends how many eggs they lay. I'd like to let them breed. but that means killing the roosters, or selling them(Which means them getting killed anyways)

True, sometimes you can get lucky and sell them to folks who are just starting up and will want them as breeders not eaters.

I'd be selling them at the livestock auction, although a few ads on craigslist would go out naturally- but we've already got an asston of cockerels >.>' So it would be most likely to the market with them.

Awww *nod*

muahaha I'm so lucky I dont have to worry about any predators where I live.. I just let the chickens wander my yard 24/7 and in 6 years havent lost a single one to predators! and I've got mini bantams!

That's good for the chickens!!

haha! I have chickens... arent they awesome? gonna go to the fair and get some silver sebrights this upcoming weekend. :3 I have 7 bantams running around in my backyard. all were rescues from craigslist.

I want to have pet chicks now. :(

ow aint it cute, glad they made it to you safely

I watched your uTube video on this. lol Gods it was cute and funny.

Heehee. They're so big now XD I should really make another youtube video of them now that they're almost grown~!

Thats awesome, so did the one with a broken neck make it?