[Misc] Anyone keep chickens? WTAF did I agree to it?

[dazzer6666]

I got persuaded to agree to us keeping a few chickens.

By the time I'm done with buying a coop, bedding, feed, drinkers, feeders, grit, tonics, sanitisers, tonics, toys, shelter, sandpit, hardwood chippings for the run (no bark allowed), f***ing Fort Knox 500SqFt run (we have badgers and foxes living in the garden), I reckon the eggs will be about £20 each. Oh, and that's before I've bought the sodding chickens (between £30 and £50 each - WTF?!!).

"Oh, but [12-month old baby G1976] will love it. Won't you love her little face when she collects the eggs?"

"She can help me kill them when they get too old. Perhaps she'll like plucking them?"

Any chicken keepers on here? Please tell me that there is some benefit to put into my mental cost:benefit calculation, because I'm currently seeing pretty much only downside.

My best mate from school started when we were about 14, he currently has 75,000 so happy to ask him anything if needed (he takes young chicks and grows them up to laying age) H’s become very disillusioned with it - so much admin, red tape and regulation to deal with now

 

[METALMICKY]

I got persuaded to agree to us keeping a few chickens.

By the time I'm done with buying a coop, bedding, feed, drinkers, feeders, grit, tonics, sanitisers, tonics, toys, shelter, sandpit, hardwood chippings for the run (no bark allowed), f***ing Fort Knox 500SqFt run (we have badgers and foxes living in the garden), I reckon the eggs will be about £20 each. Oh, and that's before I've bought the sodding chickens (between £30 and £50 each - WTF?!!).

"Oh, but [12-month old baby G1976] will love it. Won't you love her little face when she collects the eggs?"

"She can help me kill them when they get too old. Perhaps she'll like plucking them?"

Any chicken keepers on here? Please tell me that there is some benefit to put into my mental cost:benefit calculation, because I'm currently seeing pretty much only downside.

"Got persuaded" are you hen pecked or fallen fowl of a bossy partner.

 

[Marty McFly]

We used to keep silkies and Wyandots. Silkie rooster, named Ambrose, was the most docile rooster you’d ever meet.

 

[tedebear]

We had chickens for ages. Loved them. Funny as anything and lovely having them peck around when I'm gardening, or sitting on your lap with a cup of tea in the sunshine coo-ing. The eggs are amazing, we had all our veggies and our eggs home grown, felt really good. Does limit your travels a bit, they can survive on their own with an auto closer for about 3 or 4 days depending on how many you have, but you can't pack them off to a kennel unfortunately. But usually you can find a neighbour to mind them in exchange for the eggs! The coop was expensive but a fox proof one will be.

Has the cost of chickens gone up that much?? We paid £10 - £15 for ours, you can also get them from rehoming places for free. Fresh Start for Hens or British Hen Welfare Trust will give you the next rehoming dates and you can register to receive them.

Not sure you needed all the stuff you have, but in time you'll work it out. Our chickens were on dirt, they loved it. They'd flick any wood chip out anyhow. They had grit rarely, loved corn feed and were cheap and easy to keep.

 

[Goldstone1976]

Ducks Hill Farm egg vending machine - the-gingerbread-house.co.uk

A trip to Ducks Hill Farm egg vending machine, Ruislip

the-gingerbread-house.co.uk

We get our eggs from here, going today actually.
If yr up to it, you could sell yr eggs similarly, nor too far I guess

We get our eggs from there too. Currently. Sigh.

 

[Brok]

We used to get ours from a company over the road who used to import parrots and things from the Far East.
With the parrots was always a couple of exotic looking chickens. Apparently, if there was any sort of disease, these chickens would get it first, and were a sort of ... er... health indicator.
Company didn't want them, and gave them to us. Not many eggs, but nice to have walking about the place. And the kids loved them.

 

[Weststander]

Keep chickens, you get rats unfortunately.

Yep, confirmed by a pest control bloke at a clients. Some vile stories.

 

[tedebear]

Yep, confirmed by a pest control bloke at a clients. Some vile stories.

We never did…Depends on what you feed them. I suspect if people feed them their leftovers/kitchen scraps then of course they’ll get rats. It’s illegal to do that anyhow…

 

[AmexRuislip]

We get our eggs from there too. Currently. Sigh.

I think it's a wonderful idea.
Eggs aside, the farmers market in Ruislip is worth a gander, some decent food on show for a small venue.

Ruislip — Duck Pond Market

Ruislip Artisan & Foodies

duckpondmarket.com

 

[Goldstone1976]

I think it's a wonderful idea.
Eggs aside, the farmers market in Ruislip is worth a gander, some decent food on show for a small venue.

Ruislip — Duck Pond Market

Ruislip Artisan & Foodies

duckpondmarket.com

Now that I've not seen before; many thanks, we'll give it a go next time it's on.

 

[Stat Brother]

On Prime - and eggscellent fun.

 

[AZ Gull]

You'll be chasing them around your neighbour's gardens soon. They are good at weeding and produce great fertiliser. You'll love it, it's a way of life.

I can vouch for that! My next-door neighbour started keeping 8 chickens last year. About a month ago, one Friday morning I happened to look out the kitchen window and...I had a chicken mooching about the back yard! (I was only at home because I was flying to California that afternoon for a squash tournament - does make me wonder if it's happened before).

 

[Bry Nylon]

I got persuaded to agree to us keeping a few chickens.

By the time I'm done with buying a coop, bedding, feed, drinkers, feeders, grit, tonics, sanitisers, tonics, toys, shelter, sandpit, hardwood chippings for the run (no bark allowed), f***ing Fort Knox 500SqFt run (we have badgers and foxes living in the garden), I reckon the eggs will be about £20 each. Oh, and that's before I've bought the sodding chickens (between £30 and £50 each - WTF?!!).

"Oh, but [12-month old baby G1976] will love it. Won't you love her little face when she collects the eggs?"

"She can help me kill them when they get too old. Perhaps she'll like plucking them?"

Any chicken keepers on here? Please tell me that there is some benefit to put into my mental cost:benefit calculation, because I'm currently seeing pretty much only downside.

Any chance of a pic of your cock?

 

[Official Old Man]

You just wait until the other have says 'shall we bake our own bread'. Now that's expensive.

 

[Papak]

Far too many terrible yolks in this thread...

 

[Colonel Mustard]

You just wait until the other have says 'shall we bake our own bread'. Now that's expensive.

Is it? I’ve been baking my own bread in a bread machine for years and it works out much cheaper. But that’s not the reason for doing it, obviously. Without meaning to restart the sourdough discussion, it tastes far better than the supermarket stuff, and you control what goes into it. Talking of sourdough I’ve just started making it (without a machine) and so far haven’t incurred any additional expense at all. I might invest in a proving basket but will wait to see if the sourdough venture is a success.

 

[raymondo]

I got persuaded to agree to us keeping a few chickens.

By the time I'm done with buying a coop, bedding, feed, drinkers, feeders, grit, tonics, sanitisers, tonics, toys, shelter, sandpit, hardwood chippings for the run (no bark allowed), f***ing Fort Knox 500SqFt run (we have badgers and foxes living in the garden), I reckon the eggs will be about £20 each. Oh, and that's before I've bought the sodding chickens (between £30 and £50 each - WTF?!!).

"Oh, but [12-month old baby G1976] will love it. Won't you love her little face when she collects the eggs?"

"She can help me kill them when they get too old. Perhaps she'll like plucking them?"

Any chicken keepers on here? Please tell me that there is some benefit to put into my mental cost:benefit calculation, because I'm currently seeing pretty much only downside.

You forgot the gin to go with the tonics

 

[raymondo]

Absolute waste of time and money .

Eggs are cheap
Chickens are cheap.
Fertiliser is cheap.

Only baby chickens go cheep

 

[Normal Rob]

I'm just had ham, egg, and chips for dinner with my 3 daughters. All the eggs were from our birds. Anyone who is putting chicken keeping down, well I genuinely pity you.

 

[mile oak]

They are finger lickin good