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

[LamieRobertson]

One in the freezer…well part of one

 

[raymondo]

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

That's the chicken community's civil service for you!

 

[chip]

View attachment 180450

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).

You do get to know your neighbours garden better too. Much cheaper and easier than being persuaded a horse is a good idea.

 

[jonny.rainbow]

An ex g/f of mine decided she wanted to keep chickens in our tiny garden in central London a few years back. I said I thought it was a silly idea as there were so many urban foxes around.

Four weeks later and our friendly neighbourhood fox is sleeping off a delicious chicken midnight feast whilst I’m cleaning the bloodstains off the inside of the coop because g/f can’t stand the sight of ‘poor little Eddie Chicken’s blood’.

 

[raymondo]

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.

You shouldn't eat daughters for dinner...stick to the eggs!

 

[Justice]

Is this a chicken and egg situation?

 

[Dinner with Gotsmanov]

I was thinking of trying to keep hens but chickened out in the end…

 

[essbee1]

We live in Orpington......home of the famous Orpington Buff.

The Orpington Club

 

[Ooh it’s a corner]

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 wife’s ex decided to keep chickens after she left him! He didn’t look after them carefully and ended up with a rat infestation as an added bonus!

 

[Worried Man Blues]

One in the freezer…well part of one

Trouble shutting the lid?

Don't bother to breed them, I found the going rate 12 cockerels to one hen!

 

[tedebear]

We live in Orpington......home of the famous Orpington Buff.

The Orpington Club

They are great! One of our best was a light sussex:

Light Sussex Chicken - Hollywater Hens

The Sussex chicken is a dual purpose breed of chicken that originated in England around the time of the Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43. It is a popular garden chicken in many countries. They come in eight colours (with a couple more being developed) and have a bantam version at 1/4 size; the …

hollywaterhens.co.uk

 

[el punal]

Sounds like a huge cock up!

Sorry.

 

[Wrong-Direction]

I'm deffo gonna get a few chickens one day, need a garden first though..

 

[Goldstone1976]

They are great! One of our best was a light sussex:

Light Sussex Chicken - Hollywater Hens

The Sussex chicken is a dual purpose breed of chicken that originated in England around the time of the Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43. It is a popular garden chicken in many countries. They come in eight colours (with a couple more being developed) and have a bantam version at 1/4 size; the …

hollywaterhens.co.uk

That’s the place we’re planning to get the hens from in 2-3 weeks!

 

[tedebear]

That’s the place we’re planning to get the hens from in 2-3 weeks!

I guess you're not local? There are a few more local if you'd like. Middle Farm usually has lots, we had some from there which were great. We got our first lot from a farm in Ferring, but I think they might still be under an avian influenza ban for movement of livestock at the mo...

 

[Goldstone1976]

I guess you're not local? There are a few more local if you'd like. Middle Farm usually has lots, we had some from there which were great. We got our first lot from a farm in Ferring, but I think they might still be under an avian influenza ban for movement of livestock at the mo...

We’re near Watford… Middle Farm is great, but even further away from us than Hollywater…

 

[zefarelly]

They are great! One of our best was a light sussex:

Light Sussex Chicken - Hollywater Hens

The Sussex chicken is a dual purpose breed of chicken that originated in England around the time of the Roman conquest of Britain in AD 43. It is a popular garden chicken in many countries. They come in eight colours (with a couple more being developed) and have a bantam version at 1/4 size; the …

hollywaterhens.co.uk

She was the biggest of the 4 . . . Not light!

exceptionally good eggs, and laid until she was 6. Retired and Lived until she was 9

 

[tedebear]

We’re near Watford… Middle Farm is great, but even further away from us than Hollywater…

ah ok!

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

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.

Quite popular on Merseyside and in North London apparently

 

[Perry's Tracksuit Bottoms]

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.

We have chickens and you 100% can pack them off to a 'kennel', or hen hotel. They even give you the eggs they've laid while you were away!