How to Pick up Chicks
No, this is not a dating guide. If you are looking for your soulmate, volunteer with an organization that aligns with your values and priorities. All those other volunteers are your pre-filtered field of candidates. Now, back to chicks . . .
You have reserved your chicks and your turn has finally come! Hooray! Here is a list of what should happen next.
Have your brooder all set up and the heat source turned on before you leave to come get your chicks. If you need guidance on the best way to set up your brooder, this is the blog post for you: Brooder Tips. If you need to rent a brooder and all the accoutrements, we can often do that too.
When you arrive for your chick pick-up, pull into the north driveway, Try to leave room for another car next to you as chick pick-up days are busy. If you are going to be more than ten minutes early or late, please let me know; my number is in your appointment confirmation email and/or your appointment reminder email.
If no one pops out and waves at your within a few minutes, give a little honk. I’ll appear and confirm your name and what I have for you.
It will take me a little time to box them up for you, as I may have up to 100 zippy little chicks running around in the brooder and I have to find the right ones.
While you wait, enjoy the mountain view or admire the chickens or pet the kitties, but please do so from the outside of the gate. For biosecurity, we appreciate if you do not come in.
Be aware that the hot fence surrounding the runs is in fact hot. This is especially important if you have children with you.
I will have a cute little ToGo box for your chicks and will bring them down and hand them to you over the gate.
You can pay cash (Cash is King!) or Credit Card or gold bullion. I do not accept Venmo, PayPal Zelle, Cash App, or first-born children — mine are grown and flown and I am a happy empty nester.
Happy to chat about chicks and chick care over the gate, or over texts and emails in the days that follow. Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns, keeping in mind the second part of our Mission Statement.
Please drop any remaining questions into the comments below and I will fold them into the post.
You’ve ordered your chicks and set your pick-up appointment. Now what?
Now is a great time to do a little reading so that you are well-equipped to take excellent care of your little ones.
As chick season heats up, I want to talk to you about Chick Flippers. These are people who place large orders from commercial hatcheries, have the chicks shipped in, and then list them for sale at a HUGE mark-up on Craigslist etc. They don’t disclose . . .
Please oh please don't use a feather duster. Yes, they will love it, but when you find the one that got tangled in it and hung herself, you will feel awful.
Well that depends on many things, chiefly the weather and what does your outside set-up entail.
The rule of thumb is that they need to be ten weeks old if the over-night low is going to be around 30.
That said, I put them out at four weeks at about any time of year. What? Yes. Four weeks, with supplemental heat.
One of my customers — a first-time chicken dad — glibly remarked, “I think I’ll get into breeding, how hard can it be?” One of my more diplomatic friends responded, “You would be surprised.”
No, this is not a dating guide. If you are looking for your soulmate, volunteer with an organization that aligns with your values and priorities. All those other volunteers are your pre-filtered field of candidates. Now, back to chicks . . .
Dalia Monterroso, local resident and President of Chickenlandia, just published a book: “Let's All Keep Chickens!: The Down-to-Earth Guide to Natural Practices for Healthier Birds and a Happier World”.
”Readers will learn how to plan their flock, how to raise baby chicks, what to look for in a chicken coop, how to keep chickens healthy naturally, and more.”
Are you just planning on just one round of chicks? Let me save you the trouble of gathering up all the necessary supplies.
Great question. Chick prices vary according to availability, quality, and investment.
I’ve shared quite a few of my best tips and tricks for setting up a chick brooder, but what about the next step? When they are too little to just toss into the big girl coop, but too big stinky to stay in the house.
At this point, I put them in the big girl coop, with accomodations.
I house birds of different ages together regularly. Here is how I introduce them.
Stella Stargazer: before and after Selenium treatment for wry neck.
We had a great hatch this weekend: 47 eggs went into the hatcher, 46 chicks came out.
New Year, New Floofs: Wheaten/Blue Wheaten/Splash Ameraucanas and Wheaten/Blue Wheaten Marans
Brooder set-up tips, encore.
How to help her, and better yet, how to minimize the occurrences of sticky chick.
Surprise! You are a mama!
Medicated Chick Starter and Fermented Feed.
Girl Chick? Boy Chick? How is one to know?
Sexing chicks. Alas, not as easy as we would wish.