Baby Chickens for Sale in Waterville, Maine
Baby Chickens for Sale in Waterville, Maine
Baby Chickens are Here
The baby chickens are here! Last Thursday we received a new batch of baby chickens. The order from My Pet Chicken, , was delivered to my door step via overnight mail. Inside the box were 5 chirping little baby chickens consisted of 2 Easter eggers, 1 Welsummer, 1 Dominique, and 1 Australorp. The babies will be living in a brooder (large plastic container with a heat lamp, chick feed, and water) insider our house for the next 4 weeks or until they have their adult feathers. We will be recording their development so keep checking out the Chicken Chronicles.
Two years ago we decided to get our own flock of backyard chickens for fresh eggs. We had been buying fresh eggs at our local seasonal farmers market, but from October to May when the farmers market was closed, we couldn’t get fresh eggs. I did some research about our local city ordinances pertaining to chickens and found out we could have chickens, but no roosters. So I started looking around for how to raise chickens, and where to get chickens and found Backyard Chickens, , and My Pet Chicken, . Backyard Chickens is a fantastic forum on everything you will ever need to know about caring for your chickens. My Pet Chicken is a wonderful place to order chickens. They have an excellent bird profile that helps you select birds for your part of the country, color of eggs, personality of the birds, gender selection, and you can order as few as three birds for shipment.
Backyard chickens use to be common. Less than fifty years ago, everyone had backyard chickens. Both my parents and my husband’s parents grew up with chickens. Nowadays, backyard chickens are a rare and sometime illegal occurrence. We are fortunate enough to live in a city where backyard chickens are legal, but no roosters. Granted, the neighbors dog is louder and more obnoxious than any rooster I have ever met.
So why did the backyard chicken disappear? The industrialization of farming lead to the low cost, mass production of factory farmed chickens and eggs. This movement toward industrialized food not only separated us from the source of our food, it also stripped us of our knowledge for raising and keeping backyard chickens. Yes, it’s much easier to go to the big box store to buy 99 cent eggs. But 99 cent eggs come at a much larger price, not only at the expense of our health, but also the welfare of our local farmers.
Now let me dispel some rumors about chickens. Rumor 1)They smell. Like any animal, if you don’t care for them and don’t clean up after them they will smell. Our girls have free range of our backyard and I clean their coop every five days. They do NOT smell. Rumor 2) Chickens are loud. If you have a rooster, yep they can be pretty loud, but hens are not loud. They will announce to the world when they lay an egg, or when they are crabby (usually hungry or getting ready to lay an egg). Our next door neighbors know we have chickens, but two houses down or across the street people don’t even know that we have chickens. Rumor 3) You need a rooster to get eggs. False, hens will happily lay unfertilized eggs as long as they get proper nutrition and 12 to 14 hours of sunlight. Rumor 4) Chickens lay only extra large white eggs. Hens lay eggs in a variety of colors from chocolate brown to pale blue and can vary in size. Rumor 5) Chickens can fly out of your backyard. Possibly, but they don’t really fly. They sort of jump and flap which can get them about 3 feet off the ground. Large birds, like our Welsummer can’t fly, but our little Cochin bantam, can jump over our 3 foot garden fence when on the hunt for tasty arugula.
Now that you know the truth about backyard chickens, consider raising up your own flock of hens. They are low maintenance, produce wonderful free fertilizer, will bring you hours of entertainment, and most importantly they can make you the most healthy and delicious eggs you’ve ever had for breakfast.
Baby Chicks For Easter in Waterville, Maine
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Waterville Maine, including Sussex Chickens, Welsummer Chickens, Turken Chickens and more. Be sure to check out the Bargain Specials, as you can combine different egg layers in smaller amounts and buy as an assortment. Waterville Maine also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in Waterville Maine, bantams for sale, ducks for sale, geese for sale, turkeys for sale, guinea for sale, peafowl for sale, pheasant for sale, chukar partridge for sale, bobwhite for sale, many different breeds of baby chicks for sale in Waterville ME.Baby Chickens 101 in Waterville, Maine
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Waterville Maine catalog is a yearly traditions in many houses. My kids and I eagerly await the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. We love looking at all the cool and different chicken breeds available. Catalogs are free so head on over to their site and request one if you are interested.Typically hatcheries online offer both standard breeds
and bantams. Bantams are fun hardy little chickens, they lay tiny eggs
that kids especially love collecting. Bantams typically weigh less than 2
pounds when full grown. Just like ordering anything online there are pros
and cons to ordering baby chicks online. Pros of buying baby chicks in
Waterville Maine * Big Selection - If you are wanting a large
variety of different chicken breeds and egg colors, you will find the best
selection at an online hatchery. * Both Bantams and full sized chickens
available * You get to choose what sex you want. If you want a mixture of
both male and female then choosing a "straight run" will save you money
and you will get a mixture of male and female chicks. You can also choose
all males or all females too. * Weekly specials. Hatcheries have sales on
chicks, you are likely to get a good deal if you are flexible with the
breeds you are wanting. Cons of buying baby chicks in Waterville
Maine * Order early to get the best selection. Certain breeds sell
out fast, sometimes as early as 6 months in advance of shipping! If you
are wanting a certain breed it's best to order your chicks in the fall
before their orders sell out.
Baby Chickens And Heat Lamps in Waterville, Maine
Quantity - you must order a certain number of chicks. Typically hatcheries will require you buy a minimum of 25 chicks at a time. The number is necessary for the chicks survival during shipping. All 25 chicks are put in one small box without heat. They are crowded in the box and produce enough body heat to arrive in good shape. * The wait - If you choose to buy chicks from a feed store you will have them the same day but if you choose to go with a hatchery you have to wait until they are ready to ship and then wait for the chicks to arrive. Ordering baby chicks online in Waterville Maine is easy and has always been a very pleasant experience of me. It can be a little frustrating waiting for the chicks but it's so worth the wait. When the post office calls and you hear all those little "cheeps" or "chirps" in the background you'll know the wait was worth it! How to Care for your new baby chickens in Waterville, Maine Baby chicks are extremely cute and difficult to stand up to, yet it's finest to plan for their arrival prior to you get them. Prepare first by gathering not just the appropriate materials, but additionally the proper understanding to look after them. Raising baby chicks is relatively simple, you simply need to provide them with the following: A tidy and also warm habitat Plenty of food and also water Focus and love Environment Your habitat can be a straightforward box, fish tank, feline carrier, or guinea pig cage. Line it with old towels and also coverings (without any loosened strings!) to begin, and also after a couple of weeks utilize straw over paper. Note: Avoid using only newspaper or various other sandal surfaces-- or your chicks legs can expand misshapen. You also need something to dish out food and also water in, such as a chicken feeder as well as water meal from the feed shop, or a pickle container cover for food and also a pet dog bird water dispenser from a family pet shop. Additionally, as the chicks grow older you could present a perch into the environment to obtain them educated on perching. Heat To keep your chicks warm you should offer them with a heat resource. This can be as easy as a 100 watt light bulb in a reflective clamp design light from an equipment store, or an infrared reptile warmth light bulb also function extremely well (my referral). Chicks require this warmth 24/7 up until their downy fluff is changed with feathers (which could occupy to two months). The freshly hatched out require a temperature between 90 as well as 100 degrees, as well as each week this could be minimized by around 5 degrees or so. The warmth source must get on merely one side of the cage to allow chicks a range of temperatures. The chicks are your best thermostat- if they are concealing in the contrary corner of your heat lamp, you should reduce the temperature. If they are smothering each other under the warmth (not simply cuddling), you need to put some warmth. Housekeeping Tidiness is vital and it keeps your chicks healthy and balanced. Be sure to change the bedding usually and consistently supply clean food and also water Food and also water. Chicks expand really fast which calls for lots of tidy food as well as water. Supply enough at all times and inspect usually to prevent parched and hungry chicks. Chick food is various than grown-up chicken food, and also it can be found in both medicated and non-medicated varieties. Feed chick food for the initial 2 months, then switch to a raiser food (~ 17 % healthy protein) for an additional 2 months, and afterwards to a somewhat reduced protein feed or a layer feed (if you have layers). Dirt Some chicks want to get a running start on taking dirt baths, while others will not occupy that activity till they are older. If you have the area in your chick unit, present a tray of sand or filth for them to wash in. Interest and love There are a few benefits to spending quality time with your chicks. Firstly, they will certainly probably bond with you and not escape as grownups. Second, if you examine your chicks daily and also enjoy their actions, you can capture health problem or other issues earlier. Keep an eye out for wheezing, limping, or various other undesirable indicators. Make sure to also consider their poop, as diarrhea could cause matted plumes and blocked cloaca. Finally, it is important to watch out for social concerns, such as the tiniest chick getting badgered. Empty nest disorder So your chicks are now fully feathered and its time for them to leave the safety and security of your residence and relocate outside right into a cage. Look into our area on chicken cages to learn more about coops as well as appropriate cage habitats.Baby Chickens How To Care For Them Baby Chickens How To Raise
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