# Hello all



## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

First time with chickens. After a year I was finally able to convince my girlfriend we should get chickens. I brought 8 home from work 2 weeks ago. 3 Cornish cross 2 americanas and 3 barred rock I believe. I'm in the process of building the coop on the weekends. They outgrew the first brooder I built within a week so now they are in our daughters old playpen in the garage. My run will be bigger and roomier as soon as I get the coop built


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## Itsacutefuzzball (Mar 16, 2013)

Hello to you and welcome! Nice coop you got there! I hope you have a fun time with your chooks!


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## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

We are pretty excited. I settled on the design for the coop after watching way too many chicken coop videos on YouTube. I got most of the materials for free from work and traded a neighbor some Homebrew for the rest.


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## Apyl (Jun 20, 2012)

Welcome to the world of chickens.


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## kahiltna_flock (Sep 20, 2012)

Very nice! Hello and welcome


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## chickflick (Sep 23, 2012)

Welcome! Nice coop! So you're planning on having chicken dinner soon? Hope you enjoy your adventure with chickens!


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## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

Not sure yet. The girlfriend says she refuses to eat them. But she is starting some all natural diet and what better way to know what goes in your food than to raise it yourself! I know I'll put at least one of them in my smoker and probably freeze the other two. If it goes ok I may start raising them regularly


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## 7chicks (Jun 29, 2012)

Hello and welcome to chickenhood - which by the way, has the potential become very addicting!


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## Keith (Jun 19, 2012)

Looks like a great start. I had a lot of fun building my chicken tractor out of scrap as planning as I went along.


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## Britt0623 (Apr 14, 2013)

Last Spring my husband & I built a coop and got 6 chicks. The last year has been so much fun! We enjoy having hens to the fullest. Now we wouldn't have it any other way. Hope you have as much fun with this as we have!


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## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

Thanks for all the warm welcome everyone! I just got home tonight (I work out of town during the week) and my Cornish cross chicks are HUGE! Everyone else is coming along nicely. Cleaned the playpen out and filled the food and water and put a large stick from an ash tree in the backyard in for them to play with. They are terrified of me. The Cornish not as much as the others ( they have no idea what's in store for them or they would be) but for the most part they run and squawk like crazy when I try to pick them up. Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and warm here in Washington so I'm planning on letting them play in the grass for a little bit and interact with them as much as I can do they aren't like this when they are older.


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## Britt0623 (Apr 14, 2013)

Have you tried feeding them out of your hand? That's why ours are tame. From the time they were chicks we have fed them out of our hands and now when they see us coming they come running and cluck wondering what I have for them.


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## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

Britt0623 said:


> Have you tried feeding them out of your hand? That's why ours are tame. From the time they were chicks we have fed them out of our hands and now when they see us coming they come running and cluck wondering what I have for them.


Tried that today but they weren't interested. I did take them outside 3 at a time and let them run around and play with the kids. I left the tv on in the garage for them as well.

Another question, they are 3 weeks old. How long before they can eat weeds and plants and what not?


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## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

Updated pics 


I decided since I'm going to cover the roof in plastic I no longer need to angle my roof to keep the rain off. It will be slightly just not as much as I had planned. Almost done. Just need to fill in the roof and extend the run


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## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

Also has anyone tried the pop bottle skylights in the roof? One bottle is supposed to illuminate equivalent to a 50 watt bulb. I'm going to do one maybe two

http://www.builditsolarblog.com/2011/09/soda-pop-bottle-solar-light.html?m=1


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## Energyvet (Jul 25, 2012)

Nice construction.


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## MichiganJay (Apr 18, 2013)

Great build, my family is new to chickens too.


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## chickflick (Sep 23, 2012)

Hi MichiganJay I'm in MI also... outside Flint


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## MichiganJay (Apr 18, 2013)

chickflick said:


> Hi MichiganJay I'm in MI also... outside Flint


Hello fellow Michigander, I live in Gaylord


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## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

Aaannnnddddd done. Well almost. This thing has robbed the last 3 weekends from me. Hopefully this weekend will be the last. But it's national Homebrew day Saturday so I may take this weekend off to catch up and replenish my beer supply.


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## GenFoe (Apr 3, 2013)

Awesome! It took us forever to get our coop done and its not entirely the way we want it but the birds had to get out of the house! Hopefully once they are free ranging we can put new flooring in. Do you have your birds yet?


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## Clearcut23 (Apr 25, 2013)

Yup! They will be 4 weeks old this weekend


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## ReTIRED (Mar 28, 2013)

How MANY "homebrew" beers can I get for a _fine _white Leghorn rooster *?
*---Willing to trade----
-ReTIRED-


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