Guest guest Posted May 19, 2004 Report Share Posted May 19, 2004 hm. you should get chicks and raise them. they cost like, a buck or so. you can feed them table scraps and bugs and presto - tasty chickens! also, free eggs. and all they need is a backyard's worth of space... try mcmurray hatcheries online...they're pretty good! -katja At 08:33 AM 5/19/2004, you wrote: >Yes I can sure do that, she's a friend of mine and lives just next door >(of course LOL out in the country right next door means a mile away HA!) I >live in Ontario Canada. Someday I want to have my own jersey cow, but back >in our " wild " days my hubby and I racked up quite a lot of debt, after >trying for years to pay it down and getting depressed that no matter how >much we pay the amount is still overwhelming. We just saw an accountant >and if we don't spend anymore that necessary to survive then he can see us >out of debt in 5 years. Then we plan on getting a small farm but until >then I don't know what to do about eating well, when a healthy chicken >costs $25 at LEAST and a grocery store one costs $12, the fact that the >healthy one is better for us unfortunatly doesn't make it possible. So >until we can get out of this hole (then I can FINALLY get my cow and >chickens!!!!) I'm at the mercy of the evil-grocer man LOL. My friend >charges me about half what the grocery store charges for run > of the mill store milk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 19, 2004 Report Share Posted May 19, 2004 >hm. you should get chicks and raise them. they cost like, a buck or so. you >can feed them table scraps and bugs and presto - tasty chickens! also, free >eggs. and all they need is a backyard's worth of space... >try mcmurray hatcheries online...they're pretty good! >-katja I second that. The laying hens will do fine on kitchen scraps (and some oyster shells), and at the least you'll have eggs. My " meat chicks " I got this year are 9 lbs now ... I didn't feed them scraps partly due to the fact the hens are getting the scraps, but one could be creative and save scraps for feeding them when you get them. They don't make any noise and if I had neighbors they wouldn't know they were there. -- Heidi Jean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 19, 2004 Report Share Posted May 19, 2004 I've been bugging dh for chickens but we have a small yard. I figured if I bug long enough (alright, whine ) that I'd get some chickens. Then a friend of mine said she is getting pig but she would have to call it a pet in order to have it. I told her about my chickens and she said the zoning laws in town are that you need 5 acres for chickens So I stopped whining and dh is happy. >hm. you should get chicks and raise them. they cost like, a buck or so. you >can feed them table scraps and bugs and presto - tasty chickens! also, free >eggs. and all they need is a backyard's worth of space... >try mcmurray hatcheries online...they're pretty good! >-katja Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 20, 2004 Report Share Posted May 20, 2004 >I've been bugging dh for chickens but we have a small yard. I figured >if I bug long enough (alright, whine ) that I'd get some chickens. >Then a friend of mine said she is getting pig but she would have to call >it a pet in order to have it. I told her about my chickens and she said >the zoning laws in town are that you need 5 acres for chickens So I >stopped whining and dh is happy. > > Check YOURSELF about the zoning laws. In a lot of places they are ok if you don't have roosters. Anyway, my " meat chickens " are in a dog kennel, it doesn't take much space. The chicks have to be kept away from cats etc, and a common way to keep them is in a dog kennel (the ones they sell made of chain link, tho mine was here when we got the house and is made of metal stakes and cheap fencing). We improvised a roof of a tarp and some ropes. They get fresh straw every few days (just keep layering it). You don't keep meat chickens very long, 10 weeks or so max. After the meat chickens are in the freezer, you can layer some dirt over the straw, let it compost, and plant something. Some people grow their chickens in a garage, in which case no one knows! But I think they are happier with fresh air. Laying hens can also be kept in a pen, using straw or horse stall pellets for the flooring. Feed them weeds and leftovers and worms if you have a worm bin and they will lay nice eggs. As a practical matter, the city only really cares if there is a complaint from a neighbor. When I lived in LA, they said I'd have to get permission from my adjoining neighbors to keep quail (and the neighbors didn't care). The neighbors might care less if you give them eggs or a fryer sometimes. And you can always challenge ... the first folks who kept pigs did that, because they wanted pot-bellied pigs. -- Heidi Jean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.