Day old baby chicks are simply the cutest little things. With their soft downy feathers and the quiet little baby chirps. So small you can easily fit one in the palm of your hand, delight and chirp back at them all while they sit in the warmth of the little hand nest you’ve provided. THEN like all sickly sweet newborn wonders they start to grow! They become less and less cute and fuzzy as they enter their toddler stage. Yes just like the human version they are all over the place, running from one end of the brooder to the other making a mess of everything in the process. This all while exercising the freshly discovered voice they didn’t quite know they had. Getting your hands on them can prove difficult but once you have hold of one it starts yelling and screaming doing everything in its little body power to break free. Not so sweet and cuddly anymore, no it is not. The jumping and climbing, spilling and pooping. Stinky, messy toddler poop! At least they can’t form the two letters of the infamously eye rolling word NO. There is relief in that. From here it gets worse. They of course skip over the whole elementary age of things and head straight into those teenage years. The awkward, very awkward, pre pubesent years of the much dreaded teenager! They get taller, lanky, and ever more vocal. Their true feathers aren’t quite in yet so there have those awful “bad hair” middle school picture days when you look at them and wonder, not to mention pray, if and they will survive to adulthood. From here they oh so slowly find their way to adulthood. Not necessarily mature but the young adult versions of their future selves. All the smooth feathers are in. Their bodies have filled out and they prance about the yard like they own the world. The carefree living of our youthful twenties, Oh to have those years back again. If only! Then one glorious day when you least expect it you walk into the house and there it is right before your eyes. She has grown into her purpose and low and behold just as proud as when your daughter gets her first career blossoming job you see it, the first egg! The first of many to come. You have now become the owner of food producing hens. Congratulations you survived the “They’ll grow out of it.” Stage and you and your family will now have healthy wholesome backyard chicken eggs to enjoy in oh so many ways.

If you’ve already reared chickens from day old hatchlings you understand the irony of this story. Unlike children however your chickens come into their adult hen selves at approximately 20 weeks of age making raising chicken much faster and less, so much less stressful than raising the human version although they do seem to go in the same patterns of behaviors and stages of growth in an odd way. Our chickens are now 8 weeks old and the have quadrupled in size from the first day and still require a lot of care in a warm safe environment. At this stage their feathers have come in. Their combs have started to develop and they sort of look like little dinosaur faces with the bumpy nobs from the beak to the top of the head. They have transitioned nicely to the coop in our backyard but still require a heat lamp. The nights are still quite cool and the lamp provides enough heat to keep them comfortable.

Raising backyard laying hens is a lot easier than most beginners think. Of course a person should always do their own research and determine for themselves what they are willing to commit to as well as the level of which they feel comfortable starting with. We buy our chicks from a hatchery that allows the purchase of as little as three chicks as long as it isn’t during the very cold months. Housing for just a few birds, there really isn’t much to it and if the whole day old chick to hen scenario is something that makes you wonder about your capabilities you can buy older birds already in the pullet stage.

Just about anyone can raise a few backyard birds and enjoy fresh, free range and organic eggs produced by well cared for birds of any kind you choose and Okay yes I compare it all to raising children because well lets be honest here. It isn’t much different after all. The stages from infancy to adulthood although a lot quicker in nature are pretty comparable. If you have considered getting a few birds go ahead and do it. Of course check your zoning for such first just to play it safe but go for it. It’s a lot easier than you think.

Happy chickens make delicious eggs!

xo