Many of you have been asking, but we've been too busy.. Well no more, here are some pictures of the 26 sister chicks.  Enjoy!

 

It's been quite a weekend so far, I had two great friends come over and help me with the building of the new "mobile" chicken coop.  There is no way I would have been able to do one bit of this without them for this reason I say:


THANK YOU



Now onto the pics.



This is a picture of the Hay wagon which I purchased for $180.00.  This is what will allow us to move the coop around from paddock to paddock.



Here are the new supports for the Coop.  These are 4x6x16.  They were $25.00 / each but well worth it for the support that they provide.



Here, the basic 2x6 fame has been put together.. Please note it has not yet been attached to the base (wheels) so yes it was off center at the time.



Here you can see the fame as it is attached to the base (wheels) note that the base is a bit torqued but we were able to work this out as well.



I forgot to take an intermediate photo, but the base was completed with 2x4x8 sitting at 16 on center and then those are bolted to the 4x6x16 by angle brackets and lag screws. 
As for this photo, here you can see the beginning of the taller of the two walls.  This one stands at 8 feet.  As for the cutouts, these are for Hardware cloth covered ventilation windows.



Here's a view from the back again, you can see the the first wall (8ft) is up and secured.  Now let's start that second wall shall we.



As you can tell from the photo, it's dark out.  It was about 11:30 PM when we finished the second wall (6Ft).  Why did it take us so long?  Note the two 24x24 windows plus the 36x36 Chicken door that we created.

Now we have both sides completely done (exterior) and tomorrow it's onto the end walls.



This  picture was taken just before we went in for the night, this is the 8 foot wall with the two hardware cloth covered ventilation windows.  The flaps are not yet installed as I need to purchase some outdoor hinges. (sort of looks like some kind of Brown County Militia hideout....)



This  picture was taken just before we went in for the night, this is the 6 foot wall with the two 24 x 24 windows and a chicken door.  The flap for the chicken door is not yet installed as I need to purchase some outdoor hinges.



Today is a new day!!  We got up at 8:00 AM and headed out to build more walls.  Here is the one end wall.  It only took us 3 hours to build it but check out the angles.. It turned out perfect.



Here's a better view of the work we've done so far.  This is the front, right hand corner of the coop, so here you can see the front and the end wall that we just completed.  It's coming together nicely.



Here's a picture of the side wall that we still need to work on.  This is where we will have the people door.  Let's get to work!



Okay, now that's what I'm talking about.. If only the work was as quick as uploading these photos....
Anyway, the last wall is in and complete. I just need to trim off the excess OSB board from the sides.



And there she is, it's about 2:00 and we're pooped, so that's it for this weekend. Next Friday, I will build the people door, Add the flaps for the Hardware Cloth windows as well as the Chicken Door and then focus on the Roof..  A little paint  and some interior goodies (Roosts, Nesting Boxes and we'll be all set for move in.



Something tells me that the kids think this is a playhouse for them??

 

As noted in my last post, the chickens are testing out their new wings and let's just say that the old brooder house wasn't going to make it much longer, at least not with the chickens inside of it.

So with that being said, my sons and I decided to build a Binford 2000 model brooder house.  As you can see from the photos and video below, it's quite the condominium.   The new sprawling digs measure in at 4' x 8' x 4.25'  (W x L x H) and include a stick-down vinyl floor (for easy clean-up) and two roosts (area where the chicken hop up to and sleep at night).

This was a great test for the new coop which I need to build in the next few weeks, as it's going to be 4 times the size at 8' x 16' x 8' (W x L x H)

As you can see, the chicks, although they didn't like the idea of us catching them in order to move them into the new brooder, really enjoy their new hang-out.

Until Next Time... Enjoy the Pictures and Video!

 

Well well, the chicks are now 7 days old (5 days at our house) and their growing like crazy.  Many of our friends want to come down to see them while their still chicks, but they better hurry as the chicks are growing fast.  All of them now have their adult wing feathers coming in, and some of them even have their tail feathers coming in.  They are now going through about 48 oz of food per day and about 3/4 of a gallon of water.  As for bedding, were needing to change clean out some of the poop daily and then clean out all of the bedding about every two to three days. 

One thing we didn't think about with our brooder (the house you use until they can go out to their coop outdoors) was a cover.  As the wing feathers come in they are starting to flap around and learn what their wings can actually do.  Although they cannot get out of the pool yet, were not too long from the time when they will.  So, due to this new phenomenon, I will be building some sort of mesh cover later on this weekend.  (I'll post pics as soon as I have some)

For now though enjoy the updated pictures and video of the chicks.

 

You have read correctly, I am surrounded by chicks, that of the fowl specices that is.  We received a call on Sunday afternoon (of course we wern't home at the time) that our chicks had arrived at the post office and that we could pick them up anytime after 5:30 AM on Monday. 

In order to ensure their safety, I arrived promptly at 5:30 and picked up some chicks.  After driving back home to a chorus of cherping, the chicks were unpacked and introducted to their new home (temporary until they can move outside).

 

Can you tell which one of the above chicks is the rare breed?

Ah.. A comfortable 95 degrees

And the kids thought that the new 6' pool was for them.

 

For the past year and a half we've called our homestead "The Wagar Family Farm" yet we've not raised any type of livestock.  Don't get me wrong, we've been working very hard at getting our ducks in a row (no pun intended) in order to allow us to begin our dream of becoming semi-self-sufficient.

Well, the time has come, as of today, and arriving on or around the 19th of May, the Wagar Family Farm will be raising a flock (25) White Rock chickens.  I purchased these chicks online (as if I shop anywhere else) at  Murray McMurray Hatchery, a premier chicken and game foul hatchery located in Webster City, Iowa.  Per their website here is a short description of the White Rock Hens:

"White Rock pullets are outstanding for egg production the entire year, and are especially desirable through the cold winter months when lighter breeds slack off. They lay a brown egg of fine quality and size. The rapid growth, white, easy-to- dress feathers, and golden yellow skin of the cockerels of our strain make them equally desirable. Raise some for the frying pan or roaster. They are compact and well fleshed at almost any age. They are all big birds, hens reaching 6 to 7 lbs. and cocks 8 to 9 lbs. A flock of these pure white birds ranging busily over a grassy field is one of the prettiest sights you will ever see. Baby chicks are a creamy white and may show a touch of gray smokiness."

For those of you that are unfamiliar with how raising chickens works here is a quick overview:

Week 1-5: 
Chicks arrive and are corralled indoors under a heat lamp with plenty of water and food available to them. 

Week 6-24
The chickens are now ready to be placed out on pasture.  I will be blogging about a new mobile chicken coop that I will be building in the later weeks.  This coop will be surrounded by a mobile electric fence which will help to keep the predators out (i.e. coyotes, dogs, cats, etc).  As the names suggest all of these items are mobile so that we can move them around our property as needed.  They will continue to feed and roost in the coop, however no eggs will likely be produced.

Week 25- 104
The chickens should now begin to lay superb brown eggs for the family to enjoy.  On average starting between weeks 25 and 30 we should begin to received on average 1 egg per chicken per day.  Based on many factors (food, light, heat, water, etc) this should continue for about 2 years at which point the egg production typically drops off and most of the birds (unless they are still producing high quality eggs) will become chicken soup or stew meat, as they are no longer at the quality needed for grilling etc.



What does this all mean?
By Christmas of 2008, the Wagar family should be one step closer to becoming self-sufficient by no longer needing to purchase eggs from either the grocery store or other local farmers.  In addition, each year after we will plan to purchase an additional 25 chicks allowing for an endless supply of farm fresh eggs, and although we eat a lot of eggs, we should be able to begin selling to other local families who are looking to purchase a superior product, compared to grocery stores, for their families.

For more information on large-scale hatcheries, watch the video below.