My husband and I have been raising Chickens for about one year now; there have been a lot of ups and downs trying to figure things out, but we have been learning a lot as we go; mostly from Facebook and Pinterest! Last May we thought maybe we should try hatching some eggs ourselves. We purchased about six fertilized eggs and built our own incubator to give it a try.
It was a disaster, and none of the eggs hatched. We then decided to purchase some newborn chicks, so off we went to a farm in Chester and brought home five precious babies only two years old; four black in colour and one brown. We had no idea what breed they were at the time and it didn’t really matter to us. My husband made a little nursery for them in the basement and we watched them grow, getting more and more attached to them every day.
When they were old enough, we built them a coop outside and fenced in a big area for them to graze. We were learning as we go: what to feed, how we were going to keep them warm in the winter, how to keep their water from freezing, etc. When they reached about six months of age we realized that two of our chickens were actually Roosters, so we thought it best for our neighbours’ sanity that they went to a friend’s farm… they were a bit noisy!
We are now left with three hens who give us beautiful olive green coloured eggs every day; we found out that the breed of hens we have are called Olive Eggers. We named them Olive, Olivia, and Ophelia, and not only do they provide us with nutritious and delicious eggs every day, but they are very much a part of our family. I would highly recommend raising chickens to anyone, they are highly entertaining to watch, easy to take care of, and have such great personalities, and they also get along great with my two dogs and cat. I think they would be a welcome addition to any family.
Written by Dana Broders, Veterinary Assistant
