Trust Me, It Is Not Harder Then Getting Socks On A Rooster

      

Meeko, Bubbles and Buffy (pictured left to right) are three of my girls – my wife, daughter and I picked them up (along with the non-pictured Annie, Willow, Blossom and Buttercup) at the local farm store in late February of 2013. Yes, I, the part-time librarian, decided to take on chickens!

It was not an overnight decision – we moved into a property a few years ago that has some land, and for years I always thought chickens were “cool” or a “neat thing to have” – but when you have a toddler and a nearby Tractor Supply that has “Chick Days” (where they have tubs of little squeaking chicks for sale), a parent receives a lot of pressure to bring chicken ownership to reality!

I am happy to report that I received nearly all my chicken knowledge and know-how by simply utilizing the Mercer County Library System catalog.

You have to consider the living quarters, or coop – there are no two coops that are alike.  I had the luxury of having a beat-up storage shed attached to my pig barn, so I was able to refurbish/doctor it and improvise, but I thoroughly enjoyed (and enjoy) reading the books below:

 

Overloading your cranium with as much chicken information is a must – especially when considering integral items such as the breeds that adapt well in our Northeastern climate, what your planned uses are (Note: my ladies are my pets, and we enjoy their eggs!), if you want (or are allowed to have) a rooster, how to take care of them as they grow, and many other things.  

No matter what Internet search you do, or any chicken research you partake in, all roads lead to “Storey’s Guide to Raising Chickens” – it is the authority on all things chicken!

  

- John R.