Pet chickens?

Question

I plan on getting my dad a few pet chickens for his birthday.

Where can I buy chicken feed?

What materials do I need to make a chicken coop for about 3-5 chickens?

Other than food and water, what other items will I need to care of the chickens?

Thanks in advance. :)

Answer 1

You can buy chicken feed at a pet store.

http://www.mypetchicken.com/eBook.aspx

The eggs are very healthy

Answer 2

I have 32 *pet* chickens!! they are great... I raised them from chicks, (one day old), & they are now about 6 months... they are the best pets! This is my 4th batch of *pet* chickens, been raising them for all of my 36 years. Ive been around chickens my whole life, was raised around them, but recently started keeping them as *pets*. I keep them in a large, fenced-in yard, & they have a big shed that they can go into anytime they want. chickens like to *perch*, so we put long 2x4's across the entire shed, & propped some up in their *yard*. I have mostly hens, so I also have nesting boxes in the shed for the hens that are already laying eggs...

       All my chickens are named, & they get sooo excited when they see me come out the back door, cuz they know I'm coming to see them, & let them out. (they like to run around my acre lawn)... When it starts to get dark, they all go back inside the shed & put themselves to bed, I go out & close the shed door when they are all in there, for my own piece of mind that they will be safe through the night. There is a *back door* on the shed that leads out to their own yard so they can go in & out at will.

         I have a mixture of different kinds, RIR's, Langshins, Phoenix, Turkins, Rocks, Wyandottes, Brahma Bantams, Cornish, Sussex, Delaware, Giants.... many different kinds.

When I let them out, they love to run up on my porch, & gather around me... alot of them will jump up on my lap, & just sit on my leg... I love my chickens like some people love their cats, or dogs... (I have 2 cats, & 1 dog, & they all get along like a little family.)

    For the nesting hens, I use those plastic milk crates... I put some hay in them, & the hens love em. they can nestle down in, & do their business in *private*.... They really like the crates. they are perfect size, & washable. I refresh the box once a week with fresh hay. Many feed stores have *chick starter* for your baby chicks. check your local feed stores.

     I highly suggest chickens as pets, they are really wonderful little animals, they are entertaining, (always doing something silly), & very friendly if you raise them to be.

   So yes.... chickens can be great *pets*.... dont ever let anyone tell you different. with proper care, & lots of attention & love, they will reward you with big fat healthy eggs that are better than anything you can buy in a store.

    I also suggest that you do some research on different breeds, (there are so many), to decide which ones would suit you best... personally, my favorites are the Phoenix, Turkins, Langshins, & the Dark Cornish. I love them all, but some are just better *pet-wise*. Red Stars are extremely friendly, as well as the Rhode Island Reds. Just look up different breeds, & read up on them. You will not be dissapointed when you get your baby chicks. Love them, & they will love you right back. They are really neat. Good Luck! (I can email you pics of mine, & their housing)

Answer 3

HI ,

Chickens are not that hard to take care of ...the feed is usually cracked corn and water is a must.  There may be a Feed store close to you. The chicken coop dose not have to be to big and must have perch and some kind of nesting box .  Check poultry on line or poultry magazines. The pen should be totally  in closed with wire ,on top too . The important thing is that it is raccoon and vermin proof.I....every thing like to eat chickens!  Batman's are small chicken and are better for pets

Answer 4

well u can always buy from a farm or ask a pet store where to buy it !

Answer 5

what do you mean by pet?? if they are handled young be careful of ringworm...they love  cats and cat food and will herd a litter of kittens....feed you can purchase at a local feed store that carries supplies for horses..they have the corn in large bags...put the bag in metal trash can with a plastic pitcher for a scoop...keep lid on tightly to keep out bugs, moisture and coons...decide how large you wish your coop to measure...go to your local home depot and see an attendant in the building dept.  tell him what you plan and he/she will be more than capable to help you pull this together..good luck..i personally have owned only one chicken...his name was rooster and he was a great deal of fun til he got spurs...as all roosters do..i put him on a farm after that...he always preferred cat food and the company of cats....

Answer 6

You can buy chicken  food at walmart, tractor supply, ingles, aand feed house(probly alot more places)  Chicken wire, they sell it at lowes or bitty wire so snakes cant get in.   I ave owned pet chickens for a while, and i reccomend cementing around ur chicken pen if u live near woods cuz stuff loves to dig under and eat them. And chickens need cacilum to keep them healthy. And if they are gonna be true pet chickens, i recomend bantams because u can have 10 that  eat less than 6 standards  and they lay eggs just the same. For 3 to 5 big chickens, i recomend a pen tall enough to walk in. A 6 by 6 by 6 dog kennal  should be fine just as long as u build them a tin or wood chicken coop that is outside of the pen, but protected so it doesnt tak up to much space in the pen. u need 1 rooseter per 5- 10 hens if u have more than 1 rooster or if u have just 1, u only need 1 hen or as many as u want. If u dont keep ur chickens wih acess to dirt make sure u buy chicken grit 4 them. :) And if u want to u could order ur dad so baby chickens off ideal poultry and get them the week of ur fathers birthday. If u order standards, u get to choose how may hens and roosters u want. With bantams, u just get straight runs, meaning as hatched. I hope i helped.

Answer 7

chickens are great pets .. I have 26 fully grown and 10 young ones at the present moment =]

and will provide you with a plentiful supply of eggs if raised corectly. .

you can buy chicken feed .. at any good feed store, creamery (where i get mine)  and sometimes evn good pet shops .. all depends on the demand for the food and where you live.

    btw the food you get will depend on the chickens you get...

*if you are getting chicks up to 6/7 weeks old ... they will need a chick starter called "chick crumbs" or something to the same exctent .. it's called different names everywhere

*for chickens 7 weeks + you give them "growers pellets" at this stage you should start to nitroduce grit into their diet although as they are having pellets they won't need much

*and then when they are about 3 or 4 months they will move on to their final food switch onto *layers pellets * (or layers mash)

someone said about cat food? that is not good for them ..even if they do like it =[

material wise . .  wood is good .. but a concrete house is always better as it is more sturdy and predator proof.. but wood will do just a good a job . .  although it'll need more cleaning and best to give it a coat of something to prevent rotting . . the house will need perches normallly 2x4's will suffice  ....

other then food and water you will need

*grit (as already mentioned)

*nest boxes for your hens

*bedding materials eg straw .. hay is not good .. it attracts mites although it's ok in nest boxes as long as it sprinkled with mite powder/repellant

*a wormer/mite treatment .. when needed