nervous about chickens coming!! help!!

[angelat]

hi all

have waited so long for house/fence etc to be finished. Now it is all done, looks perfect, but am slightly nervous about my chooks coming thursday. hope they settle in okay, am worried about dog and cat. After taking the time to ensure I have everything just right, would like to relax and enjoy them, but anxious that something will go wrong!! anyone else felt like this?

[Flummery]

Just like having a baby - except that it won't hurt!

[lainey lou]

Don't be nervous! Chickens are easy to look after and great fun.
Sounds like you've got everything organised for them so now's the time to get eggcited!

[MaureenHall]

That's not nerves, it's excitement Just make sure you get all your jobs done before Thursday, 'cos after that you'll be busy chicken watching
Definitely don't worry about the cat, the chickens can stand up to cats. They might get a little unsettled if the dog is a "bouncy barky" one. There's loads of threads on here about keeping dogs and chickens in harmony.
What kind are you getting and how old are they? You must post some pics so we can all "oooooooo and aaaaaaaaaaaaa" over them

[Twinkle]

Yes !! It's completely normal.
I feel nervous whenever we get new hens.... don't know why.

They'll be fine and you'll be so chuffed, you'll lose track of time just sitting watching them. I still do, 3 years on. One of mine fell into an empty bucket this morning in an amusing way, and 2 are mounting an ascent on the log pile in search of woodlice.

And the eggs are summat else !!!!

[angelat]

thanks for reassurance

thanks for reassurance!!!

I can imagine i will do nothing but sit on my bench and watch them all day, so probably good idea to get my jobs done!!

will definitely post some pics on, haven't quite decided on names yet, either bo and belle, or carmen and miranda (my husband is spanish)!!

[Nicos]

Me too angelat...and mine are coming in November!!!!!

Plenty of time to research though!

Let us know how you get on!

[angelat]

am getting hybrids, i think about 12/16 weeks. hubby wants white one, i like maybe brown!!!

[angelat]

thanx flummery!! made me laugh, like having a baby and it doesn't hurt. hee hee hee.

[NSB]

Im getting mine in a couple of weeks, yet to put the house together, Im so excited, cant wait, OH is now worried about foxes.

I have peace of mind as have found a place to buy the chickens and all the sundries they require. Have chosen names already. I will post pickies.

I have chosen 4 hybrids

[Noodle]

Ooh, it's all very exciting! As long as your run is secure there's not a lot to worry about! they pretty much look after themselves if you want them to and you get some much pleaseure from watching them! I hope you all get them soon and have lots of fun with them!

[hawthorns]

mine are coming in 9 days, not that im counting

[Bephlam]

I feel the exact same. I am hopefully collecting mine on Monday or Tuesday. I have been rushing about trying to get everything I need (which is easier than I'm making it sound). I think the nerves are normal...we're 'nesting'...that's all!

Ooo..can't wait to see all the new arrivals. I have a feeling we will all have lots of pics to "Oooo and ahhhh" over in the next few months!

[Sue]

And don't forget the extra excitement when the eggs start arriving! Hope you've got plenty of egg recipes up your sleeve...
Sue

[Glutton4...]

How many Hens?

Hey, this site is great - I've wasted half the day already - it's even stopped raining and I'm still here

My Husband and parents are in agreement about having Hens. Luckily, as I'm having some anyway! I'm planning to get some from our local Battery Hen re-homing place, as I figure they deserve it. They will be able to live free-range, once we've built a coop and put some decent fox-proof fence up.

There are 4 of us wanting eggs, and we eat at least one each a day. Several friends have hens, so I don't need to go mad. So really, I'm just wondering what is a sensible number to have?

Any advice gratefully received.

Cheers, G4