Some people do eat the chickens after they stop laying....but after that long i'm not sure if the meat is all that great. I don't think i'll eat mine...they are like pets.

I am going to order Cornish when i do my meat birds.

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Jodie....Wife to Andrew (1995)
Mommy to Riley (2000) and Wyatt (2003)

Love the pictures. I want my coop to look like a red barn too. I have about two weeks in between the time I order the chicks and their delivery. That will give me a lot of time to get the brooder ready. Thanks for the coop idea.

Here are a few with our bunny....and our cat in the back ground.

My very first egg....

Here is one of my golden comets...


Ok i'm done now. hahaha!!! I really enjoy my girls as you can tell.

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Jodie....Wife to Andrew (1995)
Mommy to Riley (2000) and Wyatt (2003)

3-4 years is average for laying, by then the meat is not as good, it is why I keep certains for laying and certains for meat.
Also, keep in mind, Chukar, guinea and peacock are excellent for meat as well as ( this is gonna sound bad lol) pigeon!!

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If life is a bowl full of cherrie's,
then why am I in the pits?!!
~Erma Bombeck

How big is your hobby farm/backyard (acreage)? We are in the city on 1/2 acre lot which backs up to a park. We don't have a lot of room and are waiting on the economy to get a little better. I grew up on a farm and want to return to that way of life. Self sufficient living is my goal.

We have three acres. Much of it is covered in brush and we hope to get goats someday to help with that.

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Jodie....Wife to Andrew (1995)
Mommy to Riley (2000) and Wyatt (2003)

5 acres here, we are lokin at goats too, well already setting up for them, next season! This season I rescued one and she was fantastical, problem is, neighbor has a dog who apparently like to eat those as well as my chickens!! She's come in and tore chickens up before, no more, she killed the goat, I shot her!!
so, so long as I keep shooting dogs LMAO we'll be getting the goats next season!
Their meat is awesome, so is their milk, we have plenty of goat meat as we have mant friends with them!

__________________
If life is a bowl full of cherrie's,
then why am I in the pits?!!
~Erma Bombeck

Thanks for the advice and encouragement. Can't wait to get my girls and I will order a few extras just in case. I have already picked out names for most of them. I am going to pick up some extra hours at work to set aside some money for "the farm". Until then I will just be happy with my new chicks and my welsh pembroke corgi - Katie.

keep in mind, when you order pullets (hens) it is supposed to be all girls, however, it isnt always the case!! Every order I have gotten had 1 damned rooster in it, since you live in town and near a park, if ya get a rooster, kill him and eat him ASAP so he does not have people complaining and getting you into trouble!

__________________
If life is a bowl full of cherrie's,
then why am I in the pits?!!
~Erma Bombeck

We have a chain link fence around our back yard. However there are a lot of dogs that roam out neighborhood and I am afraid that they are going to try to dig under our yard fence to get to the chickens. Animal control usually shows up about 4 to 6 hours after you call them and then the dogs are gone. Sometimes they don't show up at all. So I believe I will get a pellet gun since you aren't allowed to discharge a firearm in the city limits.