We Have Chickens!

I am a bird lover. For as far back as I can recall, I've enjoyed birds. I've noticed where they nest in my backyard, have several feeders up and have even kept logs of the birds I've seen. There are about 5 bird books on my shelf. One of the best presents I ever got from my husband (I think it was in our first year of marriage) was a bird cage. We raised finches and had many parakeets occupy that space. So with my love of birds it was only natural that sooner or later I would think about chickens in the yard. I know several homes in my neighborhood who have them, and a good friend has 5 in her yard. Last winter I started to get books from the library. Then I started researching on the internet which led to creating a favorites file of chicken sites. The final straw was when I found a store in Portland called the Urban Farm Store. It was an impressive website and I loved the store. Best of all, they have a free class for those interested in chickens. So last week after checking out the place, my son and I attended the class. We were hooked. The next day we set up a cage (that had previously held kittens), got some supplies and went back to the Urban Farm store and bought 4 baby chicks. They are adorable. We have 4 different kinds; a Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Rock, Buff Orpington, and Americana. Their names are Blanche, Fergie, Bell and Vader (my son named that one -- the black one). At first they were in the shed in the back. With the heat lamp they were fine back there until this hot weather hit. The shed became too hot so now they reside in my quilt studio. Not sure what customers might think of that so for now I won't have any customers visit my studio. But the cage is being kept very clean so there's no smell, and their little constant peeps is so enjoyable to listen to. We have the wood piled in the backyard and over the next few weeks we will build a coop and run. I have chickens mostly for their eggs, but I think observing them is going to be half the fun for me. We have chickens!