It all started off innocently enough; 26 chicks in a small cardboard box arrived in the spring…we learned some things from books and friends in advance, but some things are learned by doing, through “on the job training”. 1.when ordering new chicks from vendors, you often will not receive all female chicks . this is not good for several reasons, which leads us to …. 2. boy chickens often do not play nice with each other. 3. boy chickens grow up and start crowing pretty darn fast. 4.The dollar store earplugs don’t work. 5.Putting a pillow over your head does work some, but it interferes w/breathing, so can’t be a long term solution. 6. no one in the family hears the crowing at 3:07am except me. (DAWN I could handle; but 3:07AM?) 7. “free to a good home” is not an effective advertising strategy for this purpose; you can’t GIVE away a rooster. Nobody wants them, or certainly nobody wants more than one. 8. Except some people do; they will take all you have, as long as you don’t mind if they eat them. 9.. A friend with a farm may offer to take them, so they can “free range”, which is a euphemism for “being eaten by hawks”. 10. the bottom line? we would do it all again. in fact, we have, several years in a row now. it has become one of our spring rituals. 🙂
here are some resources to get you started if you are interested in learning more:
1. http://www.idealpoultry.com/
2. http://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/index.html
Karen Creamer Author, Coach, Speaker 
i talked with the guy from Mainely Ticks at the home show a couple of weeks ago and i’m with you; i’d rather have the live tick control. plus, the hens are ultimately cheaper (and way more entertaining) than the toxic sprays).
Ah, the glory of spring chicks…this is our first spring without them….guinea fowl chicks that is….and I am deeply sad. After years of replenishing our flock which has supplied the local wildlife with a steady supply of food, we received an estimate yesterday on the cost of spraying for ticks. Not only will we have to pay for the privledge of chemicals all over our property four times a year, but we’ve been told we also need to cut down more trees, improve our lawn, and get rid of all the bird feeders – all things that contribute to tick control. To be totally honest, I like the loud, obnoxious, easy for hawks to eat guinea hens than this current alternative.
Susan
What a great post. So often folks forget about the rooster. Shelters now days are being overrun with roosters from backyard chicken keepers. Though freezer camp sounds terrible, I like to look at it from the other side, this is a meal for someone. A gift from the rooster to provide substance to a family.
i feel the same way about the unsustainable roosters. although we can’t bring ourselves to eat any of them (or the retired hens, for that matter), we have found a local family that has no such compunction, so it’s a win/win.
p.s. “freezer camp”? too funny!