Getting Chickens... The First Night

So we decided that Friday was going to be the big day to get chickens. We found a couple people on craigslist who had laying hens for sale, I called both of them, and we headed out to check them both out.

The first was in Apache Junction, and I have to say we were not impressed. The chickens were in a really dark and dingy area, and they were extremely skiddish. Now, this was my first time really seeing chickens up close and personal, so I didn't know what to expect and thought this was the norm. But the water the lady had for them was gross and slimy looking, and the chickens seemed very weary of people. I'm just glad Josh (the hubby) went with his gut feeling and said we would get back with her.

We headed out of there and got a call back from the other chicken people. They were in Mesa, so we headed in that direction. We got to the house, and I was sure it was not the right house. From the front door, you would have no idea there were any chickens there, but sure enough when we got to the backyard, we were greeted by over 100 chickens. These chickens were much less scared of people, and the whole setting was so much better. They were are just free range, roaming the backyard.

We ended up selecting three chickens. Josh said I took forever choosing them, but I've never chosen a chicken before. It was kind of like going to a grocery store and pretending I know how to choose a good squash. In the end, we had an Ameraucana, a Black Australorp, and a Barred Plymouth Rock.

We wanted to make sure the chickens couldn't get over the fence, and this seemed like the best idea in our situation. We'd looked up some information on this so we would know what to do. Josh held them while I clipped. It was relatively uneventful with each chicken, which was wonderful. We clipped and then Josh put them in their little area.

After that, the fun started. We knew the chickens were going to be a bit freaked out because of the move, but I had no idea how much. The Barred Plymouth Rock was so noisy and kept jumping at the windows as if she knew we were on the other side. It was an anxious 30 minutes or so until the chickens all turned in for the night. We are really glad we got them soon before the sun went down... we would've been caught for sure if the had a whole day to voice their discontent.