Part 8 Becoming a chicken momma

Hubby wanted chickens on the farm. We had talked about this for the couple of years before moving to the farm full time. I listened but really had no opinion. I like eggs but not crazy about them.
There was a concrete pad that was covered and had electric and water not too farm from the house. Hubby turned this into a chicken house and a fortress of a chicken run. I had no idea what a chicken house needed. The only chicken experience I had was an unfortunate Easter chick that I loved (squeezed) too hard. It had a short but loved life.
With the chicken house complete, it was time to order chicks. Again, I knew absolutely nothing about baby chicks (except not to squeeze them too hard). So......my google searches began. We needed a brooder. What was a brooder?? They had to stay warm and protected for 6 weeks. Really? Then what?? I was feeling pretty lacking in the chicken department.
Seventeen baby chicks arrived in a few days. The journey was beginning...LOL
We made brooders out of cardboard boxes and heat lamps. The garage became the temporary home so we could watch them closely. These were the cutest things ever!! Then I began to realize that they produced a LOT of poo. Everyday! Every night! All day long, eat, sleep, poo! This required daily cleaning the brooders and constantly filling food and water containers.
As time has passed, we have made a full half of our big barn into chicken rooms and runs. We are up to at least 150 chickens. They look alike and are impossible to count. We order more, hatch some, some die, give some away. The count is always changing.
It did not take me long to learn to love these silly birds. I enjoy watching them do chicken things. I love hearing them as I work in the barn, They are a source of fun and provide eggs for my egg business.
So, do the math....Seventeen chicks made a lot of poo.....150 make a ridiculous amount of poo! I spend a significant amount of time most days cleaning the chicken rooms and boxes. I don't like my feathered friends to live in dirty conditions.
We currently have an incubator full of eggs, thirteen baby silkie chicks, forty adolescent chickens plus all our grown layers. Lots of birds and lots of poo!

Current farm news: Shearing day was last Tuesday for our alpacas and llama. It went well and our girls are so much cooler. I never imagined I would live on a farm and certainly never imagined having these furry girls. We are crazy about them. I am learning to process and spin their fiber into yarn. It may take all year to accomplish this years fiber but I am determined.