Time to join the chicken bandwagon: Part 1 - Finding Chickens

Pent up longing for spring

I don't know if it is the fact that the sun finally came out or that the snow has finally gone, but I am obsessed with getting into the garden and adding some chickens and rabbits to our urban farm.

Yes, I'm on the verge of a impulse chicken purchase. And my kids are excited with me. My darling husband, who is used to my crazy escapades, is lovingly joining in our efforts. This is fantastic given that he has the engineering mind to build my vision of a chicken paradise.

Chickens!!! 

We're allowed 5 hens here in the city so here are the ones we are hoping to find:

• Buff Orpington because of the honey color and their sweet personality (daughter's pick)
• Dominque because it looks like a Zebra (son's pick)
• Lavender Orpington because it's purple and Orpington's are so sweet (me)
• 2 Easter Eggers because we get colored eggs and hopefully they each lay a different color (all of us)

The challenge now is to find someplace that 

• has all of them 
• can send them all at the same time 
• can sell in small quantities.

Chicks need to be mailed in a minimum quantity to make sure they keep each other warm in transit. I've found places that will ship to us in minimums of 5 for this time in spring and the distance they have to travel. But some places require 16 to 25 to 30!

The chicks are cheap  (except my $35 rare purple girl) so I could order several of one kind at a time and find new owners for the extras in advance.

But dang, chicken shipping is expensive! You want to only mail order these ladies once!

So far it looks like our grouping would be available in 3 months :-( but I suppose that gives us enough time to build a coop, eh?

Lavender Orpington from www.meyerhatchery.com