Sounds like a simple question right? However, there are many costs to ‘having a chicken’, so today we are going to meander through the cost of the birds and their associated needs. Roughly speaking your costs can be divided up into the chickens, feed, housing and maintenance or fixed costs. Without a doubt the most […]
I am always surprised when I’m asked this question. I suppose it’s a logical question for those not too familiar with poultry. Do I need a Rooster for hens to lay eggs? A rooster does serve a couple of useful purposes to the flock which can be a good thing for the hens and keeper […]
Happy New Year! If you are a gardener, you have been poring over seed catalogs, feverishly planning the layout of your garden. If you are a chicken addict you have been studying the catalogs trying to decide which breed you want to add to your flock this year. Perhaps a certain breed didn’t work out […]
Here in the Northeast, we have been blessed with seemingly unending hot, humid days with little to no rain. For us humans, we simply retreat to the air-conditioned house, but what about your flock? Chickens can’t sweat like us, nor can they remove their feather jackets, so what can we do to help them keep […]
For those of you who don’t yet raise chickens, the life of a backyard chicken keeper can seem like a strange and confusing world. It doesn’t need to be though! In this article we talk you through exactly what hens need to be healthy and good egg layers. Many folks spoil their chickens in many […]
Sometimes old wives tales linger on long enough to become folk legends that people still believe in to this day. As people become more and more disconnected from their food source, the ‘legends’ continue and can even expand. Over the years I’ve heard many myths about chickens, some entertaining, but others just outright lies! We […]
So you have decided you want hens. You have been leafing through catalogs, trawling the internet and buying magazines that feature chickens and visiting farm stores almost daily- it has become an obsession! But the big question remains… which breed to choose? There are so many different breeds out there. There are chickens that are […]
The time is approaching- your chicks are going to be delivered soon, but are you totally prepared? It may seem like you have everything, but if it’s your first time there’s a good chance you may have missed something. You don’t want to be running round like a headless chicken when they arrive, so it’s […]
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The excitement of buying chicks is usually only surpassed by the arrival of that first egg! While you are caring for them as chicks, there is much to do and think about. It isn’t until they become ungainly ‘teenagers’, eating us out of house and home, that our thoughts turn to the question- when will […]
Many people ask if it’s safe to free range their flock. As with most questions, there is no simple yes or no. To really answer this question you need to understand the pros and cons of free ranging your hens. First, let’s define ‘free range’. For most of us, we have an idyllic picture in […]
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