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Broadcast Feeding

The simple definition of broadcast feeding is throwing chicken feed on the ground! Before you lose interest, let me tell you the real advantages of feeding your birds this way!

You’ll have less pests!

For a few years now, I have totally stopped keeping my chicken feed in feeders. Feeders are convenient, but can attract a ton of unwanted mice and rats! (And the occasional opossum!) Leaving a huge amount of feed open to the public everyday-and night- is an open invitation to nasty pests.

My chickens are free range all day. They have access to water in the coop and in different places in the yard. There is only one spot where I feed them, and I broadcast feed them! If you feed only what they can eat in about 30minutes, you’ll have fed them enough. I like to do this twice a day in the same area, an area far from the coop and out in the open.

Broadcast feeding is easier on your wallet.

If you have a hanging chicken feeder, mice can still very easily jump onto the feed and have their way. This doesn’t seem like much, but soon they’ll tell their friends! These pests will not only be spreading disease, they will also be stealing from your wallet. Since I started broadcast feeding, or cutting back on available daily feed, my store bill was cut almost in half!

Always scatter your chickens’ treats onto clean ground. Preferably NOT on the floor of the coop if it is rarely cleaned. Tossing some off in a grassy area will have your hens humming!

It promotes natural foraging.

The more zoological definition of broadcast feeding would read something like, “the distribution of food that encourages natural and instinctual habits; a type of recreation that stimulates brain activity and overall well-being of the animal.”

Chickens were made to spend all day searching for food. They are meant to get out, exercise, and eat bits of grains, grass, and insects as they find them. Broadcast feeding encourages this natural desire to scratch.

Your chickens will have lots of fun looking for morsels and you’ll enjoy watching them! It’s an easy way to keep your flock entertained and help them bond to you as well!

The best broadcast feeds are whole corn,sunflower seeds, halved dried peas, whole oats, rolled oats, and freeze dried (or fresh) mealworms.

Repurpose Old Tires Into Dust Baths

It never ceases to amaze me how great my chickens are at digging holes! They love to scratch around, wiggle down and flap around the dirt. To keep themselves clean, chickens take dust baths. This summer, I’m working on making a dedicated area for my chickens’ dust bath. I’ll keep you posted on if they actually use this area or if they continue to just dig dust baths wherever they want. Haha!

Chicken dust bath with tires
Source: https://www.weedemandreap.com/repurposing-chicken-baths/

We have a long area along our barn that had been landscaped with landscape rock when the building was first built. When we transitioned into using it for our chicken coop and added a large run, the river rock proved to be a problem. The chickens would kick out so much rock! Then, they’d jump down on the rock and occasionally get injured. So, we decided to take out all of the rock and make an area for them to take baths.

My first step for creating a dust bath area is to gather all my supplies. I plan on repurposing old tires as the dust bath container and will then add dirt, wood ash, sand and Preen Queen. Here are some photos for inspiration to create your own tire dust bath. Almost any tire place will give away tires for free. Some people get creative and will paint their tires to make it into a fun project to do with their kids. I plan to just keep mine black.

 
Dust bath for chickens using tires
Source: https://audreyslittlefarm.com/how-to-make-a-dust-bath-for-chickens/
 
Chicken dust bath with tires
Source: https://i.redd.it/io72em1ckc471.jpg

Dust bathing is extremely important to your chicken’s health. A dust bath is a great way to keep chickens and their feathers clean to keep harmful mites, lice and other parasites away. That’s why I also add Preen Queen to my dust bath. Preen Queen helps absorb moisture, oils and odors to keep feathers clean and bugs at bay. It also contains peppermint and citronella essential oils, so it’s like sending my girls to the spa!

Providing your chickens with a place to bathe will make them so happy! This is especially important in the winter months if you live somewhere like we do. Obviously, snow makes it more difficult for chickens to dust bathe, but here are some tips for building a winter dust bath for your chickens. Currently, I have a baby pool set up with all the needed dust bath materials, but none of them use it in the summer. Haha! In the winter though, they are so grateful.

Watching your chickens dust bath is a fun, interesting, and even funny event! It’s one of my favorite things to observe out in the coop.

Until Next Time,

–The Wing Lady

The Science Behind Eggs

In today’s culture, there is a movement to return to the wholesome foods of our ancestors. We are looking for pure foods, unadulterated by preservatives and chemical ingredients. You don’t have to look far, and I bet one of your hens has already made one for you this morning-an egg!

Cool Egg Facts

  • One medium sized egg contains around 160 calories.
  • The total cholesterol in an egg is about 200 mg.
  • The fresher,the more nutrients are retained.
  • It is recommended to eat 1-2 eggs per day to maintain heart health.
  • Eggs have been proven to help lose weight!
  • The healthiest egg for human consumption is the Guinea fowl egg, with the highest amounts of amino acids!

Like a self contained orb of nutrients, each egg contains the following:

  • All 9 essential amino acids (meaning the body cannot make these on its own)
  • Protein – 6 grams per egg!
  • Choline (helps transport fat from the liver)
  • Folic Acid (very essential during pregnancy, also aids in red blood cell growth)
  • Vitamin A
  • Vitamin D
  • Vitamin E
  • Vitamin B12
  • Iron
  • Antioxidants (specifically lutein and zeaxanthin; found in the yolk. These are very important for eye health)

Does “farm fresh,” really matter?

Yes! As for your eggs, the closer to the source, the better. Hens fed a more balanced outdoor diet will lay more nutritious eggs. Free range chicken eggs contain less cholesterol, less saturated fat, and have higher Omega-3 fatty acids. Don’t worry, if all you can find are store bought eggs, they are still a superfood!

What is the healthiest way to eat eggs?

The simple answer I found while researching was by either boiling or poaching the eggs. Some sources say heating the egg too quickly can cause cholesterol oxidation and remove a portion of the nutrients. This is still being debated, so as long as you eat the WHOLE egg, white and yolk, you are still greatly benefiting.

What about cholesterol?

For years eggs have gotten a bad rap for being high in cholesterol. This has since been scientifically debunked. Studies show that people who eat eggs regularly actually have higher amounts of HDL, which is a good cholesterol. Eating eggs has been proven to lower blood pressure, but no change in LDL (a “bad” cholesterol).

Eggs are truly amazing! Affordable, self packaged, and full of flavor, we owe much of our health to our hens! Have an egg today, and better, share some eggs with your neighbors and friends!

How to Repel Summer Flies

Flies are an ugly part of every homestead. Whether you have 3 backyard hens or 100 free ranging jungle fowl, flies come with the territory. Attracted to poultry feed, feces, and anything gross and moist, flies love a good chicken coop!

To make matters worse, the humid heat of summer provides the perfect fly spawning environment. Doesn’t it seem like flies pop up out of nowhere after a summer rain? They suddenly appear, landing places you don’t want them, and spreading germs. It can make animal husbandry in the summer miserable!

Luckily there are MANY ways to combat flies around your coop this summer!

  1. This may seem like a given, but I speak from first-hand naive decisions. Do not put your coop close to your house! Flies around the coop will quickly turn into flies around the house! When planning your homestead layout, you do want easy walking access to the coop. Just try to avoid having it within feet from your front door!
  2. Fly Traps! Fly traps, especially the kind with some kind of liquid bait, work wonders! They can be hung anywhere near the coop, out of reach of the chickens. These traps catch hundreds of flies, and despite a bad smell, exterminate like no other! They also don’t harm beneficial insects, like pollinators.
  3. A dry coop is a clean coop. Cleaning out the chicken waste from the coop is hugely helpful in the prevention of flies. This isn’t always totally possible, and coops will always be a generally dirty place. I like to use a dog feeder for my chickens as it keeps out excess pests and moisture from the feed. Flies love feed, so try keeping it in a cool, shady place where flies prefer not to be. When it comes to bedding, shavings are better than straw, and sand is better than shavings! Z( Be careful not to use sandbox sand).
  4. Use insect repellent powder. After cleaning the coop, sprinkle everything! Apply to the floor, corners, and roosting perches. These affordable canisters of magic work great for all farm animals. We dust our goats, hen house, horses, barn, and even stalls with this. It kills mites on chickens as well! As great as it can be, please always use extreme caution with any pesticide. Don’t over-dust and get any in your lungs or around children. These products are often toxic to honeybees and shouldn’t be dusted around blooming plants. (-but it does work wonders for my chicken coop!)
  5. Make an organic repellent. While not as potent as the dust, you may opt for a more natural approach. You can make a spray bottle of essential oils to repel flies. It is safe for your birds, and smells great to us, bad to flies! Simply fill up a spray bottle with water, 2-3 drops of dish soap, and a combination of 10 drops each of tea tree, peppermint, and clove essential oils. Spray all around the inside and outside walls of your coop to repel flies for a week or so.

Now you are armed with a variety of ways to tackle those summer flies! Give one a try, or all, and tell me which worked best! Good luck friends!

What is Water Belly?

I remember when our son, Jett, decided to raise a few broiler chickens. He did all the right things and took care of them diligently. Yet one day, a couple weeks in, there was a chicken who didn’t look so well. She moved slow, was lethargic (yes, I know we’re talking about broilers here!) and wasn’t as “active” as the others.

My First Experience with Water Belly

What is Water Belly?

Broilers, as they get closer to their end date, usually aren’t overly active. However, this seemed extreme, and we could tell she wasn’t healthy. Jett ended up culling her because we were worried, she was sick and didn’t want her to get the others sick as well. Upon some investigation and research, we assumed she had what most backyard chicken owners call “water belly” or in more scientific terms, “Ascites”. I am not a veterinarian or scientist, but I will tell you about my experience with this miserable disease.

What is Water Belly?

According to Poultry Health Services, Water Belly or Ascites Syndrome Ascites is a term that describes abnormal fluid accumulation in the belly, hence the term ‘water belly’. This term is used to describe pulmonary hypertension syndrome in broiler chickens; a combination of clinical signs and changes within the bird has increased fluid in the abdomen. It’s a non-infectious condition which cannot spread from bird to bird. While this is a good characteristic of this condition there is, unfortunately, no treatment for birds that are affected.

The fact that water belly isn’t curable is the sad part. It can make the chickens miserable and as the owner, you won’t really know they have it until they get miserable.

My Second Experience with Water Belly

A bit into our backyard chicken raising, I ended up having a little Silkie get water belly. When I got Nugget as a chick, she had Wry Neck. We got her through that and then as she grew and was a couple years old, I noticed she was a bit off one day. At first thought she had gotten into something outside and ended up with sour crop and a full belly. I ended up separating her for a couple of days, cleaned her crop (ick!) gave her Flock Fixer and minimal food, and she came out of it! She did really well for a couple months and then ended up with the same issues again. Nugget was more lethargic and had a very bloated belly. So, I gave her Flock Fixer again and it helped bring her out of it for over a year!

Some people will take a syringe and take some of the fluid out of the belly. I wasn’t comfortable doing this, so I stuck with what I knew. However, one day I went out to the coop, and she had it for the third time. This time, she sadly didn’t recover. Again, there is no known cure for Ascites, but I truly believe Flock Fixer allowed her to live a bit longer and improve her quality of life.

What Causes Water Belly

Water Belly can be aggravated by many different things. Genetics, poor diet, hygiene issues with water, an infection, sour crop untreated, mold, elevation, rapid growth, excess sodium, and the list goes on. I take very good care of our flock, so I’m not exactly sure what caused it in my sweet Nugget.

How to Identify Water Belly

I do a flock health check on a regular basis. I check their eyes, beaks, combs, wattles, legs, feet, feathers and bellies. I’m looking for anything that may cause an issue or is one already. Unfortunately, with Water Belly, it’s fairly easy to identify. You will feel their very full, bloated bellies and they will be pretty slow.

They’ll start to distance themselves from the flock and hunker down. I felt so bad for Nugget. She was miserable until I gave her Flock Fixer. I was hopeful when she snapped out of it twice! However, I didn’t want her to suffer either. These decisions in raising backyard chickens are the hard ones

Diseases like Ascites, Bumblefoot, lice, mites, sour crop, among other icky things are the not-so-glamorous parts of raising a backyard flock. However, it’s important to talk about these things too, so we all have a general knowledge and understanding of how to best help our flocks thrive.

Praying you are having a healthy flock and great start to your spring!

Until next time,

–The Wing Lady

What is Marek’s Disease?

Have you ever heard of Marek’s Disease? If not, today is your lucky day! You’ll learn all about the causes, if it’s treatable and how to sanitize your coop after Marek’s strikes your flock. This way you won’t have an unnecessary panic attack like I did the first time I thought I had a chicken with Marek’s.

 
What is Marek's Disease?
Sweet Georgia my Barnevelder

It was a few summers ago and our daughter came running to the house telling me she thinks Georgia (my precious Barnevelder) was dying. I ran out of the house and down to the coop to find Georgia lying on her back with her legs in the air. I have no idea why Marek’s was the first thing that entered my mind, but it was!

I got Georgia up off her back and brought her directly to the small kennel in our garage. After a few hours of observation, I realized Georgia was just fine! She was at the bottom of the pecking order at the time and sadly, I think, she was trying to play dead so the others would leave her alone. To this day, she’s a happy and healthy chicken and no longer at the bottom of the totem pole!

What is Marek’s Disease?

Marek’s disease is a highly contagious viral disease found in backyard and commercial chicken flocks. It is named after Jozsef Marek, a Hungarian veterinarian. Marek described the disease in 1907. It’s actually a chicken herpes virus that can wreak havoc on your flock. The good news is that humans can’t contract this highly infectious disease. Marek’s affects the chicken’s central nervous system and can cause paralysis. This is why I thought Georgia had it because she was stuck on her back. Marek’s can cause blindness, and causes tumors on organs, muscles and even the follicles of feathers. All in all, it’s a horrible virus.

What is Marek's Disease?

What Are the Symptoms of Marek’s Disease?

Chickens may show signs of pale combs, weight loss, dehydration, diarrhea, depression, paralysis and loss of appetite. These symptoms can be found in other chicken diseases as well, so if you do have an ill chicken, don’t just assume it’s Marek’s, but be quick in separating the sick chicken out away from the flock.

Is Marek’s Disease Treatable?

Unfortunately, Marek’s is not treatable and if your chickens catch this, it usually moves pretty quickly through the flock regardless of the vaccination status of the birds. Marek’s can be spread through chicken dust and dander, and we know there is never a shortage of that in a coop! Unfortunately, the virus can live dormant in chickens, but once the symptoms occur, it will likely be too late to save your chickens.

Is it Important to Clean My Coop After a Marek’s Outbreak?

Keeping a clean chicken coop is always important! But, if there is disease outbreak, lice, mites or other yucky things plaguing your coop, deep cleaning is of utmost importance! This is a great article on Marek’s and how to properly clean and disinfect your coop if you have been unfortunate to have this disease strike your flock. You basically need to deep clean and disinfect everything in your coop…even electrical outlets! It’s quite a process, but necessary to be able to keep chickens healthy. I clean our coop out 2-4 times a year. I’d rather stay on top of the coop hygiene to do our best to keep our flock healthy. I also give our chickens Strong Animals Chicken Essentials to naturally fight off sickness and disease by keeping their immune systems strong!

With knowledge comes power, and that is especially true when it comes to raising backyard chickens. By being aware of potential diseases like Marek’s, hopefully you can stop them from spreading and keep your flock at its healthiest!

Until next time,

–The Wing Lady

What To Do with Frozen Eggs and When Do You Freeze Eggs?

You come home from a long winter day at work or school and visit the coop to collect the day’s eggs. They’re cold.  Really cold with hairline cracks in some of their shells.     That’s not surprising. Those eggs have been sitting in the nest for hours on a subzero day.

 

Egg whites and yolks contain plenty of water but are loaded with dissolved solids.  These lower the egg freezing point to about 29 degrees. Eggs rarely freeze in moderately cold weather but if the temperature drops like a stone eggs freeze and crack in just a couple of hours.

 

In many ways eggs are the perfect product.  They are delicious nutrition packaged in a protective shell and membrane that keeps bacteria and dirt out.  Unfortunately, that tiny crack in a frozen egg can be an ideal passageway for dirt and microbes to enter.   Eating that contaminated egg could be a health risk.

 

What do you do with a frozen egg?  The best solution is to never let it happen.  It’s wise to collect eggs often throughout the day, but when the mercury drops toward the bottom of the thermometer it’s essential. Collecting eggs every couple of hours makes it unlikely that any will freeze. Unfortunately, when chicken keepers are stuck at work or school all day, they can’t saunter to the coop often to gather their eggs.  A few eggs are likely to freeze on a frigid day. For those who cannot collect regularly, some heat in the coop can keep eggs from freezing.  Even, enclosed nest boxes can maintain some warmth and possibly prevent eggs from freezing.

 

What’s the safest thing to do with a rare frozen egg?  Either toss it somewhere so night time raccoons or opossums can snack on it, or mix it into the compost pile. It may seem like a waste but it beats getting sick.

 

Purposefully Freezing Eggs

 

Deliberately freezing eggs for future use is far different from finding frozen eggs in the nest.  A frozen egg is one that was in the nest too long on a frigid day. To be safe, toss it out. Freezing eggs purposefully in the freezer is a way to store them for months.   Almost any family who keeps a flock of hens has times when eggs build up in the refrigerator and days when there just aren’t enough for baking and cooking. A solution is to freeze them when they are abundant. It’s easy. Crack them into a container, scramble them up, seal the container and freeze. They should last about a year.

 

For information on egg freezing, safety, recipes check these websites:   www.incredibleegg.org or www.eggindustrycenter.org.

The Best Time of Day to Collect Eggs

There are many factors to consider when collecting eggs, from the breed of chicken to the time of year. But one of the most important factors is what time of day you collect them. According to science, there is a best time of day to collect eggs – and it’s not when you might think! In this article, we will compare the best time of day to collect eggs with less than-ideal times and explain the difference. We will also discuss the benefits of collecting eggs at the best time of day!

 

So, when is the best time of day to collect eggs? The answer may surprise you – it’s actually in the evening! Chickens are most productive in the late afternoon and early evening, so this is when you will find the most eggs. However, there are a few things to keep in mind if you plan on collecting eggs in the evening. First, chickens tend to roost in the evening, so you will need to be careful not to disturb them too much. Second, it may be difficult to see the eggs in the dark, so you will need to use a flashlight.

You may be wondering- “but what if my flock lays first thing in the morning?” This is something that many flock owners wonder because they often hear their hens’ ‘laying songs’ early in the morning.

 

If you can’t collect eggs in the evening, don’t worry – there are still plenty of times during the day when chickens are productive. The early morning is also a good time to collect eggs, as chickens typically start laying around sunrise. Hens tend to choose one particular laying box that they prefer, so you may notice a line of hens waiting to get to their favorite laying box.  If you have enough hens, this might mean that some of your hens won’t get to lay until later in the morning.

 

Eggs are also laid with a protective coating called a bloom. This natural coating is water-resistant and helps to keep the egg fresh. It will keep the eggs fresh by preventing bacteria from entering in to the shell.  Even if your hens lay eggs in the morning, and you collect them in the evening, your eggs will still be fresh.

 

If you collect your eggs in the evening, you’ll likely get all of the eggs for the day.  If you collect eggs in the morning, you might collect them before all of your hens have had a chance to lay.  When a hen lays often times has to do with where she stands in the flock pecking order.  The higher up in the pecking order she is, the earlier in the day she may lay.  Hens higher in the pecking order tend to get first dibs on laying boxes.

 

So, there you have it – the best time of day to collect eggs is in the evening or early morning. But don’t forget, even if you can’t collect eggs at the perfect time, there are still plenty of times during the day when chickens are productive!

 

Who’s Laying

One day, on my way to work, I had customer call me at our family pet store and say, “I have all these chickens I don’t want. They are young, do you know anyone who could take them!?” My only thought was ME ME ME! Annnndddd that is exactly what I said. My husband had mentioned that in the future he would love chickens and I took that as in, today was the future! Hehe, so on my way home for $10, I got a box of 10 White Leghorns. They were so cute! They were not tiny chicks, but my heart exploded with joy! I picked up a bale of straw and bag of feed on my way home from work and when my hubby got home he was like, “Why are you so happy!?” Clearly, he knew something was up because I am usually very happy but I am telling you…I WAS ON ANOTHER LEVEL OF HAPPY!

I ran him out to the barn and said, “Look inside the whelping room!” FYI: Our home was previously owned by an amazing, A-MAZING German Shepherd breeder named Fred Migilore. He had a beautiful whelping room that I decided was the perfect space for chickens! Plus, it had a doggy door that went out into dog runs under a lean-to off of the barn. IT WAS PERFECT! He opened the door and said, “Wow, you put straw in here, it looks great.” (Full of sarcasm too!) I kept smiling and said “Do you see anything in the straw!!!!!!!” I was so excited, BUT his face went white… as white as the chicks’ new feathers and he was like “OH MY GOSH MANDIE! I SAID FUTURE! NOT NOW!” And smiling I said, “Technically this is the future, to when you told me.” Hehe, he just

laughed and said “Well now we are chicken owners!” Little did he know, our chicken numbers would go from 10 to 75 and I would get ducks, guinea fowl, quail and pheasants! I have been so blessed to have the home we have and the land to have our tiny farm and I am sure Fred is rolling around in heaven laughing at all the things I put my husband through! Sometimes I feel like I can hear him or my mother saying “Mandie, ask for forgiveness instead of permission; if it brings you joy and will bring your children joy, DO IT!” So… I do! Let me tell you, I drove home once with a 1-week-old baby cow in the back seat of the Buick Enclave and sent a video of it to my husband as a way of saying, “YAYY BABY COW OWNERS!!!” But anyways, I am getting distracted! One thing I never did as a chicken owner was look into who lays the most eggs and who could handle the winter weather! I just wanted chickens, cute little raptors running around my yard eating all of the bugs and scraps! I knew this would make my heart happy, but I wasn’t thinking about what would fill the fridge with eggs! So, I am going to share with you who I feel are the top breeds and based off of Hoover Hatchery in Rudd, Iowa and who’s laying the most!

Below, I will list who lays the most, color eggs and size, if they can handle the colder weather and if they are great if you have children. BUT I am a bit biased I do believe every chicken breed is good with children, it depends how much you expose your children to them while they are young. It is so important to do this! Have them helping feed, help clean, grabbing eggs and just enjoying the chicken’s presence.

My mind was blown when I saw how many some hens lay per year!

300 to 325 Eggs Per Year (so crazy!!!!!!)

1. White and Brown Leghorn

a. Large white eggs

b. Not a bird for meat for they are fast and lean

c. Do very well in the winter at least in Mid-Michigan temps.

d. These are good with kids, but they are fast and not the cuddliest breed.

2. California White

a. Large white eggs

b. Hardy, dual purpose

c. Same with kids as the Leghorn

 

3. ISA Brown

a. Large Brown Eggs

b. Hardy in cold weather

c. Great with children, they are very chill and very easy tohold and have a lot of personality

4. Amberlink

a. Large Brown Eggs

b. Great in cold weather

c. Great with children

d. I love their colors, personally

 

280 to 290 Eggs Per Year

1. Smokey Pearl

a. Large brown eggs

b. Hardy in my opinion, do great in Michigan temps

c. Good with children

2. Cream Legbar

a. Medium blue eggs, so pretty!

b. Hardy

c. Great with kids and full of personality

3. Starlight Green Egger

a. Large brown or olive-green eggs, 5% of this breed will lay brown or shade of brown olive-green color eggs

b. Hardy and fun in the snow

c. Great with kids

 

4. Sapphire Splash

a. Amazing colors

b. Large brown eggs

c. Hardy in my opinion

d. Great with kids

5. Sapphire Gems

a. MY FAVORITE!

b. XL Brown eggs

c. Hardy for extreme cold

d. AMAZING with kids

e. They are so much fun to have around the farm!

 

6. Calico Princess

a. Large brown eggs

b. Hardy

c. Friendly all the time, so great with kids and very calm

These are my top 10! They are amazing birds to have and all of them are great with kids, just some are not into the whole pick me up and cuddle me, that kids love to do! I hope this helps you as a chicken owner and someone who wants to raise birds. Not all of these breeds are dual purpose. Some are strictly layers, but if you do have to cull one it will still make a great soup.

I personally love the sapphire gems, because we have 3 children and they literally will just walk up to them and just let them pick ‘em up! It is so comforting knowing this and the XL eggs are always appreciated.

Our farm consists of a lot of breeds and I am excited to see our Barnyard mixes this year. We have so many breeds and they always hatch eggs in the classrooms at our children’s school, so OF COURSE we bring some home! Last year, my oldest brought home 3 and guess what…it was 2 roosters and 1 hen! Pshh, stinkers! BUT! I do have to say they are so friendly and so wonderful! AANNNDD BEAUTIFUL!

This year I will be supporting Hoover Hatchery, because they use the same essential oils that’s in the feed I use, NatureServe Layer Pellets! I love their set up and they even give virtual tours online on Youtube and have a very open curtain policy, with not hiding the way things are done at their hatchery. I will be purchasing California Whites, Brown Leghorns and Amberlinks from them.

 

Be sure to request if you would like your chickens to be vaccinated. They provide 2 types of vaccines.

 Cocci Vaccination

 Marek’s Vaccination

We have never requested any, but I do believe I will be requesting the Marek’s this year. I have such a beautiful flock; I do not want to take any risks losing anyone. The cocci vaccine covers coccidiosis and if you feed medicated feed, you do not need to get this vaccine, but if you do not, then it would be a good idea to or simply purchase Corrid.

Corrid is specifically designed to only treat coccidiosis and only needs to be added to water for 3 to 5 days. It can be found at your local feed shops and larger box stores.

Anyways! Please, please, please keep me posted and leave a comment on what your favorite breed is, even if it doesn’t lay a bunch of eggs! I want to know! This blog ismy way of sharing with you, so NEVER hesitate to share with me! We are here to support each other!

Talk soon!

Your Crazy in Love with Chickens Friend,

Amanda B.

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