How to Compost Chicken Coop Bedding for Healthier Garden Soil

If you keep chickens, you are sitting on one of the best free fertilizers a gardener could ask for Chicken manure is famously high in nitrogen, the nutrient that drives healthy, green growth, and it delivers phosphorus and potassium too The catch is that you cannot use it straight from the coop Composting chicken coop bedding is the key step that turns raw, smelly droppings into rich, garden-ready compost your plants will love Done right, it costs almost nothing, reduces waste, and rewards you with healthier soil Here is how to compost chicken manure and bedding the simple way,

Duck Nutrition

Duck Nutrition Guide: Water, Niacin, and Healthy Feed

There is a saying that chickens are the “gateway drug,” of livestock Many of us have started out with chickens! Raising chicks into healthy adult chickens takes some know-how and practice

All joking aside, you need to know the nutritional needs of ducks before you decide to add them to your flock Ducks and chickens can live together in the same area, but ducks will have different nutritional needs Ducks tend to be messier than chickens by nature, so ample room is a must

 

Water, water, and more water!

DIY Chicken Feed

Most of us feed our grown flock of birds layer pellets Layer pellets are a great food, containing most of what an adult hen needs to survive If you would like to treat your chickens with a ration that does more than simply let them survive, try making your own!

That being said, chickens allowed to free-range on a good sized, diverse piece of yard, do not have to be fed a special diet at all Chickens allowed to be chickens will balance out their nutritional needs completely naturally! However, all chickens need some type of complete daily ration to

7 Affordable Ways to Make Your Chicken Coop Homey

We have all scrolled past those Pinterest-perfect chicken coops, the ones with more charm and architecture than some houses They are beautiful, and a little enviable, but here is the good news: you do not need a designer budget to give your flock a cozy, welcoming home With a little creativity and some thrifty know-how, you can decorate your chicken coop on a budget and end up with a space that makes both you and your hens happier If you have ever wanted your setup to match the dreamy builds in your coop inspiration folder, these seven do-it-yourself

All About the Sapphire Splash Chicken: Color, Eggs, and Temperament

Today’s breed is one many backyard keepers have never heard of, and that is a shame, because the Sapphire Splash is a beauty With its cool blue-grey plumage scattered with darker freckles, this striking hen is a cousin of the better-known Sapphire Gem and one of the friendliest chickens you can add to a flock The Sapphire Splash combines good looks, dependable egg laying, and a famously sweet temperament, which makes it a wonderful choice for families and first-time keepers alike If you want a bird that is as charming in personality as it is in color, this one

How to Store Chicken Feed

You don’t need a fancy barn or coop to keep your feed organized! For years I spent so much time walking from coop to barn, to barn to house, and back down again Having all my feeding areas spread out was frustrating and a lot of extra work Of course barns are important for animal shelter, but you don’t need a barn to store your feed!
Just make a metal storage box instead!

Here’s a fact for you: feed attracts vermin
No matter where you decide to store your flock’s feed, mice will smell it and they will come It’s for this reason,

Entertaining Your Flock on a Budget

Chickens really live their best lives when they are free ranging outside Unfortunately, not everyone has the option of letting their chickens out of the coop Space restrictions, local ordinances, and job schedules are just a few of the reasons why many chickens are cooped up all day

Owning animals is like being a zookeeper A good zookeeper takes care of the physical needs of an animal However, a great zookeeper comes up with ways to keep their animals’s minds healthy and active! It’s called enrichment! There are countless ways to provide your flock something to keep their brains busy

That

Clipping Feathers

There are many reasons why you may need to clip your chickens’ wings 

Chickens escaping their run, flying up into feed containers, roosting in trees, and just plain wreaking havoc are a few

Lately, at our place, my chickens have been wanting to sleep in the trees, instead of their deluxe coop! This was fine with me all summer, but now with cold temperatures depending on us, they need

Daylight Savings Time and Chickens

Does Daylight Savings Time affect chickens?

Well, the short answer is no Of course chickens don’t have a need to understand numerical times, but YES they are affected by the shortening of days

 

Autumn can be a rough time for chickens You probably have noticed all of your birds molting Molting happens to every chicken, every fall They drop their old feathers, and grow in a new, fresh set for winter They can be more vulnerable to cold during this time Some of my girls go almost completely naked during molting season One named Smarty, gets so puny, she literally looks