California Grey: An Unusual and Fun Hybrid Breed

Want to try an amazingly productive yet unusual chicken with a fascinating history?

The California Grey might be just right

What Makes California Grey Chickens Unique?

California Grey’s are oddballs Most families tending backyard flocks prefer brown egg laying, large bodied breeds and hybrids California Grey’s look like Barred Rocks with the distinctive barred feather pattern that gives them a name shared by a common night bird, the Barred Owl Some poultry fanciers call the color pattern “cuckoo”

Glace at a California Grey hen and it would be easy to assume it’s a slimmed down

Honeybees and Chickens in the Backyard

Of all domestic food-producing animals honeybees are special They can legally trespass!

If cows, pigs, sheep or even chickens wander off a property without permission an angry neighbor might be calling up Bees are different They’ll zip upwards of three miles to collect nectar and pollen They buzz over fences and property lines to gather food for their larvae and to make into honey Honeybees even thrive in New York City Local beekeepers tend hives on building roofs far above the street The industrious insects forage in parks and on domestic flowers

Managing a Broody Hen

One of the most fascinating experiences of raising a backyard flock of hens can also be the most frustrating

Every once in a while, a hen acts strangely She fluffs her feathers, changes her clucking pitch, stops laying, and spends almost all her time in the nest Reach in to retrieve eggs from under her and she’ll enthusiastically scold and probably give fingers a good peck

She’s broody!

Broodiness is a natural bird instinct Until artificial incubators came along in the late 1800s all baby chicks were brooded by a live hen Farmers would prepare rows of nests filled

Testing Chicken Treats

Testing Chicken Treats: What Backyard Hens Love Most

Sometimes our chickens are just like kids Put a serving of steamed kale on one side of a child’s dinner plate and balance it with ice cream on the other side Which disappears first? It’s no mystery

We wanted to see what treats our hens favored When they were outside basking in the late winter sunshine we put three bowls on the coop floor Into one went a handful of dried soldier fly larvae Another held black oil sunflowers and the third baby marshmallows

Then we let the chickens in to test which treats

Introducing New Chicks Into a Flock

How to Introduce New Chicks to Older Hens Safely

Every other year we’re faced with a tricky chicken management dilemma How to introduce new chicks into a flock of mature hens Years ago, we didn’t do it right and ended up with adolescent hens persecuted by older birds Over the years we’ve found ways to successfully merge young birds harmoniously with older hens

Why Do It

When female chicks are four to six months old, they’ll start the most productive laying cycle of their lives For the next year they’ll lay anywhere from 200

Springtime Coop Tune Up

Cleaning Tips for Healthy Hens

It’s that time of year Birds are migrating as plants push greenery up through the ground They let us know it’s the season of spring cleaning Along with scrubbing and organizing the house, remember the coop A spring makeover will make it function and look top notch

At Winding Pathways, we mount a coop spruce up project before lawn mowing season arrives Here’s what we do:

Litter: Last fall we cleaned litter out of the coop’s interior and put it in our compost bin Microorganisms toiled all winter converting it into compost This spring we moved that

Keeping the Flock Healthy

Keeping Your Backyard Flock Healthy Through Good Care

Chickens are amazingly healthy animals Given good care they’re hardly fazed by winter’s chill or summer’s sweltering heat In the five decades we’ve kept chickens our flocks have always been healthy

In the past few years millions of commercial chickens were killed to slow the spread of avian influenza, or bird flu It’s a deadly disease but hardly the only malady that can sicken or kill our faithful coop friends

Knowing that diseases lurk we constantly work to protect our hens from illness A key strategy is buying healthy chicks from Hoover’s Hatchery Then

Muddy Feet

How to Keep Muddy Chicken Feet Out of the Coop

We didn’t let our kids enter the house with muddy feet Playing in the snow and mud puddles is a fun and educational kid activity We encouraged it, but muddy boots came off in the garage before stocking-footed youngsters came inside for hot chocolate and a cookie

The same rule applies to our chickens Mud is wet It makes a coop mess, and moisture fosters disease We like our flock to spend time outside so here are things we do to let the chickens enjoy the outdoors while keeping mud and

Choosing the Best Breeds For Backyard Flocks

No one knows how many chicken breeds exist, but there are hundreds Maybe thousands Hoover’s Hatchery catalog lists at least 100 breeds and every year they add a few more There are heritage breeds, modern hybrids, specialty egg layers, broilers, and a few unique ones that don’t quite fit into any category

With so many choices how does a family choose the best breed, or mix of breeds, to buy? It’s confusing Choosing can be challenging, but we make it fun

Every year we buy six or seven chicks to replace older hens

Nest Knowledge

Our hens love their nests They tuck themselves into a nest’s quiet confines and semidarkness to enjoy privacy until the magic moment arrives and an egg emerges
Her new egg is a matter of pride

Daily eggs are more than the fixins’ of a delicious breakfast They can be a tool to help children practice basic arithmetic and learn the fundamentals of scientific research
Find a very young child and try the exercise toward the bottom of this message

Nests are, perhaps, the most important pieces of furniture in a backyard coop Experts recommend placing at least one nest for every four laying