Treats Help Manage A Flock

Anyone who has tried to herd an escaped flock back into the coop quickly discovers that chickens have a mind of their own Some run this way, while others go that way Few un where their owner intends The result is exercise for both humans and chickens and little else
Fortunately, chickens are easy to trick Herding doesn’t work well but tasty lures do Chickens can’t resist a delicious snack No matter where the flock is, as soon as one bird spots treats being served, she’ll cluck and summon her fellow flockmates to the feast
Here’s

Giving Your Chickens A Good Night’s Sleep

Both people and chickens appreciate a good night’s sleep As warm months approach odds are better that humans will be more comfortable after dark than their chickens After all, people live in well-ventilated houses with screened windows to exclude pesky bugs When it really gets hot, they only need to click on the air conditioner
Chickens aren’t so lucky Often, they are forced to try sleeping while swarms of gnats and mosquitos attack them in hot humid air Air conditioning a coop is silly and not needed but simple preparation by owners will help hens enjoy hours

Ducks: The Fun and Productive

In the past few years, families across America have begun tending small flocks of backyard chickens for good reasons They are fun, produce delicious eggs, and are a wonderful way for children to learn where food really comes from Ducks offer the benefits of chickens yet far fewer people keep them
Chickens and ducks have similarities and some major differences Both species were domesticated from wild ancestors thousands of years ago Chickens originated from wild jungle fowl while most domestic ducks trace their ancestry to mallards, a common wild bird across most of the northern hemisphere Over

Chickens and Their Personalities

Most chick catalogs and websites reveal general characteristics of chicken breeds  For example, Leghorns and most other white egg breeds are described as being flighty and noisy  In contrast most heavy breeds, like Australorps and Wyandottes, are claimed to be quiet, gentle, or tame    Some catalogs even go further claiming that certain breeds, often Orpingtons, are friendly

While biologists caution about affixing human personality traits to animals, catalog generalizations of chicken temperament are mostly accurate  Light colored, white egg laying breeds are usually nervous, strong flyers that are somewhat difficult

3 Ways to Make Your Lawn More Sustainable with Chickens

Most families that keep a flock of backyard chickens have a front or side lawn, but few use it to advantage Even a small lawn can help chickens There are many ways you can reuse your lawn clippings when you have chickens, making the passes with the mower that much more valuable!
Some lucky families let their hens roam around the yard to forage for tasty insects and plants Often communities that allow backyard flocks prohibit free ranging birds The birds must be confined in a coop or enclosed run Even if there is no law

Raising Pheasants and Turkeys in the Backyard

Among the most intriguing of all birds are ring-necked pheasants and wild turkeys Both are mostly thought of as wild birds and popular quarry for hunters, yet many people raise their domesticated counterparts at home for their beauty and their delicious meat If you’re drawn to something more striking than the standard backyard chicken, both are genuinely rewarding to keep, but raising pheasants and turkeys is more involved than raising chickens, and there are a few important things to understand before you order any Here’s what you need to know

Second Coops Are Handy

Newcomers to chicken keeping take real pride in their first coop Some are simple and functional; others, built by people who love design and carpentry, end up downright elaborate, matching the architecture of the house so the hens live in genuinely classy digs But no matter how comfortable and attractive your main coop is, having a second, backup coop ready for instant use is one of the handiest things a keeper can have on hand It doesn’t get used all the time, and it doesn’t need to be big, expensive, or elaborate It just needs to be there when

Learning From Chickens Part 2

With coronavirus closing schools, millions of parents have unexpectedly become home school teachers They are learning how valuable trained professional teachers are as they attempt to help their kids expand their math, reading, and problem-solving abilities
It’s a great time to buy a few baby chicks Start them soon and by late summer they’ll be laying delicious eggs in the backyard Having the ability to produce food is comforting in this age of anxiety A flock of six hens will give a family over two dozen eggs a week
Hoover’s Hatchery reports record chick orders, probably

Are You Smarter Than A Chicken

It seems as if winter won’t give it up, so we thought we would brighten up April by celebrating April Fools all month long! Below is a fun true/false quiz and some links on fun chicken folklore
Are you smarter than a chicken? Take this True and False quiz to tell

  1. On the equinox you can stand an egg on its end
  2. There must be a rooster in the coop for a hen to lay eggs
  3. Brown eggs are always fresher than white eggs
  4. The incubation temperature determines whether the chick will be female or male
  5. Some

How to Keep Chickens Cool in the Heat

One Memorial Day weekend, an unexpected heat wave slammed the upper Midwest All-time temperature records shattered as the mercury climbed near 100 degrees Hardly a breeze stirred, and clouds of gnats swarmed every warm-blooded creature that ventured outside The combination proved deadly: the heat and gnats together killed a number of backyard chickens, including four of one keeper’s flock The lesson is a hard but important one Chickens tolerate cold far better than heat, and a sudden hot spell can be genuinely dangerous Here’s how to help your flock survive the heat, whether it arrives on schedule or catches