Duration : 0:9:1

Technorati Tags: chickens

Duration : 0:1:28

Technorati Tags: birds, breed, chickens, cockerel, Dipple, fowl, Gordon, Rare

Duration : 0:5:22

Technorati Tags: baby, bird, chick, chicken, egg, eggs, hatch, hatching, incubator

Let’s look at the chickens themselves now, and I’ll come back to the chicken coop question later.

There are large chickens like the Orpington and smaller types such as bantams, there are beautiful birds such as the Leghorns but they can be flighty - and then you need to decide whether you are going to go for Chicks and rear them yourself, or broody hens that are ready to lay.

Start by making a list of what you want from your chickens: e.g. good layers, type of eggs, good as pets, good in larger numbers, highly attractive etc. Then you can research the different breeds and start to take a view.

You may also be influenced by what kinds of chicken breeds are available where you live - and which work well in your climate - some are better than others in colder climates, or damp conditions for example. And then there’s the simple matter of supply. if you want broody hens you may want to go and pick them out at the farm, so you’re likely to be limited in the choice available.

Finally - if you want to raise chickens, which breeds are better for beginners.

We’ll be coming back to this subject over the coming months as I work through some of the options.

Technorati Tags: building a chicken coop, chicken breeds

Potty training puppies isn’t a topic you’ll hear many farmers talking about.  With all that’s involved in running a modern day farm, it would be low on the list.

In the city, where dogs spend most of their time inside, potty training is very important.  On a farm, dogs can spend most of their days outside.

The type of dog training for a farm dog depends on whether the dog is going to be a pet or a working dog.  A puppy that is going to be a pet would go through training much like a city dog.

However, a working dog, such as a Shetland Sheepdog (which is a herding dog) would require extensive training.  If you’ve seen the 1995 movie ‘Babe’, you’ll have a good idea of a working dog’s life.

Despite the differences in training, a city dog and a farm dog can still be a person’s best friend.

Technorati Tags: potty training puppies, puppies

1 week ago I got 3 black Orpington bantam pullets (4 months old and put the newcomers in with my Porcelain D’Uccle hen. They all have become comfortable with each other except for 1 of the Orpington birds. We have been building a chicken coop, so they all went in together in the new swanky quarters.

I have not seen her being picked on but she does not eat while the Porcelains are eating, she constantly looks at the ground and now she spends time hiding in a little hut in their hen house. She seems to be quite healthy as they all do.

She may be feeling stressed. Moving from one environment to another is stressful. With a little time, most chickens adjust to a new environment. She could be homesick, so it should pass.

Another possibility could be that she’s just shy. Chickens have distinct personalities just like people and other animals. The way she holds her head down and stays away from the others leads me to believe she could also be naturally
shy. If that’s the case, she’ll probably stay that way - that’s fine as long as she is healthy.

I’ll report back on her progress.

Technorati Tags: black orpington, building a chicken coop

Britons are buying record numbers of Free Range, Barn and Organic Eggs. Research shows shoppers bought 2.04billion of them last year, up from 1.64billion in 2002 (Article from the Daily Mail - 09/08/2006).

With increasing media attention on battery chickens since then, most of the large supermarkets have moved to barn and free range eggs. Waitrose only sell barn and free range. Of course, if you’re keeping chickens at home, either letting them free range or keeping them in a chicken ark that you move around, then you have free range eggs.

if you keep your hens in hen houses with a run, your hens are not ranging free but if you look at the definition below they would count as free range. They may be organic too, if you provide organic food. The important thing about home grown eggs is that you control the conditions you keep your chickens in.

The Benefits of Eating Eggs

Eggs are low in calories and could actually protect against heart disease, breast cancer and eye problems and even help you to lose weight. Eggs are actually good for you. They are rich in nutrients, one egg provides 13 essential nutrients, all in the yolk (egg whites contain albumen, an important source of protein, and no fat). You should keep eggs in the fridge in their box and eat them by the use-by date.

We now know the benefits of eating eggs but does the welfare of the chickens matter?

Eggs are produced in 3 types of production systems.

1) Laying Cage System. Laying cages are the most common method of commercial egg production in the UK - representing around 66% of eggs produced in 2004.

Typically a laying cage system consists of a series of at least three tiers of cages. The cages have sloping mesh floors so that the eggs roll forward out of the reach of the birds to await collection. Droppings pass through the mesh floors onto boards, belts, the floors of the house or into a pit to await removal.

2) Barn system. Around 7% of eggs sold in the UK are produced in the barn system. In the barn system the hen house has a series of perches and feeders at different levels. In the deep litter system the birds are kept in hen houses in which all the floor area should be solid with a litter of straw, wood shavings, sand or turf.

3) Free range system. The free range system accounts for around 27% of eggs produced in the UK. And the Welfare of Laying Hens Directive stipulate that for eggs to be termed free range, hens must have continuous daytime access to runs which are mainly covered with vegetation and with a maximum stocking density of 2,500 birds per hectare. The demand for free-range eggs is also growing by 10 per cent a year. Somerfield will be the first supermarket in the country to switch to selling French free-range eggs. Tesco is also understood to be lining up suppliers on the Continent if it is not able to guarantee supplies at home due to this rising demand.

Technorati Tags: chicken ark, free range eggs, organic eggs

This video shows a fock in Scotland with an interesting flock of rare chickens.

Some of our mixed flock of Scots Greys and ISA Browns doing the chicken shuffle on our croft in Aberdeenshire, NE Scotland. The Scots Grey is an endangered breed with around 200 breeding hens left.

Duration : 0:1:30

Technorati Tags: Aberdeenshire, Brown, chicken, Endangered chicken breeds, Grey

more backyard fun

Duration : 0:0:18

Technorati Tags: building a chicken coop, chickens, Keeping chickens, pet

This is part 1 of a new series called, “From Chick To Chicken.” The chicks we have in the small brooder consist of the few I purchased at Tractor Supply, and some came from the local livestock sale, and they were hatched by a big breeder.

Duration : 0:2:37

Technorati Tags: brooder, building a chicken coop, Chicks