I am interested in raising some chickens, partly for eggs and partly for

[grannylib]

chicken. Anyone have any tips?? I am not looking to make money on this, just to supply my family. I live on the edge of a small (300 people) community, out in the country, and have about an acre of yard and 2.3 acres of wooded riverland. What kind of structure do they need? Feed? Care? I have checked out some stuff on-line but would really appreciate advice from someone who's done it.
Thanks!

[SmokingJacket]

1. This is what I'm going to do when I get chickens: Build a MOAT!

http://www.makezine.com/blog/archive/2006/02/how_to_make_a_chicken_moat.html

Makes such good sense to let the chickens surround the garden -- keeps bugs and groundhogs and deer out.

[grannylib]

2. I hear Guinea hens eat ticks...that'd be great for my area of Minnesota

[madrchsod]

15. guinea hens are really cool to watch...

they sort of have that "look at me" strut...

[cornermouse]

17. Guineas are a combination of paranoid-psychotic.

And yes they are funny to watch. They also do a good job on ticks. Just don't waste your money by buying adults and expect them to stick around. They don't. You have to start with babies so they know where home is. And if you can find some that a hen has hatched, get the group because they tend to stay in mama's vicinity.

[Lisa]

18. other birds with a cool walk -- Indian runner ducks!

my friend's husband always breaks up laughing when their six ducks come hurrying by.

(scroll down to the link with a movie of one "running")
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/Ducks/BRKDucks.html

[Bluerthanblue]

20. Guinea hens tend to roost in trees, which

keeps them safer than regular hens, but they aren't very good laying birds- Their feathers are really beautiful (white polka dots) and their voices are a real crack up- they sound very exotic- they DO make good 'watch dogs' too- letting you know when anything unusual comes into the area)
I was raised with chickens, sheep, cows, pigs, goats- A nice small flock of Barred Rock or Rhode Island Red hens would give you good eggs, and if you were looking for meat (we never ate our birds- they were egg layers only) they are not to bony- Bantams make great small farm egg layers, they are small, easy keepers, come in lots of attractive colors and are cute too. Auaracana (sp?) chickens lay blue eggs, and are larger birds like the Barred Rocks.

A good fenced in yard, and a small tight coop are best- Here in NH we fought fox, coyote, racoon, bobcat, and domestic dogs to keep our birds safe. Shutting them in at night was essential- an 4x8 coop with nest boxes, and a yard would be ok for a dozen birds-

Good luck- I really enjoyed having a home flock- A dozen hens will provide more than enough eggs for you, and to sell, or give away, when they are laying well-

peace,
blu

[LWolf]

31. I used to have hens actually free-ranging in the garden;

the only things I lost were low-growing tomatoes and un-covered strawberries. They would follow me around and devour any pests I picked off the plants and tossed to them. :D

[mom cat]

3. Check out this novel idea: Chicken tractors!

http://www2.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/fowl/tractor.htm

and

http://www.permaculture.net/PDI%20Web/samples/chicken.pdf

[jobycom]

4. We had chickens when I was a kid

Not much to it once you have some type of structure. You throw feed out for them, you fill water buckets (there are certain kinds for chickens). You bury them when something kills them. You collect the eggs everyday. If you want baby chickens, you need a rooster.


The hardest part is the containment. YOu need a pen with a high fence, or even a roof. You can keep them in small cages, but you won't feel as good about yourself. The pen needs a coop. Most of your "chicken time" will be spent repairing the fences and coop, where some animal got in, or a chicken got out.

Check up on predators in your area, to see what kind of pen you'll need. We just had a coop off the ground, and nothing could really get in it. I had friends who had foxes nearby, and they had to lock the chickens up each night. They still lost a bunch of them. But there are different style coops to keep out different predators, though they are all mostly just little sheds.

Oh yeah, put it in an out-of-the way part of the yard. It will stink. You will have to clean it and find a use for chicken poop, so it won't contaminate ground water or streams.

That's all I got. It was a long time ago. I'm a vegetarian now, and eating chickens I helped raise probably played some role in that.

[sam sarrha]

19. put the coop down wind,.. they like certain table scraps.. just

google chicken coops.. i raised 50 chicks form day old chicks when i was 5 and bought my first bicycle.. i was a kid and had a lot of free time.. i only lost 1. but we had real chicken houses..500 to a house 4 houses. there are different chickens, i dont like the white ones, if you want good big brown eggs and big chickens, get the big red ones Rhode Island Reds, the Rosters of any breed might be a problem, they can be really aggressive.. we had to just kick the crap out of ours, they learn to keep their distance, or use a long stick and poke em good, a pump spray bottle with straight vinegar, or you will have one on your head drawing blood.. but i would just see if there was a feed store, and check with the FFA groups at the schools..Future Farmers of America.. they have information and know what is best for your area, feed stores can help you a lot.

they take some care if you have a nice Coop you might dust them for mites and lice once in a while, i think they use diotamatious earth../spl/ compost the manure, .. keep it clean.

you dont need to many for just eggs , and they lay clutches and you can end up with a lot of chickens.. my grandmother used to kill 2 at a time, she grabbed them by the heads and sorta rotated here hands with a snap and it took their heads off.. she did a dozen at a time, plucked em cut em up and froze what we didn't eat.. we had an 8 cow grade B dairy.. we milked by hand and put the milk can in a barrel of water under a tree by the road and a truck picked it up.. ahh the good old days

[morningglory]

23. Coop needs a chicken wire "roof" to keep the varmints out. And a

shelter (minimal) to roost under in thunderstorms and nest boxes to lay in.

[EST]

5. Almost any kind of structure that keeps the rain out and

gives them a chance to roost up off the ground should be o k.
These days, protection from marauding foxes and skunks, as well as neighborhood dogs, is essential.

If you want good heavy eggs, rather than the runny things you find ot the grocery, chickens need a bit of free range and places to dig. The dirt they dig up, along with the tiny critters living in it, is a good supplement plus it helps to keep any body lice under control.

Here, hawks are a real problem, sometimes even for big chickens, so a light wire roof over their fenced in area is a must. The hawks will kill the chickens but, since they are too heavy to carry off, leave them where they kill them, seldom eating any.

Chickens, properly cared for, are a delight to have around and more than reward you for the time and expense of their keep.

[sandnsea]

6. PM Tallahasseegrannie

I know she raised chickens because she mentioned butchering them because she was worried about bird flu. Personally, I'd go for rabbits over chickens, I think they're easier. Coops with chicken wire bottoms, pellets, keep the babies away from the males, and you have fresh rabbit about every 12 weeks or so. No eggs, but I'm not a big egg person anyway. Good luck!!

[TreasonousBastard]

7. I didn't so it, but my grandfather and a brother did...

you don't need much space-- 20x30 feet is more than enough with maybe half of it the shed and the rest of it the yard for them to scratch around in, depending on how many chickens you have. Could be lot smaller for just a few chickens. and the shed can be made from any scrap lying around.

The yard is fenced with chicken wire (what else?) to keep the cats, dogs, and foxes out as much as to keep the chickens in. Cats probably can't kill a grown chicken, but they can mess things up in there if they get in. Foxes and racoons WILL kill the chickens. Might need stronger fencing if the critters are really hungry for chicken.

What to feed them? Commercial chicken feed is cheap, and corn or pretty much any grains around can supplement it. I hear some chicken factories use feed containing arsenic, which ends up in the chickens, so watch the commercial stuff and try not to get a deal on Frank Perdue's leftover feed.

That's all I know, but I hope it's a start. Good luck.

[EST]

8. As an interesting aside:

One of the things I used to do was play "chicken." I often had reason to work with the animals late in the day; we also raised rabbits and goats, as well as a huge garden. Once the chickens go to roost, they are quite reluctant to move until daylight so they can be bothered a little with no problem.

Each chicken will make a little sound if you pet them while they are roosting and the sounds are different. As a musician, I would figure out which chicken made which note and could then play simple songs, like "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," on them--thus, "playing chicken!"

Simple entertainment for simple minds, I suppose, but it amused me and the children.

[uppityperson]

12. that is funny. I have 1 chicken that talks a different language

ever since she was a chick she talked different. It took a while to figure out who was talking morse code (dah dot dah dah) rather than the usual look look look, but Lucy and Gretel did (they were the only 2 hamburgs I had, so not sure if it is a breed thing or if they just had an odd accent).

Never thought of playing them. that is funny, must try one night.

[Lisa]

16. I have got to try that! "playing chicken" ...

There have been times when I've had the flock around me and heard a kind of murmur (you need to have a certain-sized flock before it's audible, and the birds have to be old enough) -- but that's during the daytime. I'd thought it would make an interesting background sound for music, kind of like the "white noise" that used to be popular.

I'm going to ask my friend if we can try this, next time I'm over there. I gave them a bunch of "Bovan Browns" I'd hatched out, last year ... they're so tame, what with the children lugging them around as pets, that they might even be playable when they're awake!

[Lisa]

9. I used to chicken-sit for a friend who lived out of town

They had a couple of acres -- when they first moved in, the place had a small henhouse (like for about a dozen chickens) and a run. They were planning on having more chickens than that, so they built a new shed and enclosed an area, about the size of a city-type backyard, with some small trees in it (for roosting) in a wire fence. The trees were holly, which really liked the extra nutrients, and produced a lot of berries (my friends would clip the trees around Christmas, and sell the holly for decorating). It more than made up for the holes the chickens dug in their fenced yard. A water hose attached to the shed was useful for filling up the flock's water containers (buckets and even an old bathtub).

They kept the old henhouse for birds that were unwell, or when they wanted to breed a particular hen and rooster. I know that from time to time they have lost a few birds to eagles and hawks (the people next door, and the lady across town with the ducks, put protective netting over top of their run), but they are just putting up with it. Some other friends who live near them have a flock as well, and they say it's not been a major problem. They built the chickens a perfectly good house, but a large contingent hangs out under the porch (possibly because the kids sneak them treats?).

The first couple I mentioned, get their feed from the local feed mill (which does organic feed and various mixes for layers, fattening, etc.) -- went through a sack every 3-4 days but that was for 50-60 birds -- the hens also got kitchen scraps, and had the run of the yard. Some of them would go into the garden as well. (It turns out that chickens don't eat as much as ducks ... I was brooding ducklings for a while, and was amazed that the chickens would "eat like birds" while the ducks would shovel it down!)

There are some good books out there (e.g. Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens, and even the Lee Valley Tools farm reprint series) which have some plans for building various-sized henhouses and runs. Your local 4-H club would also have plans (see if they have a booth at the local fall fairs, which should be starting next month?).

I don't have my own place for keeping animals (alas), but I have hatched out poultry for other people in a tabletop-sized incubator. It sounds like you might be looking for one of the older "dual purpose" varieties of chickens. These days, commercial poultry production tends to focus on either eggs or meat -- the layers are too bony to be good eating, while the "meat birds" don't produce many eggs (and generally don't live more than a year or so anyway). The older types of chicken were meant to be used for both eggs and meat -- not commercially "efficient" but it does mean that the roosters can be fattened and eaten (rather than simply being "thrown away" as chicks, as happens to the egg breeds these days). Also these older breeds are in danger of extinction, which is a pity because they tend to be hardier, better at foraging, and prettier than the standard Leghorn/Sussex or Cornish/Rock crosses (used for eggs and meat respectively, by the big farms).

http://www.albc-usa.org/wtchlist.htm#chickens
--more info on endangered chickens

http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/BRKPoultryPage.html#Chickens
--pictures of different breeds

http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/BRKPoultrySites.html#coops
--more coop plans

http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html
--detailed info on breed characteristics (hardiness, feeding, ease of handling, etc.)


If you live in a cool damp area (like the Pacific Northwest), may I put in a plug for ducks as well? They seem to be better at withstanding harsh weather (better insulation -- chickens actually originated in the subtropics) and don't require as much housing. Some varieties are as productive, in terms of eggs, as some chicken breeds.


p.s. I forgot to add about the crowing. If you have roosters, they will start crowing early in the morning, and keep on doing it all day! If you have neighbors close by, you might want to check with them to see if they're cool with this (or just do without roosters and buy only female chicks, or cull any males when they are still immature).

[uppityperson]

10. chickens are easy and fun

you can spend as much or as little as you want and they are very fun to have. You do not need a rooster unless you want to make fertilized eggs to hatch. You need a place for them to sleep at night that is safe from whatever predators you have (chickens don't see in the dark, will sit and let something pick them up and kill them). Feed stores exist that sell chicken food, plus they love scraps. There is organic food, different types, and non-organic. My chickens do best with pellet food (as opposed to crumble), they waste less and eat more. Chickens need water and sun shade during hot days.

Meat chickens are different from egg chickens. There are "dual purpose", but if you want to do a bunch of meat birds, raise, butcher, freeze, get meat ones since they grow big fast and then you are done with them.

I have barred rocks (older breed, good layers), faverolles (european breed with feathered legs, ok dual purpose and a beautiful rooster), americanas (supposed to lay green eggs, have laid 1 in 4 yrs, waiting for racoons to take them away), silkies (fuzzy fuzzy birds, good moms, lots of personality), hamburg (looks wild, talks a different chicken language "dah dot dah dah" rather than "look look look", lays little but I like her personality), light bhrama (black lab of chickens, big, doofusy, decent layer). My favorites are the silkies, the bhrama and the hamburg.

They are easy, you can build very nice chicken house, or just throw together 1 that keeps out the rain and predators.

[morningglory]

25. I like miniature bantums. They are flighty and can elude predators. The

roosters are small and won't wake you up with loud crowing. You can barely hear them. Also, they eat bugs like crazy, but are too small to dig up a newly planted pear tree. Chickens investigate any strange dirt in their area, like nursery plants. They think they have not picked through the dirt to eat all the bugs out, and a regular sized chicken can dig up a tree. Have to put a couple of brick bats around a new plant.

[cornermouse]

11. Chickens.

Structure? Critter proof and a dog that doesn't bother chickens loose in the yard to run around, bark at, and persuade predators (raccoons and possums usually) to go elsewhere. There are also hawks and owls to watch out for.

Feed? Scratch or egg laying formula. Egg laying formula does make a difference-they do lay better while on it, scratch grain is cheaper. Medicated chick starter for babies. If you order from a hatchery and weather isn't warm, get a heat lamp to provide necessary warmth (they need very warm temps for a few days) and vitamins that they would normally get from the sun. If mama hatches them out, you probably don't have to worry other than making sure they still have some access to chick starter.

Care? If you order from a hatchery, get the Marek's vaccination. It's well worth the cost.

If your structure has electricity, put in a light on a timer. Chickens lay according to increase of light due to longer days and you can manipulate their laying season. I'm not sure you actually make them lay more eggs as much as just schedule when they start laying them. Longer days = eggs. Shorter days = less eggs. Moulting = no eggs till they stop moulting and get their feathers back.

[Warpy]

13. My granny raised them in the inner city and my next door neighbor

has a pair of laying hens here in the inner city. Roosters are NOISY, so you might want to check with neighbors if you want fertilized eggs. There's one somewhere in my area, I hear him when I'm out for my early walks. I like to hear him crow. Other people may not.

There are a lot of good websites out there, and http://www.gatewaytovermont.com/thefarm/chickens.htm will get you started. Rodale press had a great book out on small farm animals, chickens included, that a lot of friends have used. It may still be in print, although I couldn't find it at Amazon. I did find http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1931993483/sr=1-24/qid=1153694654/ref=sr_1_24/104-3834163-4447941?ie=UTF8&s=books

Chickens are unfussy critters and easy to raise. As I recall, feather mites were a reasonably frequent pest and they do need a certain amount of vet care to thrive. You'll also have to be able to off the old girls when they get too old to lay, hope you're up for that.

[madrchsod]

14. you need a small coop of some sort..

good ventilation and security cause you need to keep them cool and keep the critters out .some good metal waterers and feeders and you`re pretty much set to go. you can buy chicks or older birds both are pretty easy to raise. now if you really want to get crazy but a couple of geese...they make really good "watch dogs" are fairly friendly if you raise them from goslings. biggest draw back is that they shit all over....check the web or the libary for all the details. if i didn`t live in the city i`d have chickens,geese ,and ducks again...they are really fun to have around.

[mzteris]

21. I have a friend who does this

do you mind if I give her your email address or something? She's not a DU'er...

[lastknowngood]

22. Here you all you neet to know. great stuff if you want more info pm me.

http://www.backyardchickens.com/media/ps-5250.pdf
http://www.backyardchickens.com/media/l-1351.pdf
http://www.backyardchickens.com/media/L-5323.pdf

[grannylib]

24. THANK YOU all so much! My husband thinks I'm crazy...but I am really

eager to grow more of our own food, and to use natural fertilizers (like chicken shit!) in our gardens, do more composting, mix veggies/fruits in with the flowers, tear up the lawn and grow prairie plants...

I'm sick of commercialism, limp veggies, pale fruits, poisoned runoff, all that...

Am I crazy???

I'm gonna try it. Chickens! Eggs! Veggies! Shit! Never been a farm girl, but hey...ya gotta start somewhere, right???

[cornermouse]

26. For heirloom veggie seeds.

among other things. ;-)

http://www.sandhillpreservation.com/

[uppityperson]

27. Only name the chickens you are NOT going to ever eat

Once you name them it is more difficult to eat them. Also, if you want to tell them apart, get a few of a couple different breeds. That way you can also experience the differences which is fun too.

[LWolf]

28. Hi, grannylib

from another liberal chicken-keeping granny!

I actually tried to respond to this when you first posted, but my 'puter, having problems, would not upload the post. So here goes, again:

I don't know what your climate is like. Mine has hot summers, hard, frozen winters. I have an enclosed coop for icy winter nights, with electricity so that I can use a heat lamp or water heater. I move the water into the coop in the winter in the naive belief that the heater will cost less to run than if I left it outside.

My coop has a low door for them to enter and exit, a person-door for me to enter and exit, and two high poles to roost on. It also has 3 windows, which I cover with plastic during the winter to keep the wind out. There is plenty of ventilation up there on the metal roof.

My chickens have a smallish (20X20 yard with 4 ft high wood fence, topped and roofed with chicken wire. This yard also has some small, hand-built stalls, because a previous owner kept goats in there, too. That's where I keep food and water under a roof, but still with open ventilation. This yard opens into a similarly sized yard with no roof, and that opens into a pasture/orchard that will someday be a garden. They free range out there and come into roost at night, when it's hot, or when they see me coming. Or when I turn my horses into the orchard.

I feed them lay pellets, and keep a hopper full of oystershell which they don't do much with. I will ocasionally throw scratch somewhere in the orchard where weeds or cheat grass is coming on, and they keep it well-trimmed.

I have 8 hens and 2 roosters, and have recently put canvas "saddles" on my hens so they can grow some feathers back on their backs; the roosters are very conscd she was trying to adopt ALL the eggs every day. She now has 2 chicks at her feet, and is a good mom to them. They'll be dinner if they turn out to be roosters.

I love hearing them, wouldn't eat a store-bought egg if you paid them, and find them to be soothing company, unless I have to catch them for some reason. ;)

Let us know how your adventure with chickens goes!

[LWolf]

29. (delete) computer problems...ugh! n/t

[LWolf]

30. (delete) computer problems...ugh! n/t

[Tsiyu]

32. Awesome!

You are in a perfect setup for a small flock.

I just let one flock of six loose to wander the yard. I am easily bored, but my chickens can keep me amused :) for hours. :shrug:

Last year we were overrun with chickens and had virtually no tick problems.

This year, the chickens are mostly confined and all bug populations have increased. :itchy smilie:

And even if they weren't such good insect/snall snake control, the eggs are so worth it. Everything I bake with my hen's eggs tastes better. They're also good to barter for veggies and jellies or to give when someone gives you something they've grown.

Here's a site I've been reading:

http://www.managingwholes.com/poultry-pens.htm


Range growing is increasing in popularity as Americans realize that commercial growers produce eggs in less than optimum conditions. Pasture-raised (they eat short grasses,weeds, insects) chickens lay healthier eggs.

This site explains the concept and offers ideas for housing.

We use a cage a neighbor made for our second flock. It is six sides wire covered with a tarp with hay for litter. I don't reallly prefer it and need to rework some other cages for this flock.

The first flock is in a converted chainlink kennel, covered with chicken wire and a tarp peaked to let the rain run off. I like this cage - 6x6x6' - because it's easy to move and has no floor. Both cages also have roosts - the chickens like to be elevated on a branch when they sleep - one is a big tree limb and the second some rebar run through the wires of the cage.

We move both cages every few months, spreading the old hay where we need grass to grow and adding fresh hay.

Daily chores are watering and feeding in the am and collecting eggs thoughout the day. Once or twice a week we let the flocks out (seperately). They range the property - but no further amazingly - and return to their cage at night. Then we close them up tight.

I would buy a few pullets from a local if you just want a few eggs. You will know if the person is a good grower if the hens look bright and healthy, and the place seems clean. You can also put your name up at the local feed/pet store and find a source there.

Baby chickes are fun but a huge hassle. Eventually I will get an incubator but to start out some older hens would be easier to keep cool/warm, away from predators, in the cage (baby chicks can get through anything).

So there's my offering, in case you print this out for later.

Hope you enjoy :hi:



More sites:

Good link on nutrition:

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/FeaturedArticle/FATopic.asp?AREA=Freerange&Display=94

ATTRA:

http://attra.ncat.org/livestock.html#Poultry

[OnionPatch]

33. So many chicken owners here at DU!

I got my first chickens last year. They ran free on our acre at first. We lost one to a bobcat and a couple to coyotes. This spring I got several more and had them all in a 15x15 chain link enclosure but I noticed that my eggs weren't as deep orange as before and figured out it was because there wasn't enough room in that setup to keep them in fresh greens. So I put up some fence and now they have about a half an acre to roam. We used five-foot high welded-wire fencing and clipped the chicken's wings so they can't fly over it. At night, we go out and close their coop up after they've gone in to roost so nothing can get to them while they're sleeping. So far we haven't lost any this year. There are tons of hawks around here but we've never had one even attempt to bother the chickens. The coyotes still sometimes peek through the fence with a frustrated look on their faces but none have been able to get in. The bobcat came back but I let my dogs out to chase it away and it hasn't been back since.

Good luck and post some pics. If you have any questions or problems, looks like plenty of people here could be of help.

[missingthebigdog]

34. Just do it!

My husband and I debated getting chickens for years, and finally did this summer. They are a JOY!

We ordered from 25 chicks from McMurray Hatchery- I still can't get over the fact that you can buy live chickens by mail. We got them on July fourth, and unfortunately lost several in the first few days; they had a rough go in transit. I kept them in a large aquarium next to my desk initially, and loved their little personalities, but not the smell. They are outside now, in a 8X12 portable pen my husband built. It is the same concept as the tractors we looked at online, with no bottom so the chickens can eat the grass and bugs. We move it every few days to keep the grass alive. So far we have kept it where I can see it from the window over my desk; I am somewhat overprotective.

We are coverting a shed into a chicken house, and will fence in a large run for them. We let them out in the yard every evening for an hour or so, and they file back into their pen as the sun goes down. We love watching them, and can't wait until they start laying. I have no current intention to slaughter them; they will lay eggs, then retire as pets.

[Lou123]

35. Raising Chickens

http://successwithpoultry.blogspot.com has loads of information about keeping chickens (also a free monthly ezine).

[Dover]

36. Chicken fans MUST see the documentary film - The Natural History Of The Chicken

by Mark Lewis. You'll become a fan of all his animal films, but this one is wonderful. You will never look at chickens the same again.

Probably the best and most charming documentary on ANY subject I've ever seen. It originally aired on PBS and quickly attracked a huge following.

Hilariously funny, deeply moving, and informative. And in many ways these intimately upclose and
true 'chicken stories' are as much about the humans as they are about the chickens themselves.
This unique film is a must-see for children and adults alike.

The DVD is available to rent or buy...OR it looks like it's also available in 6 parts on Youtube as well!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkxO91TLKVg

[LWolf]

37. oops again; wrong thread!