In a few weeks, 26 chicks will invade our house. I have never personally raised chickens before and I’m getting a little nervous. Today I thought I would spout out some random chicken facts so that I feel prepared for the invasion. Um, right.
So, here are some things about chickens that I didn’t know a year ago.
Bantam: a mini chicken. Usually a breed of chicken has a full sized and a bantam size.
Wattle: the little red flap of skin that hangs under a chicken’s chin. (I always think of Allie McBeal. Does anyone else remember the guy on that show who had a wattle obsession?)
Girl chickens (hens) do not require a boy chicken (rooster) to lay eggs. They can lay without him around – the eggs just aren’t fertile and can’t turn into baby chicks.
People at the feed store look at you funny if you refer to hens and roosters as girl and boy chickens.
Some birds are better at laying eggs so they are referred to as egg layers. Others taste better so they are called meat birds. Some do both jobs pretty well and are given the title dual purpose. And yet others just stand around looking pretty so they are called exhibition or show birds.
Heritage chickens are breeds of chickens that are older and usually haven’t been specifically bred to increase egg laying or meat production. Often they are considered dual purpose.
Meat birds have different labels depending on when they are butchered. Broilers or fryers are usually butchered younger (the age depends on the breed) and typically weigh less than 3.5 pounds. Roasters are 4 or 5 pounds while stewing chickens are the oldest and weigh the most. They are usually laying hens who are done laying. They need to be cooked for a long time to soften up their tough meat.
An old biddy is an affectionate name for an old laying hen. It is NOT a good nickname for your wife. It CAN be used when talking about crabby women – as long as you are a woman yourself and the person you’re talking about isn’t around.
The term “sexed” does not mean what you might think. (And I’m not telling you what I thought it meant.) It means getting the gender of chicken that you want when you order from a hatchery (typically females if you want laying hens).
Ordering chicks “straight run” means getting both males and females. You can usually do this with meat birds because you will butcher them before the hens start laying eggs or the rooster get too, well, rooster-y.
So now that I’ve proven my abilities for listing random chicken facts, I feel much better about my poultry-raising skills.
Um, right.
Thanks to my dad for the chicken pictures and for fielding all my chicken-related questions!
Other posts that might be of interest:
Baby Chickens How To Raise in
Stevinson, California
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Stevinson California,
including Sussex Chickens, Welsummer Chickens, Turken Chickens and more.
Be sure to check out the Bargain Specials, as you can combine different
egg layers in smaller amounts and buy as an assortment. Stevinson
California also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in
Stevinson California, bantams for sale, ducks for sale, geese for sale,
turkeys for sale, guinea for sale, peafowl for sale, pheasant for sale,
chukar partridge for sale, bobwhite for sale, many different breeds of
baby chicks for sale in Stevinson CA.
Baby Chickens Habitat in
Stevinson, California
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Stevinson California
catalog is a yearly traditions in many houses. My kids and I eagerly await
the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. We love looking at all the cool and
different chicken breeds available. Catalogs are free so head on over to
their site and request one if you are interested.
Typically hatcheries online offer both standard breeds
and bantams. Bantams are fun hardy little chickens, they lay tiny eggs
that kids especially love collecting. Bantams typically weigh less than 2
pounds when full grown. Just like ordering anything online there are pros
and cons to ordering baby chicks online. Pros of buying baby chicks in
Stevinson California * Big Selection - If you are wanting a large
variety of different chicken breeds and egg colors, you will find the best
selection at an online hatchery. * Both Bantams and full sized chickens
available * You get to choose what sex you want. If you want a mixture of
both male and female then choosing a "straight run" will save you money
and you will get a mixture of male and female chicks. You can also choose
all males or all females too. * Weekly specials. Hatcheries have sales on
chicks, you are likely to get a good deal if you are flexible with the
breeds you are wanting. Cons of buying baby chicks in Stevinson
California * Order early to get the best selection. Certain breeds sell
out fast, sometimes as early as 6 months in advance of shipping! If you
are wanting a certain breed it's best to order your chicks in the fall
before their orders sell out.
Baby Chickens Bedding in
Stevinson, California
Quantity - you must order a certain number of chicks. Typically hatcheries
will require you buy a minimum of 25 chicks at a time. The number is
necessary for the chicks survival during shipping. All 25 chicks are put
in one small box without heat. They are crowded in the box and produce
enough body heat to arrive in good shape. * The wait - If you choose to
buy chicks from a feed store you will have them the same day but if you
choose to go with a hatchery you have to wait until they are ready to ship
and then wait for the chicks to arrive. Ordering baby chicks online in
Stevinson California is easy and has always been a very pleasant
experience of me. It can be a little frustrating waiting for the chicks
but it's so worth the wait. When the post office calls and you hear all
those little "cheeps" or "chirps" in the background you'll know the wait
was worth it! How to Care for your new baby chickens in Stevinson,
California Baby chicks are really
cute as well as
hard to stand up to,
yet it's finest to plan for their
arrival prior to you get them. Prepare initially
by gathering not only the
correct materials, yet
additionally the correct
expertise to care for
them. Raising baby chicks is reasonably
basic, you merely need
to provide them with the following: A
clean as well as warm
habitat A lot of food and water Focus as well as
love Environment Your environment can be a
simple box, fish tank,
feline provider, or guinea
pig cage. Line it with old towels and
coverings (without loose
strings!) to start, and also after a
couple of weeks utilize straw over newspaper.
Keep in mind: Avoid utilizing just
paper or various other slipper
surface areas-- or your chicks legs can grow
malformed. You likewise need
something to provide food and
water in, such as a chicken feeder and also water
meal from the feed store, or a pickle jar
lid for food as well as an animal bird water dispenser from an animal shop. Additionally, as the chicks get
older you could introduce a perch
right into the environment to get them
educated on perching. Heat To
maintain your chicks heat you should
provide them with a warmth resource.
This could be as easy as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp style light from an equipment shop, or an infrared reptile warmth
light bulb additionally work very
well (my
suggestion). Chicks require this
heat 24/7 up until their downy fluff is
changed with plumes (which could take up to two months). The freshly
hatched require a temperature level
between 90 and 100 levels,
and also each week this could
be decreased by
about 5 degrees or
so. The heat resource ought
to get on just one side of the cage
to enable chicks a variety of
temperatures. The chicks are your finest
thermostat- if they are hiding in the
opposite edge of your heat
lamp, you need to
lower the temperature. If
they are surrounding each other under the
heat (not simply curling up),
you have to add some heat.
Housekeeping
Tidiness is vital as
well as it maintains your chicks healthy and
balanced. Be sure to alter
the bed linen
usually and also
always supply clean
food and also water Food and water.
Chicks expand very quick
which needs lots of clean
food and water. Offer
sufficient whatsoever times and examine
frequently to
stop parched and
hungry chicks. Chick food is different than grown-up chicken food, as well as it can be found in both medicated as well as non-medicated varieties. Feed chick food for the
very first 2 months, then
change to a raiser food (~ 17 %
protein) for another 2 months,
and after that to a somewhat
reduced healthy protein feed or a layer feed
(if you have layers). Soil Some chicks want
to obtain a head start on taking
filth baths, while others will not use up that activity until they are
older. If you have the room in your chick
unit, present a tray of sand or
filth for them to wash in.
Focus and love There are a
few advantages to spending quality time with your chicks. To start
with, they will certainly more than likely bond with you and also
not escape as grownups. Second, if you
examine your chicks daily and
enjoy their actions, you could
catch illness or other issues earlier. Watch out for hissing, hopping, or
various other harmful
indications. Make sure to
likewise take a look at
their poop, as looseness of the bowels can result in matted plumes and blocked cloaca.
Finally, it is important to watch out for social issues, such as the
littlest chick getting badgered. Vacant nest syndrome So your
chicks are currently totally feathered
and its time for them to leave the
safety of your residence
and relocate outside right into a cage. Look into our
section on chicken cages to get more information
about cages as well as
correct cage habitats.
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