Baby Chickens for Sale in Havre De Grace, Maryland
Baby Chickens for Sale in Havre De Grace, Maryland
What Chickens Taught Our Kids About Responsibility
One of our goals as parents is to teach our children responsibility and accountability. As organic dairy farmers in southeastern Minnesota, we have a strong work ethic and feel that staying in bed until 7am is sleeping in!
Summer vacation was looming. We didn't want our daughters (ages 12 & 9) to just hang around without having something productive to do each morning that would get them out of bed. Since our milking setup wasn't conducive to having them help, we needed another option. My husband came up with the idea of having them raise chickens. The girls would do the work, market the birds, and keep the money to put toward fun activities with their friends and school clothes for the fall. Besides giving them a reason to get up in the morning, we felt that our plan would also help them learn some basic money skills.
We started with 300 day-old chicks. My husband, Chuck, and the girls picked them up from the feed store. They carefully dipped the beak of each bird in water and set them on the floor lined with newspaper. The heat from the brooder stove kept their furry little yellow bodies warm.
Each morning and late afternoon, the girls would go down and take care of their chickens. They cleaned the waterers and filled them with fresh, cool water. They poured food into the feeders scattered around the room. They watched the little birds to make sure they were doing okay.
Every few days for the first couple of weeks they had to remove the soiled newspaper and replace it with fresh, clean newspaper. As the weeks went by, the birds grew. Finally they were ready for butchering. We loaded the live birds into crates and took them to a USDA processing facility that was several miles from our home. The next day we went back and picked up the dressed (cleaned), frozen birds.
The girls went to several networking (BNI) meetings with me to market their birds. They brought a bird to show, talked about their project, described how tasty the birds were, and handed out flyers for ordering. They learned how to give a specific 60-second commercial that made the audience drool (especially when they talked about chicken cooked on the grill with BBQ sauce). They sold over 230 birds through word-of-mouth marketing.
The next year we ordered 600 birds. The process was the same but the girls weren't as excited. It took more coaxing (and occasional threats) to get them to do the chores. To be honest, it would have been easier for me to have done the chores myself, but that wasn't teaching them what I wanted them to learn.
The next year, my husband ordered 900 birds without consulting our daughters or me. Our daughters rebelled and refused to take care of them. They found it more fun to trap gophers because they made good money and they got to DRIVE out in the fields. Driving to make money was so much cooler than walking down to the chicken barn! I ended up doing the chicken chores. That was the last year we had chickens.
Our family learned some great lessons from this experience. These lessons apply both in life and in business. We learned:
- There is an adrenaline rush and higher energy level when we are introduced to something new. It's usually temporary.
- Getting support from the people who are supposed to be helping us is critical. If they don't want to do it, it either won't get done or won't get done well. There is massive effort and energy involved in trying to convince someone to do something on a regular or consistent basis if they don't want to do it. This applies whether it's our kids, spouse, or employees!
- Be aware of the trends (or the temperament of kids in this case) and how the changes will affect us and what we want to accomplish. If the chicken barn had been in a different location where they would have had to DRIVE to it, they probably would have had chickens one more year.
- Know when to move on!
I love sharing this story and then drawing comparisons on how it applies as business professionals and speakers. The audience resonates strongly and remembers the story for years to come. Think about your own life - what stories can you bring to life from the stage that can be associated with you and remembered for years to come?
Sue
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Baby Chickens Under Lights in Havre De Grace, Maryland
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Havre De Grace Maryland, 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. Havre De Grace Maryland also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in Havre De Grace Maryland, 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 Havre De Grace MD.Baby Chicks Male in Havre De Grace, Maryland
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Havre De Grace Maryland 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
Havre De Grace Maryland * 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 Havre De Grace
Maryland * 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 Sale in Havre De Grace, Maryland
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 Havre De Grace Maryland 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 Havre De Grace, Maryland Baby chicks are really charming and tough to stand up to, yet it's ideal to prepare for their arrival before you obtain them. Prepare initially by compiling not only the proper products, but likewise the correct understanding to look after them. Raising baby chicks is reasonably straightforward, you merely should offer them with the following: A clean and warm environment Plenty of food and also water Interest and also love Habitat Your environment can be an easy box, aquarium, pet cat service provider, or guinea porker cage. Line it with old towels and coverings (without any loose strings!) to begin, as well as after a couple of weeks use straw over newspaper. Keep in mind: Avoid using only newspaper or other slipper surface areas-- or your chicks legs could grow malformed. You likewise need something to provide food as well as water in, such as a chicken feeder and water meal from the feed shop, or a pickle container cover for food and also a pet dog bird water dispenser from a family pet shop. Likewise, as the chicks get older you can present a perch right into the environment to get them trained on setting down. Heat To keep your chicks warm you need to provide them with a heat source. This could be as easy as a 100 watt light bulb in a reflective clamp style lamp from a hardware shop, or an infrared reptile warmth bulb likewise work very well (my recommendation). Chicks require this warmth 24/7 till their downy fluff is changed with plumes (which can occupy to 2 months). The recently hatched require a temperature level between 90 and also 100 levels, and each week this can be lowered by around 5 degrees or so. The heat resource need to be on simply one side of the cage to permit chicks a range of temperature levels. The chicks are your finest thermometer- if they are hiding in the contrary corner of your heat lamp, you have to lower the temperature. If they are surrounding each various other under the heat (not merely curling up), you need to put some heat. Home cleaning Cleanliness is key and it maintains your chicks healthy. Make sure to transform the bed linen often and always give clean food and also water Food and water. Chicks grow really quick which calls for plenty of clean food and also water. Supply sufficient whatsoever times and examine usually to prevent thirsty and also hungry chicks. Chick food is various compared to adult chicken food, and it comes in both medicated and non-medicated selections. Feed chick food for the initial 2 months, then change to a raiser food (~ 17 % healthy protein) for an additional 2 months, then to a slightly reduced healthy protein feed or a layer feed (if you have layers). Soil Some chicks prefer to get a running start on taking dirt bathrooms, while others won't take up that task until they are older. If you have the area in your chick room, introduce a tray of sand or filth for them to bathe in. Focus as well as love There are a few advantages to spending quality time with your chicks. To start with, they will most likely bond with you and not escape as adults. Second, if you analyze your chicks daily and also see their actions, you could catch ailment or various other problems earlier. Keep an eye out for wheezing, limping, or various other harmful signs. Be sure to likewise check out their poop, as diarrhea can cause matted feathers and also obstructed cloaca. Finally, it is very important to keep an eye out for social issues, such as the littlest chick getting teased. Empty nest syndrome So your chicks are currently fully feathered as well as its time for them to leave the safety of your home and relocate outside right into a coop. Take a look at our part on chicken cages to learn more regarding cages as well as appropriate cage environments.Baby Chickens Care Baby Chickens How To Care
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