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 Chicks Facts in
Manhattan, Montana
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Manhattan Montana,
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. Manhattan
Montana also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in
Manhattan Montana, 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 Manhattan MT.
Baby Chicks Incubator in
Manhattan, Montana
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Manhattan Montana
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
Manhattan Montana * 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 Manhattan
Montana * 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 Chicks To Buy in
Manhattan, Montana
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
Manhattan Montana 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 Manhattan,
Montana Baby chicks are extremely
charming and
tough to withstand,
however it's ideal to prepare for their
arrival prior to you get them. Prepare first
by gathering not just the
appropriate materials, yet
also the proper
expertise to take care of
them. Raising baby chicks is fairly
easy, you just need
to supply them with the following: A tidy as well as cozy
environment A lot of food and water Focus as well as
love Environment Your habitat could be a
simple box, aquarium,
pet cat service provider, or guinea
pig cage. Line it with old towels and
coverings (without any loose
strings!) to begin, and after a
couple of weeks utilize straw over paper.
Note: Avoid making use of only
newspaper or various other slipper
surface areas-- or your chicks legs can expand
misshapen. You additionally require
something to dish out food and also
water in, such as a chicken feeder and water
dish from the feed store, or a pickle container
lid for food and also a pet bird water dispenser from a
pet dog store. Likewise, as the chicks get
older you can present a perch
right into the environment to get them
trained on setting down. Warmth To
keep your chicks warm you should
give them with a warmth resource.
This could be as easy as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp style lamp from an equipment store, or an infrared reptile heat
light bulb also function extremely well (my
referral). Chicks need this
heat 24/7 up until their downy fluff is
replaced with feathers (which could take up to 2 months). The recently
hatched need a temperature level
in between 90 and 100 degrees,
as well as weekly this could
be lowered by
approximately 5 levels or
so. The heat resource must be on just one side of the cage
to allow chicks an array of
temperatures. The chicks are your finest
thermometer- if they are concealing in the
other corner of your heat
light, you should
decrease the temperature. If
they are surrounding each other under the
warmth (not merely snuggling),
you have to include some warmth.
House cleaning
Cleanliness is vital and it maintains your chicks healthy and
balanced. Make certain to change
the bed linen
frequently and also
constantly offer tidy
food and also water Food and water.
Chicks grow quite fast
which calls for a lot of tidy
food and also water. Give
sufficient whatsoever times and examine
frequently to
stop parched and also
starving chicks. Chick food is various than adult chicken food, and also it can be found in both medicated and
also non-medicated varieties. Feed chick food for the
very first 2 months, after that
switch over to a raiser food (~ 17 %
healthy protein) for another 2 months,
then to a somewhat
reduced healthy protein feed or a layer feed
(if you have levels). Dirt Some chicks want
to get a running start on taking
filth bathrooms, while others won't take
up that activity till they are
older. If you have the space in your chick
unit, introduce a tray of sand or
dirt for them to shower in.
Attention and love There are a couple of advantages to spending quality time with your chicks. To start
with, they will more than likely bond with you and also
not escape as adults. Second, if you
analyze your chicks daily and also
watch their actions, you could
capture illness or various
other problems previously. Keep an
eye out for hissing, limping, or
various other unhealthy
signs. Be sure to
also take a look at
their poop, as diarrhea could cause matted plumes and also clogged cloaca.
Last but not least, it is necessary to keep an eye out for social concerns, such as the
tiniest chick getting teased. Vacant nest disorder So your
chicks are currently completely feathery
and its time for them to leave the
safety and security of your residence
and move outside right into a cage. Have a look at our
part on chicken coops for more information
concerning cages and also
correct coop habitats.
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