Life with Barred Rocks | Chickens with Personality
Last winter I read Joel Salatin’s . A great, very educational book about the benefits of keeping chickens in mobile coops rather than stationary coops (which I intend to get us closer towards). This book is set up for those who are looking specifically to go into the pastured poultry business, but I gleaned a lot of useful tips for us to use. After reading it and reading yet again about mass market chicken recalls, I conjured up a great plan. We would get new chicks every two years and the older chickens, who’ve made it past their egg laying prime, would become, well, soup. That would solve two problems. It would keep us well in eggs every year and we could have a safe and healthy meat harvest every two years. As with many great plans of mine, it looked great on paper and hasn’t really worked out so well in reality.
After having ‘taken care of’ three sick chickens in the past few months, Scott wasn’t nearly as eager to ‘harvest’ six extra birds. ‘They still will lay pretty well their third year, won’t they?’ What can I say? We aren’t eager animal harvesters. In fact it weighs us down quite a bit to bring death to a chicken, but we do it when we have to. It’s just a reality you have to face as a chicken owner.
The birds that ideally we’d like to harvest are pretty bland on personality. We gave up long ago naming our chickens and this batch didn’t really call out to be named. This mix of Rhode Island Reds and Golden Sexlinks have always been rather stand-off-ish and have left us feeling pretty neutral about them. But, they’ve been fantastic egg layers.
So while we haven’t yet followed the first part of my plan, we did follow through on the second part. Which was to acquire new chicks. We brought home and they are really messing with my plan! These chickens have so much personality that we’ve all grown incredibly fond of them. Whenever we come outside they run towards us and follow us around like puppies. They keep us laughing with how curious they are about everything. Hopping up into trees and onto trellises. How would we ever turn these girls into soup?
Well, I’ll keep you updated you as my chicken plan progresses.
Do you have any chicken breeds that are your favorite?
Related Posts:
Share this:
Like this:
LikeLoading...
Baby
Chickens How To Care in
Lansford, Pennsylvania
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Lansford Pennsylvania,
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. Lansford
Pennsylvania also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in
Lansford Pennsylvania, 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 Lansford PA.
Baby Chickens 101 in
Lansford, Pennsylvania
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Lansford Pennsylvania
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
Lansford Pennsylvania * 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 Lansford
Pennsylvania * 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 By Mail in
Lansford, Pennsylvania
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
Lansford Pennsylvania 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 Lansford,
Pennsylvania Baby chicks are quite
adorable and also
hard to stand up to,
but it's best to prepare for their
arrival before you obtain them. Prepare initially
by collecting not just the
right products, yet
also the proper
knowledge to look after
them. Raising baby chicks is fairly
straightforward, you merely have to give them with the following: A tidy and also warm and comfortable
environment Plenty of food and water Focus as well as
love Habitat Your environment can be a straightforward box, fish tank,
pet cat provider, or guinea
porker cage. Line it with old towels and
coverings (without any loosened
strings!) to begin, and also after a few weeks make use of straw over newspaper.
Keep in mind: Avoid using just
newspaper or various other sandal
surfaces-- or your chicks legs could grow
misshapen. You additionally need
something to serve up food and
water in, such as a chicken feeder as well as water
meal from the feed store, or a pickle container
cover for food as well as a pet bird water dispenser from a family pet store. Additionally, as the chicks get
older you can introduce a perch
into the habitat to obtain them
educated on setting down. Warmth To
maintain your chicks warm you should
supply them with a heat resource.
This could be as basic as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp design lamp from an equipment shop, or an infrared reptile heat
bulb also work effectively (my
suggestion). Chicks require this
heat 24/7 up until their downy fluff is
changed with plumes (which could take up to 2 months). The freshly
hatched out require a temperature level
in between 90 and 100 degrees,
and also weekly this can
be reduced by
around 5 degrees or
so. The heat resource must get on simply one side of the cage
to enable chicks an array of
temperatures. The chicks are your ideal
thermostat- if they are concealing in the
other corner of your warmth
lamp, you should
decrease the temperature. If
they are surrounding each other under the
warmth (not merely cuddling),
you have to include some heat.
House cleaning
Tidiness is vital and it keeps your chicks healthy and
balanced. Be sure to transform
the bed linen
usually as well as
always provide tidy
food and also water Food as well as water.
Chicks expand extremely fast
which calls for plenty of clean
food and also water. Provide
sufficient whatsoever times and check
commonly to prevent dehydrated and
starving chicks. Chick food is various than adult chicken food, as well as it comes
in both medicated and non-medicated selections. Feed chick food for the
very first two months, then
switch to a grower food (~ 17 %
protein) for one more 2 months,
and after that to a somewhat
reduced healthy protein feed or a level feed
(if you have levels). Dirt Some chicks like to get a head start on taking
dust baths, while others won't occupy that task up until they are
older. If you have the area in your chick
enclosure, present a tray of sand or
dirt for them to wash in.
Interest and also love There are a
few advantages to spending time with your chicks. First off, they will certainly most
likely bond with you as well as
not run away as grownups. Second, if you
analyze your chicks daily and
view their actions, you can
capture illness or various
other issues previously. Watch out for hissing, hopping, or
other undesirable
indicators. Make sure to
likewise take a look at
their poop, as looseness of the bowels can result in matted plumes and also clogged up cloaca.
Finally, it is important to keep an eye out for social problems, such as the
littlest chick obtaining teased. Empty nest disorder So your
chicks are now completely feathered
and also its time for them to leave the
safety and security of your residence
as well as relocate outside into a cage. Take a look at our
area on chicken coops to read more
concerning coops as well as
proper cage habitats.
Baby Chicks CareBaby Chicks Coop More Posts Baby Chickens for Sale in King Of Prussia, Pennsylvania Baby Chickens for Sale in Honey Grove, Pennsylvania Baby Chickens for Sale in Biglerville, Pennsylvania Baby Chickens for Sale in Butler, Pennsylvania Baby Chickens for Sale in Bangor, Pennsylvania