Karen asked recently if I had any advice
on raising chickens,
so I thought I would mention
it here, rather than just in comments.
Raising chickens {10+years}
is still a learning process for me,
and we've certainly made some mistakes
along the way.
I started out by reading up on the subject,
I started out by reading up on the subject,
and Ashley English now has a nice
book out called
which might be a good place to start.
I've been ordering my chicks from Murray McMurray Hatchery
from the beginning. Great company to deal with,
and I have always had great luck with their birds.
They supply you with good instructions for getting
your baby chicks started.
We began with Rhode Island Reds,
but soon branched out to other breeds.
These are my favorite layers:
Araucana/Americana
Black Australorps
Partridge Rocks
Buff Orpingtons
Speckled Sussex
Buff Brahmas
My Araucana's are my best layers,
and their colored eggs are lovely.
Picking a breed suited to your climate is a good
idea too--the catalog recommends certain breeds
that are good winter layers for those of us in
colder climates.
I think keeping our hen house very clean,
and providing fresh water daily
are two important factors for healthy hens.
The biggest trial we have had with our chickens,
has been dealing with foxes--we lost many
of our hens in the beginning.
We did not make the fence surrounding the chicken
yard high enough, and they were able to fly out.
Many an evening we would have to herd
them back in through the gate,
and not all would cooperate.
Somehow it was much harder for them to figure
out how to fly back in,
and by morning there would be a pile of
feathers left in the yard.
We have since extended the height to about 6 ft.
and it keeps them in.
The fox has also dug under the fence,
so it is important to bury part of the fencing
below ground level.
~
I hope this helps a little bit Karen,
~Deb