Are you thinking about raising guinea fowl in your backyard? Here are six reasons why we think guinea fowl would make a great addition to your backyard family. Tick Control Guineas are like miniature tick hunters. They’ll scour your yard for those tiny, disease-carrying ticks and get rid of them before they land on your children […]
Continue Reading5 Accessories to Add to your Chicken Coop
People take great pride in their DIY chicken coop designs, and rightly so. There are few things more satisfying than stepping back to appraise the fancy new coop you poured weeks of blood, sweat and profanity into. As admirable as this achievement is, however, it’s only the beginning. Now that you’ve built a happy home […]
Continue ReadingRutgers Outreach Program Brings Chickens to Suburbs in NJ
As concerns about the ethical implications of factory farming operations have come to the forefront of society’s consciousness, more and more Americans are becoming interested in producing their own food in order to free themselves from reliance on store-bought alternatives. In an effort to educate suburbanites about the viability of backyard farming operations, Rutgers has […]
Continue Reading5 Little-Known Facts About Chickens
Chickens are often taken for granted. They are common features of just about every farm, and we all know that they lay healthy, delicious eggs. But don’t let their unassuming characters fool you. We bet the chicken is a much more interesting character than you think. Chickens see the world in full-color. Unlike many other […]
Continue ReadingReading the Color of an Egg Yolk
Anyone who’s had the pleasure of raising chickens knows there are plenty of reasons to love farm fresh eggs. Their shells are typically thicker and more robust, they can be left unrefrigerated because their protective bloom hasn’t been compromised by industrial cleaning operations and most importantly, they just taste better than grocery store alternatives. Many […]
Continue ReadingSprouting Fodder for Your Chickens
For those of us who raise chickens in temperate climates, the winter is an expensive time of year. Grasses go dormant and many chicken owners are forced to buy extra feed in order to supplement the diets of their birds. Over the course of a few cold months, these feed costs can add up fast. […]
Continue ReadingHallmarks of a Happy Henhouse
Your coop provides your flock with the safety and security they need to live happy, healthy lives. Without adequate shelter, chickens will be more prone to stress and less likely to produce large clutches of eggs. Likewise, it’s important that chicken owners do whatever they can to provide their flocks with the best living environments […]
Continue ReadingSafely Treating an Egg-Bound Hen
Have you noticed one of your hens waddling like a penguin? Is she going in and out of her nest box without laying? Is she struggling to defecate? Does her abdomen feel hard to the touch? Your hen may be egg-bound. This is a potentially life-threatening condition wherein an egg becomes trapped between the Uterus […]
Continue ReadingIntegrating New Chickens Into Your Flock
For those of us who already have an existing flock of chickens, planning to order more chicks can be a stressful thought, mainly because integrating new chicks into a flock can be a challenge if you don’t know what to do. Here are some tips to make the integration process as smooth as […]
Continue ReadingThe Mysterious Minds of Chicken Sexers
Large chicken farms see thousands of chicks hatch every day. Once they’re hatched, the farms have to determine their sex as quickly as possible before they can be sorted and sent to their respective destinations. Unfortunately, judging the sex of baby chickens is no easy task. Chicken sexers must rely on their intuitions […]
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