People who haven’t spent much time around chickens might not think they’re particularly bright, but those of us who raise our own flocks have probably noticed that these birds can actually be pretty shrewd when it comes to finding food and securing their position in the pecking order. In fact, an academic paper recently published […]
Continue Reading
Ever wonder what a “gizzard” is, and why birds have them but people don’t? You’re not alone. Chances are you’ve heard about gizzards before, but you may not know why your chickens need these specialized organs! In fact, a gizzard is an essential part of the chicken’s digestion system. Chickens peck at their food […]
Continue Reading
Rare is the hen that will lay an egg every day, year round. Most hens lay in cycles. Depending on the hen’s breed and age, one cycle may last for 12 days or as long as a year. The total number of eggs laid within one laying cycle is called a clutch. Eggs […]
Continue Reading
An egg tooth is a tiny horn-like projection at the tip of the upper beak of a newly hatched chick. Soon after the chick hatches, the egg tooth falls off. Domestic poultry and other birds share this trait in common with most reptiles. When a chicken egg is incubated, the egg tooth begins to […]
Continue Reading
Scientists from Sweden and Ethiopia have discovered that malaria-causing mosquitoes don’t like the smell of chickens. Malarial mosquitoes avoid live chickens, as well as steering clear of compounds extracted from chicken feathers. Researchers are now investigating whether chicken-odor extract might be used as a malarial mosquito repellent, according to a recent BBC report. Since […]
Continue Reading
Chickens need to be confined to protect them from the elements and from predators, but what do you call the structure in which they live? Chicken coop is a common term for a stationary structure. The word coop derives from the Old English word cype, meaning a small structure for confining birds. Hen house […]
Continue Reading
International Heritage Breeds Week is celebrated each year during the third week in May. So what exactly are heritage poultry breeds? According to The Livestock Conservancy, heritage chicken and turkey breeds share the following characteristics: They can reproduce through natural mating. They have the genetic ability to live long and vigorous lives. They […]
Continue Reading
The term “standard breed” is often used in referring to large chickens, as distinct from bantam breeds. So what, exactly, is a standard breed? A standard poultry breed is any breed that conforms to its ideal description, as formalized (or standardized) by a central organization and compiled into a periodically updated book. The book […]
Continue Reading
Sex link chickens are the result of a first generation cross between two different chicken breeds. As hybrids they tend to be quite vigorous and hardy. Since they mature to be somewhat heavier than chicken breeds developed solely for their outstanding egg laying abilities, most sex links make decent meat birds as well as good […]
Continue Reading
The terms “sex link” and “autosex” both refer to chicks that may be sorted by gender from the moment they hatch. But the two words are not synonymous. Sex link chickens, or sex links, result from mating a hen and a rooster of two different breeds. Autosex chickens are the offspring of a hen and […]
Continue Reading