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Is It Better to Feed and Water Chickens Inside or Outdoors?

Is It Better to Feed and Water Chickens Inside or Outdoors?

Debate rages over whether it’s better to feed and water chickens inside the coop or outdoors in the run. The right answer depends on a number of factors, including how big the coop is in relation to the flock size, whether or not the chickens are confined indoors overnight and for how long, how secure […]

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20 Terrific Reasons to Keep a Flock of Chickens

Chicken keepers have many different reasons for having a backyard flock of chickens. Here are 20 of the best reasons put forth by people with a passion for poultry:

Chicken keepers have many different reasons for having a backyard flock of chickens. Here are 20 of the best reasons put forth by people with a passion for poultry:     Chickens lay eggs. Keeping your own flock of hens ensures a ready supply of freshly-laid eggs right outside your back door. Chickens eat insects. […]

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Keeping Ducks Together with Chickens

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Ducks have been called the New Chickens, in honor of their increasing popularity. But the first time-duck owner who attempts to manage ducks like chickens can be in for an unpleasant surprise. The two main issues are that ducks like it wet while chickens like it dry, and ducks don’t have the same sensible sleeping […]

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How to Care for Baby Chickens Delivered by Mail

How to Care for Baby Chickens Delivered by Mail

Chicks shipped by mail require a little extra TLC compared to chicks you might hatch at home. Think about how you feel after a long journey — dehydrated, exhausted, probably a bit cranky. What you look forward to most is a long drink and a warm bed. Baby chicks are no different. They suffer the […]

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Do Your Chickens Need Deworming?

Chickens and mosquitoes

Some chicken keepers deworm their chickens too often. Others don’t deworm often enough. How often your chickens need deworming, or whether they need it at all, depends on numerous factors. These factors include your climate, how your flock is housed and managed, the kind of worms that are present in your chickens’ environment, and the […]

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The Complex Relationship Between Chicken and Mosquito

The Complex Relationship Between Chicken and Mosquito

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 […]

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What Do You Call the Place Where You Keep Your Chickens?

What Do You Call the Place Where You Keep Your Chickens?

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 is […]

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Egg Collecting Robot Gathers Eggs from the Chicken Coop Floor

Egg Collecting Robot Gathers Eggs from the Chicken Coop Floor

Like the Roomba robot eternally vacuuming a living room floor, the egg collecting Poultrybot searches for and gathers eggs laid by hens on the chicken coop floor. So-called floor eggs are the bane of every chicken keeper. When Europe banned caged layers, egg producers who turned their hens loose in the coop found that some […]

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