"Will Work For Food"

My new poultry family consists of 2 barred rocks, 2 buff orpingtons, 2 silver laced wyandottes, and 2 golden laced wyandottes. This isn't a Noah's ark thing like my wife suggested because they're all females and I can't afford any hanky panky in the chicken coop because I have a limit on the number of chickens I can keep in my neighborhood. This was a result of a late night family discussion that narrowed down our selection based more on availability than anything else. As most of you are probably there is a chick shortage this year so avoid the rare breeds unless you're ok with receiving them in 2010! However, I'm ok with what we were able to get because let’s face it; the easier to get popular breeds became so popular because they are an all around excellent breed. They're almost 4 weeks old now and probably the most entertaining "pet" a family can have. They are also a real reminder to someone in the poultry supply business of what a chicken is all about. I keep a feeder full of chick starter and a baby cake supplement snack inside their little outdoor coop and yet my wife and I toss in a bug, additional feed, or even a piece of grass and they act like I might if I found a hundred dollar bill in a parking lot. I'd pick it up and run like hell with my wife and friends chasing me around trying to snatch it from my hands. That's what these little well fed chicks are like inside their all you can eat buffet/coop. Its perfect proof to me that chickens don't want to fed, they want to forage. Every time we try to make their lives a little easier by providing them with a 20 pound all you can eat "buffet of feed in a bucket" we rob them of their natural instinct and desire to forage for food. If our chickens could write, their sign would read "WILL WORK FOR FOOD". The "Free Range" Feeder is probably the first real answer to the chicken’s request. I know what you're thinking; isn't that cheating? Yes it is but with smaller tracts of land and greater egg production demand we are required to supplement their diets. That doesn't mean we have to completely remove the fun associated with being a chicken. Just watch your chickens for a little while and you'll see what I mean.

Think Automatic Waterer This Summer

Although we all know the importance of making fresh water available to our chickens throughout the day, as summer approaches we should stick post it notes all over our homes with “don’t forget to water the chickens” written on them. It really is no more work than it was during the winter, spring or fall but we’re given fewer chances to be forgetful in the summer unless we want a yard full of rotisserie chicken. I guess that’s why so many people are interested in purchasing automatic waterers versus traditional. That’s why I am so surprised of the narrow selection really available out there for the average backyard poultry flock. Don’t get me wrong, there are some good choices available but just not many of them. By far the two best selling (and for good reason) automatic waterers are the bell style waterer and a heavy duty plastic automatic trough waterer. The bell style waterer hangs and is fed by ¼” plastic tubing and the trough must be connected to pvc pipe or a special adapter can be added to allow it to fit onto a garden hose. We have found the bell style waterer to be the easier of the two to keep clean since it stays off the ground and is virtually impossible for the chickens to roost on. The trough however is excellent for a small grown flock and is designed fairly well to prevent roosting. My toughest challenge however with any auto waterer is getting water to it. I don’t have running water at my coop because it’s a mobile chicken coop but during the summer especially when I’m on vacation, I don’t mind having a hose run across the yard. There is no doubt in my mind a broader selection of automatic waterers should be available in the near future and each should demonstrate how they would effectively work in the specific scenario for which they were designed. We will do our best in the near future to provide more pictures and videos of auto waterers in real life situations. Stay cool my friends.

Fully Assembled Metal Nest Box

Now available to those who like the phrase "No Assembly Required" are the fully assembled metal nest boxes. Available in 2, 4, and 6 hole design. They are constructed from 26 gauge galvalume, an aluminum-zinc alloy coated sheet steel. The inside nest measures 10"X 12". Each hole has plastic door guards. The drop down roost has a 9 gauge rod around it. The wire on the roost is 1" X 1" 14 gauge galvanize metal. The nest box is put together with rivets and includes 2 metal hooks included for hanging the nest box. We'll let you know what are hens think in the next few weeks but I can tell you this is a well made product.

"Free Range" Feeder with Timer

Chickens are natural foragers that appear to take great pleasure in working for a meal rather than standing in line at all you can eat buffet. If you are going to supplement your chickens diet with feed, why not let them have a little fun while getting a little exercise by hunting, scratching and pecking for their food inside a controlled area. If you choose for your chickens to truly be "free range" chickens than let them eat like a "free range" chicken. Sure you may have to supplement their diet with layer pellets which may suggest they are not truly "free range" but the fact is there may not be enough grass and bugs year round to sustain the diet of your laying hens. That doesn't mean our chickens have to succumb to the boredom associated with eating out of a standard feeder. No, the answer may be the new "Free Range" Feeder with Timer. This 22 pound capacity feeder can be hung in the yard and set to distribute feed up to 4 times per day to release as little as 1/4 cup pelletized feed to as much as 2 pounds of feed per release. It will distribute the feed in a 6 to 12 foot diameter to allow a small flock plenty of space to hunt and peck while keeping your chickens in a safe area. We have 8 chickens in the backyard currently trying the "Free Range" feeder out. So far it seems to work well. More pics and feedback coming soon.

Treats for Chickens?

Anyone interested in treats for your chickens? One organic feed mill is helping to develop a line of treats specifically for chickens. We would love to hear your comments on this new development.

Demand Treats for Chickens

As the trend continues to consider the chickens we keep in our backyards as pets rather than just a convenient source of fresh eggs, mans second best friend (however you want to rank them as a pet) deserves all that is associated with being a pet. No self respecting dog owner would ever deprive Fido of some sort of dog treat so why should should any pet chicken go without such pleasures. The answer is really very simple; there are no treats being manufactured for our pet chickens. Sure there a probably things we can give our chickens and call treats, like the occasional handful of greens but its not the same as reaching into a box of treats that you carefully and thoughtfully selected for your pet because like the box says "They go wild for Fun Time treats!" or some silly slogan that implies your pet is not having fun without them. So lets make some noise and make sure the pet industry understands if you can have treats for lizards (and they do) then there most certainly is room in this great big world for chicken treats!