Tuesday, June 23, 2009
America's Favorite Pet?
Chickens may be able to enjoy a reputation for being America's newest and coolest pet for many years to come. I'm talking cooler than pythons, sugar gliders, ferrets, bearded dragons, and certainly cooler than any dog or cat breed you could own. My daughter had told her friends all about her pet frog, tortoise, dog, cat, and chickens before they came over for a sleepover but when they entered our front door the first question out of their mouths was; "where are the chickens"? They spent a good hour chasing them around the yard, holding them, talking about how much the chicken loved them, and giggling as the chickens pecked food out of their hands. I'll admit these were kids from the city that had never been around chickens before but that is where the "pet chicken" movement is happening and if you walked into a pet store with children I guarantee the baby chicks would grab their attention away from the hamsters and guinea pigs. However if you purchased a hamster, the pet store would have the cage, waterer, feeder, bedding, treats, and toys you would need for new pet at a fairly affordable price. What about chickens? Would you know what to buy? Would the pet store have what you need? I would guess that most pet stores would not have everything you need and if they did the cost would probably be much greater than hamster supplies. Until pet stores catch on to that people in the city want to raise chickens more than likely you would have to go online to find everything you would need to raise your new pet from chicks to chickens. But do you really know what you need to raise chickens and could you really afford to buy everything it takes to keep chickens in your backyard. Sure there is some return on investment since the hens provide eggs for your enjoyment but that probably won't outweigh the costs involved. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to talk you out of raising chickens, in fact I'm actually trying to help you find the way. I am happy for those who have the means to buy expensive chicken coops but I refuse to except that America's favorite farm animal turned America's favorite pet should be geared toward the affluent few. I'm making it my goal this year to find and develop an affordable kit that has everything a person needs to raise a few chickens in their backyard so everyone has the opportunity to own America's newest and coolest pet. Even if you have the means to buy the expensive coop I hope to bring light to the subject of raising chickens so that there is no mystery in regards to what it takes and what you'll need. Meanwhile feel free to email your questions to productlab@randallburkey.com.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Jump In and Incubate
Some say the best way to learn to swim is to just jump in. For better or worse that’s usually my approach to most things I do in life. Although I admit, on the way down to the pool I might ask a question or two with the hope of getting some useful information that might keep me afloat. I strongly suggest before you “jump in” to incubating eggs, you ask several questions. This is especially true if you have kids participating. Trust me, if those eggs don’t hatch, you’ll be down at the pet store buying hamsters while trying to convince your kids that hamsters make much better pets. Then when it gets loose in the house, you’ll have to convince your wife that you’re not an idiot! Of course I’m speaking about someone else’s experience. I actually bought my kid’s gerbils. However since that time, I’ve asked the right questions and as a result successfully hatched thousands of eggs.
When I incubate at home, I feel an extreme amount of pressure because my kids think dad’s an expert on anything poultry related. In addition, my wife points out that anyone who has worked sixteen years selling incubators should have no trouble getting a few dozen eggs to hatch. She made that comment a few months ago when I was about to incubate 1 dozen buff orpington and 1 dozen barred rock eggs. But these were not just any eggs, this was my youngest daughters first experience with incubation and I wasn’t about to disappoint her, like the way I did in the driveway playing basketball and she asked me to “dunk it”. Well I may not be able to dunk a basketball, but I feel confident with my incubation experience, I can make good fertile chicken eggs hatch in an incubator. So before you decide to incubate some eggs, let an “expert” or if you are not my child and/or over the age of 10 (the age at which I can no longer convince you I am an expert), let an “experienced incubation guy” answer some of the questions you might ask before you jump in.
Each school year I provide an incubator for one of my daughter’s teachers and the Randall Burkey Company (the company I work for) generously allows me to pick any incubator I want from our catalog. FYI, if you want to be a hero to your kids, loan an incubator with some fertile eggs to their teacher. They love the attention they get from their classmates asking them all sorts of questions as if they were an incubation expert. I usually choose the Hova-Bator because its small, quiet and reasonably priced. I consider price in the equation because occasionally a parent will ask about buying an incubator. I want them to know they can successfully hatch eggs in one without spending hundreds of dollars. The Hova-Bator is a small styrofoam incubator that will hold about 41 chicken eggs or 120 quail eggs. The idea of styrofoam turns off some people when they first shop around for incubators. I think they picture an ice chest in the back of a pick up truck all banged up from a weekend camping trip. In reality just as styrofoam makes a great insulator for cold drinks, it also serves very well to hold in heat. Since you probably won’t take it camping with you, it should hold up well if kept inside sitting on a table.
Assuming you already have the Hova-Bator, you will obviously need some good fertile hatching eggs. If you don’t have a local source for fertile eggs, you can have them shipped directly to you from one of the hatcheries that advertise in the Backyard Poultry Magazine. Your best bet is to order a more common breed of chicken that is know for its high hatchability rate such as a rhode island red or barred rock. You may also want to order a few more eggs than the number of chicks you plan on having to compensate for a few cracked eggs due to mishandling during shipping, infertility or as in my case, my one year old son dropping them on the floor. It’s okay though, I’m pretty sure it was one of the infertile eggs. Keep in mind, even when good fertile eggs are handled right and incubated properly, you may experience only 60 to 80 percent of the eggs to hatch. Before the eggs arrive though, you’ll want to have the incubator up and running at least 48 hours if possible. This allows you the opportunity to stabilize the temperature and humidity. For chicken eggs, the correct incubation temperature is 99.5 F and humidity should be set at 50% to 55% RH. This will be easier to achieve and maintain if the room temperature is 70 to 80 degrees F and room humidity is 35% to 40% RH. Also, avoid placing it near a window that would allow direct sunlight on it during the day and where moisture tends to condensate.
The Hova-Bator is designed to hold an automatic turner that turns the eggs about every two hours, which is almost a necessity considering most people’s busy lifestyle. The turner is generally sold separately, so be sure to specify when ordering. The Hova-Bator does come standard with a thermometer only, not a hygrometer. The thermometer it comes with is a small mercury thermometer placed on a clear piece of plastic, which I personally believe has room for improvement. I prefer to place a digital thermometer/hygrometer inside that is easier to read and displays relative humidity. Although many people successfully hatch without measuring humidity inside the Hova-Bator, when a poor hatched is experienced, it’s difficult to diagnose the problem without having important information such as the humidity reading. Correct humidity inside a Hova-Bator is normally achieved by filling one of its bottom liner troughs with water while the eggs are turning and both troughs while they are hatching. Having said this, I would still recommend placing a hygrometer inside to take the guess work out incubating.
Avoid opening the incubator as much as possible. If you have kids or you are a teacher doing a classroom project, you might consider getting a picture window view Hova-Bator. It allows for easier viewing of the eggs, therefore less temptation to open the top which allows heat and moisture to escape. Trust me; you’ll be just as curious as your kids when those eggs get close to hatching. On the last three days of incubation, remove the eggs from the turner and place them on the bottom wire mesh floor. Raise the humidity to around 65% relative humidity. This prevents excess albumen from becoming like glue when it comes in contact with the surrounding air. Dry air can cause the chick to stick to the shell making it a more difficult struggle to completely hatch. This makes it even more important to avoid the temptation of opening the unit after the first one or two chicks have hatched. Remember, if you still have more chicks hatching, they will require the same warm and moist environment the first few experienced.
In my opinion, everyone should incubate eggs at least once in their life. It’s an experience that brings joy and lasting memories to both adults and kids. I encourage anyone who has the means, to loan an incubator to a teacher so kids who may not otherwise be able, get to experience it first hand. The Randall Burkey Company has provided discounts to teachers purchasing equipment for classroom use for years. Teachers tell us it is the most memorable point of the year for most students. They tell us that the halls are “buzzing with excitement” when the chicks start hatching. As for my youngest daughters first experience with incubating eggs, SLAM DUNK! We started with 24 eggs, lost one to the tile floor, leaving us with 23 eggs to incubate. Out of that we hatched 19 healthy baby chicks. If I do the math right, let’s see, I need to carry the one, that’s about an 82% hatch rate. Not bad at all! In fact, if you ask my 5 year old daughter Kassidi, she would tell you her daddy’s an expert!
Note: Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for incubation when using their brand of incubator.
When I incubate at home, I feel an extreme amount of pressure because my kids think dad’s an expert on anything poultry related. In addition, my wife points out that anyone who has worked sixteen years selling incubators should have no trouble getting a few dozen eggs to hatch. She made that comment a few months ago when I was about to incubate 1 dozen buff orpington and 1 dozen barred rock eggs. But these were not just any eggs, this was my youngest daughters first experience with incubation and I wasn’t about to disappoint her, like the way I did in the driveway playing basketball and she asked me to “dunk it”. Well I may not be able to dunk a basketball, but I feel confident with my incubation experience, I can make good fertile chicken eggs hatch in an incubator. So before you decide to incubate some eggs, let an “expert” or if you are not my child and/or over the age of 10 (the age at which I can no longer convince you I am an expert), let an “experienced incubation guy” answer some of the questions you might ask before you jump in.
Each school year I provide an incubator for one of my daughter’s teachers and the Randall Burkey Company (the company I work for) generously allows me to pick any incubator I want from our catalog. FYI, if you want to be a hero to your kids, loan an incubator with some fertile eggs to their teacher. They love the attention they get from their classmates asking them all sorts of questions as if they were an incubation expert. I usually choose the Hova-Bator because its small, quiet and reasonably priced. I consider price in the equation because occasionally a parent will ask about buying an incubator. I want them to know they can successfully hatch eggs in one without spending hundreds of dollars. The Hova-Bator is a small styrofoam incubator that will hold about 41 chicken eggs or 120 quail eggs. The idea of styrofoam turns off some people when they first shop around for incubators. I think they picture an ice chest in the back of a pick up truck all banged up from a weekend camping trip. In reality just as styrofoam makes a great insulator for cold drinks, it also serves very well to hold in heat. Since you probably won’t take it camping with you, it should hold up well if kept inside sitting on a table.
Assuming you already have the Hova-Bator, you will obviously need some good fertile hatching eggs. If you don’t have a local source for fertile eggs, you can have them shipped directly to you from one of the hatcheries that advertise in the Backyard Poultry Magazine. Your best bet is to order a more common breed of chicken that is know for its high hatchability rate such as a rhode island red or barred rock. You may also want to order a few more eggs than the number of chicks you plan on having to compensate for a few cracked eggs due to mishandling during shipping, infertility or as in my case, my one year old son dropping them on the floor. It’s okay though, I’m pretty sure it was one of the infertile eggs. Keep in mind, even when good fertile eggs are handled right and incubated properly, you may experience only 60 to 80 percent of the eggs to hatch. Before the eggs arrive though, you’ll want to have the incubator up and running at least 48 hours if possible. This allows you the opportunity to stabilize the temperature and humidity. For chicken eggs, the correct incubation temperature is 99.5 F and humidity should be set at 50% to 55% RH. This will be easier to achieve and maintain if the room temperature is 70 to 80 degrees F and room humidity is 35% to 40% RH. Also, avoid placing it near a window that would allow direct sunlight on it during the day and where moisture tends to condensate.
The Hova-Bator is designed to hold an automatic turner that turns the eggs about every two hours, which is almost a necessity considering most people’s busy lifestyle. The turner is generally sold separately, so be sure to specify when ordering. The Hova-Bator does come standard with a thermometer only, not a hygrometer. The thermometer it comes with is a small mercury thermometer placed on a clear piece of plastic, which I personally believe has room for improvement. I prefer to place a digital thermometer/hygrometer inside that is easier to read and displays relative humidity. Although many people successfully hatch without measuring humidity inside the Hova-Bator, when a poor hatched is experienced, it’s difficult to diagnose the problem without having important information such as the humidity reading. Correct humidity inside a Hova-Bator is normally achieved by filling one of its bottom liner troughs with water while the eggs are turning and both troughs while they are hatching. Having said this, I would still recommend placing a hygrometer inside to take the guess work out incubating.
Avoid opening the incubator as much as possible. If you have kids or you are a teacher doing a classroom project, you might consider getting a picture window view Hova-Bator. It allows for easier viewing of the eggs, therefore less temptation to open the top which allows heat and moisture to escape. Trust me; you’ll be just as curious as your kids when those eggs get close to hatching. On the last three days of incubation, remove the eggs from the turner and place them on the bottom wire mesh floor. Raise the humidity to around 65% relative humidity. This prevents excess albumen from becoming like glue when it comes in contact with the surrounding air. Dry air can cause the chick to stick to the shell making it a more difficult struggle to completely hatch. This makes it even more important to avoid the temptation of opening the unit after the first one or two chicks have hatched. Remember, if you still have more chicks hatching, they will require the same warm and moist environment the first few experienced.
In my opinion, everyone should incubate eggs at least once in their life. It’s an experience that brings joy and lasting memories to both adults and kids. I encourage anyone who has the means, to loan an incubator to a teacher so kids who may not otherwise be able, get to experience it first hand. The Randall Burkey Company has provided discounts to teachers purchasing equipment for classroom use for years. Teachers tell us it is the most memorable point of the year for most students. They tell us that the halls are “buzzing with excitement” when the chicks start hatching. As for my youngest daughters first experience with incubating eggs, SLAM DUNK! We started with 24 eggs, lost one to the tile floor, leaving us with 23 eggs to incubate. Out of that we hatched 19 healthy baby chicks. If I do the math right, let’s see, I need to carry the one, that’s about an 82% hatch rate. Not bad at all! In fact, if you ask my 5 year old daughter Kassidi, she would tell you her daddy’s an expert!
Note: Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for incubation when using their brand of incubator.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Few Returns = Good Product
By now most of us have received our chicks and are on the way to having a fresh source of high quality eggs. The coop is built and the feeders and waterers are in place and you may have even set up the nesting box even though your chickens won’t be laying for a few more months. It really is a good idea to get everything together now why you still have daylight in the evenings to work with and before you start encountering any predator problems, it’s probably a good idea to start implementing precautionary measures to ward off a possible future threat to your chickens. We all do the best we can to predator proof our chicken coops so our hens can rest peacefully at night from a long day of foraging and egg laying but you don’t have to give a predator the opportunity to test your workmanship. Most of you are probably familiar with the Nite Guard product that has been advertised for a few years with an owl being shot in the eye with a red laser. This isn’t quite how it works but the bottom line is it does work. The manufacturer states that is will stop raccoons, owls, foxes, coyotes, cougars, and most other nighttime predators. The only real threat I have here in my part of Texas are raccoons, which although fairly cute are mean little suckers that have no problem with taking down your whole flock just to eat one bird. I have been fortunate enough to avoid any conflicts with the raccoons since I started using the Nite Guard but I also think my coop is designed rather well so my argument for the Nite Guard may not be exactly concrete. I will tell you this however, we have more repeat customers for this product who want to use them in other locations or for other applications such as protecting their gardens. We have shipped thousands of the Nite Guards out and rarely ever receive a negative comment or complaint from customers about the product. This makes me inclined to believe that it really does work. How does it work? The Nite Guard is simply a solar powered red blinking light that makes hungry nighttime predators feel uncomfortable because they feel they are being watched by something that might make them the prey. To be honest with you, when you see a Nite Guard for the first time your mind will probably be filled with doubt as you ponder how this tiny contraption could ever scare off a hungry coyote but think of this way; if you walked up to someone’s home at night and saw a tiny red blinking light on the porch you would probably ask yourself all sorts of questions. Is that part of the alarm system? Am I being video taped? Is someone pointing a gun at me? Come to think of it, they may make a decent theft deterrent as well (although I don’t think the manufacturer makes any guarantees for that purpose). If I were rate the Nite Guard on a scale of 1 to 10 I would have to give it a 10. Americans aren’t afraid to return a product when they are unsatisfied but they just don’t return this product and that alone speaks volumes.
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