knowledge is power
Diatomaceous earth is one of the recommended items for when you get chickens. I kept calling it dichotomous earth (which would be earth that isn’t earth, I guess) until my wife got my pronunciation fixed. How Do You Use Diatomaceous Earth With Chickens? For chickens you should only ever use FOOD GRADE diatomaceous earth (DE). It’s possible to buy DE that’s used… Read more »
A chicken ark is a particular kind of housing for chickens that is a bit different from a regular chicken coop. In the United States, this kind of housing is often referred to as a “chicken tractor” instead, but the building is the same thing. It’s just the name that’s different. Essentially, it is a portable chicken coop without a floor…. Read more »
There are a few basic things you must have to start raising chickens: Your Hens: Incubate and hatch eggs Or start with chicks Or start with adult hens Your Chicken Coop: Buy or Build: know your building skills and your budget Save your time and frustration- A professionally designed chicken coop guarantees a strong predatorproof shelter. The Feed,… Read more »
One important aspect that you absolutely do not want to leave out of your chicken coop designs, when you plan and build your coop, is a roost for your birds to sleep on. Chickens do not like to sleep on the floor of the coop or in the nesting boxes, but instead prefer these “roosts” – raised platforms on which they… Read more »
When we decided we wanted to get chickens, my wife and I attended a continuing education class which was an hour and a half overview about getting into chickens. Obviously, this isn’t going to teaching you everything you’ll ever need to know about chickens, but it did help us understand the basics and gave us a “checklist” for getting started…. Read more »
Because of the small size of our flock, 3 birds, my wife and I eat almost all the eggs they produce. When we occasionally build up a small supply, 6 eggs or so, we’ll give them to a friend or a neighbor. We haven’t sold a single egg and don’t have any intention of doing so. Despite this, we’ve been… Read more »
A dust bath is how a chicken keeps herself clean. The basic idea is that the chicken gets into loose soil and covers herself with it. If the chickens are free ranging or if there is appropriate soil in their run, they will dig a pit, pulling away any surrounding vegetation. When we let our chickens out for a run… Read more »