Chicken coops plans

Posts Tagged ‘raising chickens’

Did you know there are more than 200 breeds of chickens? Why do you care? Besides color, plumage pattern, style of comb and wattles — somewhat cosmetic considerations — chicken breeds differ on everything from personality, to broodiness (tendency to sit on eggs to hatch them), to winter hardiness and even egg color! Plus, some farmers raise them to show, or breed rare varieties to keep them going, or just because they like that particular breed.

Size

Chicken breeds are divided into one of two categories of size: standard or large, and bantam. In fact, many breeds are available in both sizes. Large breeds are, simply, larger than bantam breeds, and produce more meat and eggs. Bantams may be one-quarter to one-fifth the size of a large-breed chicken. Their eggs are smaller, and bantams can continue to fly throughout their lifetime. Bantams tend to be a little more intense in temperament than large breeds as well.

Some hobby farmers enjoy raising bantam chickens, breeding them, and showing them. Others do the same with large breed chickens. But farmers who are raising chickens for eggs and/or meat will likely choose large breed chickens for their greater efficiency in producing them. Some like to keep a few banties mixed in with the large breed chickens just for variety and as more of a “pet” chicken.

Heavy Breeds

If you live in a region with cold winters, whether a chicken breed is classified as “heavy” might matter to you. Heavy breeds have thicker bodies and denser feathers, and are happier in the cold than non-heavy breeds. They’re more likely to continue laying eggs through the winter as well.

Hardiness

Hardiness is not just a description of how well a chicken is suited to a cold winter. It refers to the breed’s ability to sustain itself through tougher times, any genetic weaknesses, and its tendency to forage versus eating feed, often called “thriftiness.” Some of the older, less heavily factory farmed breeds like the heritage or heirloom breeds still retain many of the qualities that chickens needed when they were living in backyards all across the country. In contrast, production breeds have sometimes lost the ability to brood over a clutch of eggs, or forage for bugs, weeds, and small rodents in the fields and woods.

Broodiness

Hens go “broody” over a clutch of eggs to hatch them. They settle in on the eggs, only leaving the nest once per day to eat and drink. If you’re trying to hatch eggs naturally, this can be a good quality in a hen. If you’re planning on buying replacement chicks from a hatchery, or incubating your eggs, it can be an annoying trait. Not only is the broody hen not producing eggs, but she’s making the eggs under her age faster due to warmth. And, it’s not the best for her health.

Dual-Purpose Breeds

Dual-purpose breeds are the old-time, classic breeds raised on the farm in early America. Many households had chickens, and they kept a laying flock, but culled old, weak birds, birds who’d stopped laying, and young roosters to the table. The “dual purpose” of good laying production and plump meat for the table is the specialty of these breeds.

Egg Layers

White Leghorns and other pure egg-laying breeds are the most prolific egg layers. Their grain-to-egg output is maximized. These birds don’t make particularly good eaters, though, and they’re not suitable for cold climates.

Meat Birds

Some breeds were developed purely to raise for eating. These breeds are the most efficient converters of grain to meat. The classic factory farm bird is a cross of a White Cornish and a White Rock called a CornishxRock or Cornish Rock. These chickens are huge, with thick, stout legs and large feet. They grow to a broiler size (4 pounds) in 6 to 8 weeks and are the most frugal means of putting chicken in your freezer. There are other breeds suitable for meat production, though: Brahma, Cochin, and Jersey Giant are a few of them.

Egg Color

Did you know that you can tell what color eggs a chicken will lay by looking at its earlobes? Eggs range in color from all shades of brown and tan, to blue, green and white. “Ameracauna” or Easter Egg chickens are a hybrid breed that lay eggs in shades from blue or blue/green to cream. Ameracaunas are derived from a rare South American breed called the Aracauna.

Of course, the most common egg colors are white and brown, and chicken breeds are often described by this characteristic. You may hear or read the terms “brown egg layers” or “white egg layers.” There is no nutritional difference between different colored eggs.

Plumage and Looks

One of the best things about chickens is their beautiful plumage! Chickens come in every feather color, shape and design imaginable. From golden Buff Orpingtons to feather-footed Cochins, the variety is amazing.

It isn’t all about cosmetics. Combs come in variety of shapes. Those that lie close to the chicken’s head are less prone to frostbite, though we keep Barred Rocks and Speckled Sussex in an unheated coop down to -25 degrees F without a problem.

Temperament

Breeds are described as docile or aggressive depending on the traits that farmers have noticed in their flocks. Still, among any given flock, temperament will be influenced more by pecking order than by genetic tendency. Those higher in the pecking order are the more aggressive birds and those lower in the order are more submissive and docile.

Some breeds are more “flighty” and high-strung than others as well. Sometimes this is a good trait; we noticed, for example, that the hawks seem to be able to get our Buff Orpingtons more easily than the more intense birds like the Speckled Sussex.

If you have small children, picking a particularly “docile” breed might be a good fit.

Heritage and Rare Breeds

Recently there has been a growing interest in heritage and heirloom chicken breeds. Some farmers specialize in raising, breeding and selling heritage and rare chickens, and others just want to choose a heritage breed for their egg layers or meat birds. Often these breeds display greater hardiness than production breeds. They show more traditional chicken behaviors, like foraging for food, being good setters (going broody easily), and roosting.

Today, more and more families are taking advantage of keeping chickens. Having your own fresh yard eggs is such a great idea. Many are even better than those you buy at the local grocer. However, there is a bit more to keeping chickens than enjoying the fresh eggs they produce for you. There is some work and upkeep in maintenance. When you are raising chickens, one of the most essential issues is ensuring they do have a safe, secure Portable Chicken Coop.

Many individuals to choose to use a non Mobile Chicken Coops however, there are various reasons you should consider the portable option. For instance, you may consider you have found the best place to install a chicken coop and then later you may want to move it to another area. Perhaps the chicken coop is too close to your home or it may be too close to your neighbor’s property line. Either way, you may need to relocate the coop to another area of your yard.

Sure, you can move any type of coop, however when you have a Portable Chicken Coop, it will only take you a few minutes to move it by yourself rather than having several people help you move it in a few hours. There are several reasons you may have for moving the coop. For instance, while using a simple Mobile Chicken Coop, you can move it out of the way for any entertaining you may have planned. When you use a Portable Chicken Coop, you can gently move the coop to another area and then replace it if you like, whenever you get ready to do so.

These chicken coops are easy to move, since there are wheels on the bottom of the legs of the coop. You can choose smaller Portable Chicken Coops that will house 4 to 6 hens or you may require larger Moveable Chicken Coops that will house 10 to 12 laying hens. You can place these coops in any area you want them, since they easily blend into the background on your property. These coops are definitely not an eyesore.

Portable Chicken Coops come in various vibrant colors that you will enjoy keeping in your yard. Your chickens do not mind the color you may choose. However, you must ensure the coop has ample room to house your chickens. You should also be thinking ahead, to ensure that you would have plenty of room for any chickens you plan to add to your collection. Remember, you will save money in the end, by planning a purchase of a Portable Chicken Coop that has enough room for any additional chickens.

In conclusion, you need a backyard chicken coop that is stylish and colorful with a lot of room, which provides you the option of moving it if you want to do so. After its delivery, you can enjoy providing your chickens with a good home, which in turn may help produce even more fresh eggs!

Dear Straight Dope:

Everyone I ask has a different answer to the question of what difference, if any (besides color), there is between brown eggs and white eggs. Some say brown are better for you, others say white are better for you, and nutritionists seem to say that there is absolutely no difference whatsoever. Can you tell me for real (I’ll believe you) if there really is any nutritional or food value difference at all between brown eggs and white eggs? I assume that the color is determined by what type of chicken laid the egg, but if I’m mistaken on this please set me straight. Thank you.

— Laurie Himml

There is one major, MAJOR difference between brown eggs and white eggs.

Brown eggs are brown and white eggs are white.

Does that answer your question?

No? OK then. According to the Egg Nutrition Board (and who should know better?), “White shelled eggs are produced by hens with white feathers and ear lobes. Brown shelled eggs are produced by hens with red feathers and red ear lobes. There is no difference in taste or nutrition between white and brown eggs.” The people at Crisco (who may know even more than the egg nutritionists) go further to say, “They simply come from two different breeds of chickens. Brown eggs, however, are more expensive because the chickens that lay them eat more than those that lay white eggs.” Among the breeds that lay brown eggs are the Rhode Island Red, the New Hampshire and the Plymouth Rock–all larger birds that require more food.

But Bill Finch of the Mobile Register suggests that brown eggs may have tasted better at one time. He says, “For years, the chickens preferred by commercial growers happened to lay white eggs. A few smart cooks sought out brown eggs because most of the home-reared American flocks, which had access to flavor-enhancing weeds and bugs, happened to lay brown eggs. Commercial egg producers eventually got wise to this. They started raising chickens that laid brown eggs, and charged a premium for them at the store.

“But because the white AND brown grocery-store eggs are the result of the same bland commercial diet, their eggs taste exactly the same. Many people still apparently don’t realize they’ve been duped at their own game.”

I hope this lays this matter to rest.

— Euty

To raise healthy chickens, you must start with healthy chicks. That’s easy enough to say — but how do you know if the chicks are in good health? Even a reputable hatchery may miss the earliest signs of a problem. If you’re starting your backyard chicken flock with chicks, keep an eye out for any signs of distress or ill health.

The following tips are mainly for those who are going to buy their chicks from a breeder or store. Once you have mail-order chicks, you’re pretty much stuck with what you have. These tips may tell you whether something is wrong — and you need to call the hatchery.

• Healthy chicks are active, but not too noisy. Of course, they do sleep more than adults, like all baby animals, but if disturbed, they quickly get up and move away.

• If you look at a content group of chicks in a proper brooder, some will be under the heat lamp or near it sleeping peacefully, while others will be eating or drinking or walking around. They will be quiet except for an occasional peep.

• Baby chicks should have two bright, clear eyes, and their rear ends, or vent area, should be clean. Their beaks should be straight. Some hatcheries trim the end of the beak to prevent chicks from picking at each other, so don’t be alarmed if the beak tip is missing. Their toes should be straight.

• Never take a chick with cloudy or dull eyes, a twisted beak, bent or missing toes, or a dirty vent area.

• Chicks that are very noisy are unhappy and stressed, either from being cold or hungry and thirsty. When they arrive in a shipping box, the stress is evident from the shrill cheeps. But if you place them in the right temperature with food and water, they should quickly calm down.

• A droopy-looking chick may not be healthy. If a chick is touched and it responds very little, it probably isn’t healthy. If it’s lying on its back with its legs in the air, it’s definitely unhealthy!

• Chicks that are panting, with their beaks open, are either too warm or sick. If they appear normal after being cooled down, they should be fine. If the chicks are as far from the heat source as possible, it’s probably too hot. If they’re piled on each other near the heat source and peeping loudly, it’s probably too cold.

  If chicks are very noisy but they aren’t obviously hot or cold and food and water are available, something else is wrong. While you can fix the temperature or hunger problem, avoid purchasing chicks if you can’t tell what is wrong.

• The belly area should not look sore and red. The chicks shouldn’t have any wounds or bloody areas. (Newly hatched chicks will have a slight lump on the belly where the egg yolk was, and that’s okay.)

Whether you buy chicks, hatch eggs, or adopt adult birds, having a healthy flock begins with choosing healthy birds. Healthy baby chicks will be noisy and active when they arrive in the mail. If many chicks are dead or appear weak and drowsy, contact the shipper right away.

Serious breeders usually have their flocks tested and vaccinated for prominent diseases. If you’re buying from a hatchery, make sure the chicks are from certified pullorum-tested flocks. Pullorum is a serious bird disease that will kill all your chicks and endanger anyone else’s chickens in your area.

Ask what vaccines have been given for other diseases. If the option is offered, have the hatchery vaccinate your chicks for Mareks disease. It costs a bit more, but it’s well worth it. It is very difficult for home flock owners to vaccinate chicks.

Any chicken of a breed known or developed for meat; usually with deeper, larger breasts, a larger frame, and fast growth.

An enclosed area for chicks in the first few weeks of life; provides warmth and safety in the absence of a mother hen.

A bacterial infection of the feet caused by small cuts and pressure to the foot pads.

A common external parasite of chickens (and humans) that feed on blood while injecting an irritant into the skin.

An internal parasite of chickens that lines the digestive tract and may cause serious problems.

An infection by Coccidia.

A medicine that controls the disease coccidiosis; often added to commercial chicken feed.

A young male chicken.

A county employee, sometimes called an educator, who is associated with a land-grant university in the same state and whose job is to take research-based knowledge and bring it to the general public.

Medium-sized pieces of feed, actually broken-up pellets.

The condition that occurs when a hen has an egg that she can’t pass from the oviduct for some reason.

An external parasite of chickens, common in the U.S. South, that feed on the chicken’s blood but do not stay attached.

A common internal parasite of free-range or pastured chickens, usually found in the trachea; may cause serious breathing problems.

1. Small rocks or gravel; aids digestion for chickens. 2. Chicken feed supplement, made of crushed limestone and granite, available for purchase in feed stores for chickens requiring extra grit.

A cross between two chicken breeds, usually created to take advantage of specific qualities such as increased breast meat.

Any chicken of a breed known or developed for laying eggs; will not sit on their own eggs.

A common external parasite of chickens that feeds on feathers or shedding skin cells.

Finely ground feed.

A common external parasite of chickens that burrows into the chicken’s skin and feeds on chicken blood.

Immature Coccidia that are passed in fecal matter. Coccidia is an internal parasite of chickens that lines the digestive tract.

Things that feed on a chicken’s blood, other body secretions, or its feathers; may be internal or external.

Long, narrow, cylinder-shaped pieces of compressed feed.

A young female chicken who has not started laying eggs.

1. (noun) Any above-floor structure provided for a bird to perch on. 2. (verb) The act of perching on such a structure.

A common internal parasite of chickens, usually found in the intestines but occasionally in the oviduct or even an egg

A form of chicken housing that combines an indoor, protected area with an outside enclosure.

Blood-stopping.

A common internal parasite of chickens, usually found in the intestines and usually considered harmless.

The common opening for feces in chickens.

A bandage, often used with animals, that sticks to itself.

A formal agreement with the governing body of an area to allow one individual or entity to deviate from the restrictions of a zoning area.

1. (noun) An area or district with specific restrictions or rules about the types of buildings and activities that can take place there. 2. (adjective) Of or about the restrictions required due to the zoning area.

Sustainable Poultry: Production Overview – Part IIIBy Anne Fanatico, NCAT Agriculture Specialist – This is the third of three article’s from the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) which provides information on raising poultry on pasture, including descriptions of production systems and facilities, as well as detailed nuts-and-bolts information.Sustainable Poultry: Production Overview – Part III – By Anne Fanatico, NCAT Agriculture Specialist – This is the third of three article’s from the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) which provides information on raising poultry on pasture, including descriptions of production systems and facilities, as well as detailed nuts-and-bolts information.

This discussion of the “nuts and bolts” of outdoor poultry production applies to any of the production systems discussed above, and many comparisons will be made to confinement production in the conventional poultry industry. It is important for range poultry producers to know the facts of confinement production. For one thing, that knowledge will help in their marketing of alternative poultry products. Also, much of the conventional information is “cross-over,” applying to range systems as well.

HOUSING DESIGN

Poultry housing should provide protection from cold, rain, wind, and hot sun, and provide heat during brooding. Housing should also provide protection from predators, as well as good ventilation to remove ammonia, humidity, and carbon monoxide. Many innovative housing designs are used in range poultry production.

There are many types of field pens. Roofing is flat, peaked, domed, or hooped. Building materialsinclude wood, PVC, rebar, electrical conduit, and bamboo. Portable and stationary housing designs and materials also vary tremendously. The “best” type of construction and material may depend on your skills (e.g., whether you can weld). There are both floored and floorless designs. Some have multiple popholes; others have entire sides that open up. Housing usually provides at least 1 square foot per bird, with the birds spending much of the day outside in good weather. Building materials need careful consideration for certified organic production; no treated wood can come in contact with the animals.

Most portable housing needs to be staked or weighted down in strong winds. Insulation may be needed in roof and side walls in cold areas. Roosts will help keep layers clean and dry.

Multi-use housing is preferred by producers with diversified farms. A poultry hoophouse can also make a good shade hut for sheep or winter storage for hay. Andy Lee uses greenhouse bows and a 22-mil woven poly cover with chicken wire on the ends. Some hoophouses are designed to use solar energy in winter. For example, Joel Salatin uses double layers – a shade cloth and a clear tarp. The shade cloth can be removed to make a solar greenhouse during winter. Salatin uses a hoophouse made with steel bows from the Brower Company (26). Tim Shell, on the other hand, saves money by using a single white 20- mil woven polytarp from Northern Greenhouse (27). It provides sufficient shade in summer but lets in light in winter. Shell (17) can provide hoophouse construction plans. Shell has started using an 8′ x 16′ Winkler hoophouse kit (28). He believes it’s the most economical option (under $1,000), and says it can be assembled in two hours.

Salatin Hoophouse.The conventional poultry industry has done many housing studies. Although these were done with confinement production in mind, the information is useful for range poultry housing. Environmental control may become a useful feature in range housing. Conventional textbooks such as Commercial Chicken Production Manual (29) and Extension materials describe the use of insulation in roofing material, ventilation in houses, and convection cooling from air flow. Good ventilation provides fresh air while avoiding unwanted drafts. Natural ventilation is used in range poultry housing; open-sided housingand ridge vents allow heat to escape from the roof. Forced-air ventilation is common in the conventional industry, using fans, air intakes, and exhausts, often combined with evaporative coolingpads. Air is exchanged every minute in a house with forced-air ventilation.

See ATTRA’s Range Poultry Housing for more details on design, construction plans, building materials, and alternative wood treatment recipes. Most designs are movable. Small-scale poultry production books such as A Guide to Raising Chickens (2) have details on small stationary house construction (the familiar chicken coop).

LIGHTING

Natural lighting is typically used for broilers in range poultry production. In contrast, the conventional industry uses constant artificial light (24 hours a day) or intermittent lighting toencourage feed consumption. Light intensity is kept fairly low – 0.35 to 0.50 footcandles – for broilers, to reduce activity, piling, and cannibalism. The light level is just enough for a person to read by.

Turkeys originated in North America (Mexico) and therefore are sensitive to daylength (photoperiod). They are stimulated by increasing day length to reproduce in the spring. Decreasing daylength stimulates them to replace their feathers (molt) in the fall in order to have a new set for the winter.

Chickens originated near the equator where the photoperiod varies little year-round. They are not as photosensitive as turkeys but they are still somewhat so. Both conventional and many range chicken egg producers use artificial lighting to stimulate production during days of declining natural light, resulting in a more constant supply of eggs. Electrical, solar, and batterypowered lights are used. Extension publications and small-scale poultry production books are good sources of information on proper lighting for pullet and layer development. The wavelength of the light is related to birdactivity. Long wavelengths (red, orange, and yellow light) stimulate sexual activity, which can lead to aggression. Fluorsecent lighting is short wavelength lighting and does not stimulate sexual activity; incandescent lighting is long wavelength lighting.

LITTER AND COMPOSTING

Litter dilutes manure and absorbs moisture, provides cushioning and insulation for the birds, and captures nutrients for spreading where you want them. Litter also protects wooden flooring from getting wet and rotting, and is sometimes used directly on the ground of floorless buildings. However, handling manure and litter by hand is very labor-intensive.

The conventional poultry industry uses rice hulls and pine shavings for litter. Other materials include recycled newspaper treated with boric acid, dried wood fiber, peanut hulls, and chopped pine straw. Small-scale poultry producers use other materials as well and have identified some problems: hay and straw become slimy; sawdust gets eaten by chicks; wood chips are costly, and hardwood shavings can put splinters in chickens feet.

In the conventional industry, litter is spread 2 to 4 inches deep and maintained at 20 to 30% moisture. There is a 10-day rest period between flocks. Houses are cleaned out or at least decaked once per year. After removal from the house, litter is usually spread on pasture. Some range poultry producers are interested in the “good” microbes that may be present in litter and help induce immunity in birds, particularly during brooding. They do not clean out litter, and may depend on “bioprocessing” inside the house to digest and keep it at a manageable level.

To stimulate bioprocessing, producers encourage birds to scratch up and aerate bedding , often throwing in whole grains to encourage more scratching. According to Salatin, at a density of five square feet per bird, the bedding is fluffed and tilled up as fast as the birds manure. it does not cap or cake. Broilers are not as active in scratching up litter as older birds, and so rototilling may be needed. Also, moisture from water leaks can cap bedding. Using portable roosts inside can help even out the deposition of manure. Heat from bioprocessing is an advantage in winter housing. Biodynamic additives or EM (Effective Micro-organisms) have been added to poultry litter to enhance bioprocessing and reduceammonia. Call ATTRA for more information on EM or see .

Shell considers deep litter an opportunity for good manure stewardship, especially during the winter months when there is no growth of pasture, and nutrients from manure would be lost by being washed away or volatilized. Shell is interested in capturing the nutrients in poultry manure in a “carbon bank” and “investing” or spreading them on the farm where needed. Carbon helps absorb excess nitrogen. Litter from the houses has valuable nutrients and is spread on pastures or collected for gardens. Shell recommends a diverse mix of bedding materials: wood chips, leaves, sawdust, planer shavings, corn fodder, ground corn cobs, soybean stubble, hay chaff, spoiled hay, straw, peanut hulls. He removes litter infrequently, only once every couple of years.

Litter can also be composted after removal from the house. Composting will reduce odors and pathogens and improve the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio. According to ATTRA Technical Specialist Steve Diver, it also makes stable humates that may be less vulnerable to leaching. Composting litter is sometimes combined with offal from processing or mortalities; however, scavenging wildlife may interfere. ATTRA has information on farm-scale composting available upon request.

NET FENCING

While portable electric net fencing can be convenient and versatile, learning how to use it requires a significant time investment. It is important to mow the ground underneath the electric fence, or keep sheep or other ruminants there to graze beneath it, so that the growing forage doesn’t short out the fence. Having the bottom of the netting close to the ground will help keep small birds in, but italso makes the fence more likely to short out. Shell recommends a very hot fence and repeated testing. Train young birds with a small-mesh netting before switching to the lighter, larger-holed netting. Poultry need training because their feathers help insulate them from shock.

Stray dogs are not always deterred by netting, because they may jump over before they realize what it is. Wildlife are more cautious. Electric netting can actually “train” the predators to avoid it.

Two companies that make electric netting include Premier (30) and Kencove (31). Some producers prefer to buy the charger from Premier . Shell recommends the Intellishock 42bportable solar charger – and the netting from Kencove. Compass Fencing and Grazing Systems (32) offers a range of poultry netting. Electric netting usually comes in 150 to 165-foot rolls and costs about $1 per foot. Netting may last two to five years.

Check the following features when choosing netting:

• The mesh spacing should be close enough to keep young birds in. A large-holed mesh can be used for larger birds.
• Posts with pins for treading-in are easy to place in the ground.
• Dry soils require a positive/negative charge.
• Good service by the supplier is important.

Shell is also pioneering the use of non-electric netting. He uses a plastic netting that is cheaper than electric and easier to use; there’s no need to learn electric fencing technology and no needto mow under the netting to prevent shorting out. The grass growing up just improves the seal. Tenax Corp. (33) is a supplier. Layers and turkeys may escape over fencing. Turkeys, especially heritagebreeds, may fly over fivefoot- high fences. Therefore producers usually clip their wings by cutting several primary flight feathers.

OTHER FENCING

Perimeter fencing in extensive systems is usually for the sake of the ruminants and is built tokeep them in and predators out. Intensive poultry systems also use perimeter fencing; it may benetting or another type of fence. Producer Jim Hawthorne (34) in Missouri uses net fencing incombination with three strands of electric wire.

Robert Plamondon’s fencing is unusual: he uses only electric wires. “The best kind of fence,” he says, “is going to depend on your goals, your land, and even your personal idiosyncrasies.” He designs his fences to keep predators out, not chickens in. “A fence that ‘leaks’ chicken is not a big deal to me”. He uses one electric wire at 5″ off the ground to enclose chickens. He says that some chickens will still hop over the wire or duck under unless you go to a lot of trouble to eliminate high and low spots on pasture, but they do not fly over the electric wire. A second wire 10 inches off the ground will keep most raccoons out. .The predators content themselves with trying to pick off hens that have strayed past the perimeter, and stop chasing them if they recross the wire”. He prefers low, step-over fences for ease of access. Fencing chickens out of a garden area involves different strategies. To exclude ruminants from poultry feeding areas, he puts the lowest wire 12 inches off the ground to keepsheep and goats out. Hens can come and go since they duck under wire if it is higher than theirback.

Plamondon uses aluminum wire instead of polywire or steel. Aluminum is very visible to predators and to him. Polywire may be better if you need to rewind it back onto reels when moving fence. Plamondon just drags his wire when moving.

LAND MANAGEMENT

Chickens obtain limited nutrients from forage, while ducks, geese, and turkeys obtain more. Poultry can also obtain nutrients from seeds and live protein such as worms and insects – even mice and small snakes. However, when formulating rations, it may be best to assume zero contribution from pasture . it is difficult to know what nutrients will be supplied and in what amount. Winter production means less live protein on pasture.

Poultry do not graze in a particularly orderly fashion. It is important for forage to be young instead of long and rank. According to one producer, “chickens ignore vegetation over four inches high – all they will do is trample and poop on it”. Salatin stresses the importance of ruminant grazing to keep the pasture short (about 3 inches high), instead of mowing, which can leave sharp points that hurt chickens. feet. Producers who combine range poultry with ruminant production usually choose their forages and manage their pasture to meet the nutritional needs of the cattle, sheep, or goats. Manyvariables come into play in determining the “best forage” for your operation: soil type, pH, amountof rainfall, field fertility, crop history, type of tillage for seeding (broadcast over existing pasture for improvement, or complete tillage), size of pasture, and other planned uses of pasture, suchas grazing other livestock or making hay. Contact your local Extension service to discuss options.

A perennial polyculture pasture with multispecies legumes and grasses may be ideal. Pasture swards of diverse species are the most reliable for a wide range of conditions, from high moisture in spring and fall to the hottest and driest days in summer. A common recommendation with ruminants is .graze what you have. instead of re-seeding. This can also apply to systems that include poultry. Polyculture pastures are not created overnight.they require a few years of fairly intensive management.and theyrequire ruminant grazing. The composition of the pasture gradually changes and improves.

SPECIALTY PASTURES FOR POULTRYThere is some interest in specialty pastures for poultry. In the U.K., for instance, there are special pasture seed mixes available for sheep/poultry pastures. Much of the research done in the early- tomid-1900s on feeding forages to poultry is still applicable today. Plamondon summarizes his readings: “As for re-seeding, everything I’ve read points to oats as the ideal cool-season green feed, while ladino clover, alfalfa, and to a lesser extent other clovers are better summer feeds. My own experience with oats has been very favorable. Oats seem to do very well when broadcast by hand. (35). .In Ohio Experiment Stations in the ’40s and ’50s, ladino clover and alfalfa remained palatable throughout the summer if mowed occasionally. In fact, the Experiment Station published special rations for pullets on firstclass pasture, with a protein level of only 10%. Pasture supplied the rest. (Note that this wasgrowing pullets, not modern broilers. Results with laying hens were also pretty good, though). (36).

According to Aaron Silverman in Oregon, poultry prefer broadleaf plants over grasses. He integrates poultry with vegetable production and runs poultry on the cover crops. He has found New Zealand white clover ideal, although expensive. It fixes nitrogen in the soil, is low growing, and does not require mowing. It develops deep roots that allow it to stay green during long dry summers in the West, but it does not form a dense mat that resists removal for planting crops or limits diversity in a pasture. And, he says, the chickens love it (37).

Grasses such as perennial and annual ryegrass and sudan grass can stay green in the long dry summers in the West, but poultry may not like them as much. Producers are also interested in millet and sorghum for their drought tolerance.

Dry pasture is an issue for western producers. Plamondon in western Oregon recommends mowing dry pasture to turn dead grass into mulch and reduce fire danger. He also finds that if the grass gets too tall, his hens do not range much. They “only move through a few tunnels through the grass to get to the feeders and waterers” (38). He has found that throughout the summer, his eggs retain the deep orange yolks characteristic of birds on fresh pasture. He believes the layers find dandelions and other deeprooted plants that stay green all summer. He is reluctant to place field pens on dry pasture because he.s concerned that birds with only dry forage to eat could lead to crop impaction. Some producers in the West raise birds on irrigated pasture.

SHADEShade is an important consideration when pasturing birds. Some certification programs in Europe require shade, such as tree and bush plantings, for bird welfare and to integrate the poultry building into the landscape. Tall crops such as corn or sunflowers could also be planted to provide shade and additional feed. .Agroforestry. combines agriculture with forestry production. For example, woody ornamentals(dogwood, curly willow) could be planted for multiple uses, including shade. An orchard could be an ideal setting.

Special shade units are built on range in France.

One U.S. producer provides shade with a portable hade/water wagon. A hay wagon is covered with a tarp, and waterers, supplied by a 200- gallon stock tank, are hung from the corners. Birds lounge under the wagon during hot weather and eat from movable feeders placed close by. The wagon is moved every couple of days to keep manure from collecting (39). The producer finds that the birds like the shade somuch that it.s hard to get them back into the house at night in the summer.

Fire ants on pasture can be a concern in the South, especially for field pens. However, one producer actually used layers to control the problem: “We put a cage of our Rhode Island Reds on our mounds and they dig them out and eat them with great gusto. The next day we move our cages and there’s a hole where the ants used to be and they’ve never returned” (40). ATTRA has a publication on sustainable fire ant control.

FEEDER AND WATERER DESIGN

Feed and water delivery are important parts of a range poultry production system, and depending on design, they can be automated to save labor. It can be difficult to automate feed and water delivery in portable housing or pens, but hauling five-gallon buckets of water and feed gets old. Some other considerations for delivery systems include adequate access of birds to feed and water, automation, regulating water temperature, sanitation, and avoiding spillage.

WATERERSTo improve their birds. access to waterers, French producers in the Label Rouge program keep water and feed both in the house and at locations on pasture. That way the birds do not have to run back to the house between mouthfuls of feed to get a drink. Water intake can be a limiting factor in bird growth. If birds cannot drink, they will not eat.

Water availability and delivery should be planned for weather extremes. Birds will not last long in hot weather without plenty of water. Water needs increase dramatically in hot weather and may increase the producer’s workload. Two rules of thumb are: water consumption increases about 3.5% for each degree of temperature over 70F, and water consumption over a 24-hour period is about equal to the age in days multiplied by 0.18 ounces. Because of the inactivity of Cornish cross, it is especially important not to place water too far from them in hot weather. Birds need less water in cold weather, but freezing can make winter watering a problem. Ideal water temperature is 70F. Very hot water (above 86F)or very cold (below 40F) will decrease intake and slow growth.

Water quality should be tested regularly. Water from wells may have high nitrate levels and high bacterial counts because of runoff from fertilized fields. If the water is hard, minerals may cause blockages in valves and pipes. Types of waterers include:

• Founts
• Hanging waterers (bell-shaped domes or “plasson” waterers)
• Trough waterers
• Cup and nipple waterers

Pan-and-jar waterers are a type of fount used for baby chicks in the brooder. Larger founts are used with older birds. Aaron Silverman uses a type of bell waterer (.low profile.) that even very young chicks can drink from (41). Bell waterers are often used in field pens. A five-gallon bucket is set on top of the pen with a gravity line leading to the bell waterer inside, which should be hung so that the rim is at the bird.s shoulder height. As birds grow bigger, they may bump the bell waterers and slosh water out. Shell recommends keeping the water level in the bell low and filling the ballast completelyto reduce sloshing. One bell waterer may be enough to supply all the birds in the pen during most of the year, except in the heat of summer.

However, since the lines can get clogged, having more than one waterer is an important safeguard. During the hottest summer weather, field pen producers must usually refill the fivegallon buckets several times a day. One producer places feedbags over the tops of the buckets to block the sun and lower the water temperature.

Trough waterers use a suspension valve or float valve to turn the water off and on.

Brower Company (26) supplies many founts, hanging waterers, and trough waterers.

To increase automation of water delivery on pasture, water can be delivered via plastic water lines from a stock tank. Piped water saves laborand helps ensure a constant water supply. Delivery can be by gravity or by pressure from pumps. Bell waterers have plastic valves and cannot handle household pressure, but some trough waterers have float valves and can handle higher pressure (42). Above-ground systems like this can be dragged when pens are moved; however, they are subject to freezing in winter. Robert Plamondon and Karen Black in Oregon describe the system they use thus:

Our broiler watering system is fed by a 500-gallon stock tank at the top.of our property. Half-inch black poly tubing is the main line, fed via a bulkhead connector. We have t.s at intervals, with a valve and a garden hose adapter. We run garden hose from the mainline to the clusters of houses,and there is usually an irrigation distribution adaptor to feed 2 or 4″ drip tubing to the houses. The bell waterer tubing is just large enough to slip over the ” tubing; the Little Giant waterers get a barbed-to-pipe thread adapter to connect them to tubing.(43)

Cup waterers and nipple waterers have the potential to automate water delivery in a house and can work off low-pressure gravity. Cup waterers are small drinking cups that are filled by a suspension valve or a trigger operated by the bird. Nipple waterers are also operated by the bird. Cup and nipple waterers reduce water use by preventing spillage, which also keeps the litter drier. Cup waterers and nipple waterers are placed at regular intervals on a water line and put water in easy reach; birds have only to move one or two body-lengths to reach it. Nipples should be placed at the bird.s eye level. Theheight of nipple waterers needs to be adjusted as the bird grows; cup waterers are more forgivingand do not need to be adjusted as often (42).

Tim Shell has been a leader in using cup and nipple waterers for range poultry production. Since his house is stationary, it is especially important to avoid sloshing and the wet spots thatwould contribute to capping of his litter. Shell puts a 55-gallon drum in the house in the shade.He plumbs it with a float valve and gravity-feeds without a regulator. He uses a subsoiler to burythe black plastic pipe to keep the water cool in summer, and the reserve of water cools at nightto lower the water temperature during the day.

I would recommend the nipples in two tenfoot joints hung down the inside of the house about two feet in from the walls. They come pre-installed on inch pvc pipe spaced 8″ or 12″ or 15″ apart. I would gowith the 8″ and get the roaster nipple, it lets more water through. (17)

This would service 200 to 300 birds. He also uses courtesy waterers in the field. Shell has bought nipple waterers from Val Products (44) and G&M Sales (45); he has bought cup waterers from Georgia Quail Farm (46). Robert Plamondon stresses the importance of the reserve tank when using nipple waterers especially if using above-ground black tubing. The water heats up in the tubing and will burnbirds. mouths unless it is first mixed with a reservoir of cool water. Plamondon is also interestedin cooling water tanks with aluminized bubble wrap for insulation.

Commercial Chicken Production Manual recommends one bell waterer per 63 broilers (45 roasters), one eight-foot trough for 250 broilers (167 roasters), and one cup or nipple per 10 broilers (seven roasters) (29). Sanitizers are used in the conventional industry to keep water lines clean. According to the Ross Broiler Management Guide, the conventional poultry industry chlorinates at 1 to 3 ppm. Range poultry producers have tried apple cider vinegar, chlorine, hydrogen peroxide, and Shaklee.s Basic H to help limit algae growth in water buckets and tanks. Lids on buckets help keep out bird droppings, and screens filter out bugs and debris. Plamondon suggests making the buckets dark to prevent algal growth or wrapping them with aluminum foil and clear packing tape.

FEEDERSTypes of feeders include:

Hand feeding

• Shallow pans for brooding
• Trough feeders
• Hanging feeders

Automated feeding

• Conveyor-and-pan
• Trough-and-chain.

Hand feeding is labor-intensive. Shallow pans are needed for tiny chicks in the brooder; the lid of a cardboard box works fine. Trough feeders are long feeders that come in many sizes and styles. Some have flip-tops, others have a bar on top to unseat birds that try to roost on them (droppings would dirty the feed).

In field pens, 5-foot feed troughs are commonly used for 90 birds. Some producers fill the feederstwice per day toward the end of grow-out when birds are big (47). Those using field pens usually have to remove the feeder first to move the pen, adding additional labor, unless they are able to attach the feeders to the pens as “sidewall feeders”.

According to Robert Plamondon, one problem with trough feeders is that you need several sizes for birds as they grow. It can be difficult to find large trough feeders. Brower (26) has vinyl feeders 4.5. long x 4. tall x 6. wide that hold 35 lbs., partially full. The old galvanized type can be found used (48). Kuhl Company (49) has both 50-pound and 300-pound-capacity shielded range feeders.

There are many possibilities for homemade trough feeders, such as recycled rain gutters with capped ends. Andy Lee cuts a 20-foot PVC well casing in half lengthwise; each side holds three 5-gallon buckets of feed and can serve 150 large broilers. Shell (17) offers the following recommendationsfor using PVC feeders: cut only onethird off the top of a 4-inch pipe, use anti-tip sticks, cap the ends, and drill half-inch weep holes at both ends to let rainwater out.

Using large bulk outdoor feeders can reduce labor. They are easier to fill because you can backa pickup to them and dump in feed. Some large feeders even have skids so they can be dragged.Plamondon’s feeders hold two to four weeks’ worth of feed – 550 lbs., delivered by truck tothe field. Joel Salatin’s feed sled holds 1 ton of feed.

Wet feed is a concern when feeding outdoors. If feed gets wet, it can harden and be difficult to remove. Some producers allow wet feed to freeze in winter and feed on top of it. Some bulk feederscome with rain shields. Plamondon uses old turkey range feeders with waterproof lids on top and rain shields above the pan. Similar feeders are made by Shenandoah (50). Rain shields can be made from light-gauge sheet metal. Shell doesn’t worry about rain on the feed. He recommends regulating feeding so that there is only a 1% residue left daily. Since birds will be cleaning it up every day, it won.t have time to spoil. And he finds birds actually like wet feed (51).

Hanging feeders are traditionally tubes with a round base. Some tube feeders also have rain shields. Since hanging feeders are off the ground, they cannot be tipped over by the birds. An advantage of hanging feeders is that they can be lifted higher as the birds grow. Feeders should be at the top of the backs of the chickens to keep them from wasting feed by slinging it to the ground.

Feed wasted by spillage is common in feeders filled by hand; wind also blows fines out of the feeder. Feeders should be filled only halffull. If feed is spilled, encourage birds to clean up the residue by moving the feeder daily before the birds have a chance to dirty the feed on the ground with their manure (17). Adequate feeder space is important so that birds can get to the feed. According to Commercial Chicken Production Manual, birds need 2 inches of trough space each through the first 5weeks, 3 inches to 7 weeks, and 4 inches beyond 7 weeks. For troughs that are accessible fromboth sides, divide the length requirement by two. When tube feeders are used, 20% less feeder space is needed than the above recommendations (29). Broiler breeders on a restricted diet require 6 inches per bird (52).

Make sure the feeder is large enough to hold the amount you need to feed daily. The conventionalindustry’s rule of thumb for broiler feed consumption is 2 times the body weight: A 5- pound broiler eats 10 pounds of feed during its life. Broilers are generally full-fed – there is no restriction on the amount of feed they get. If you regularly allow the feeder to become empty, there may be a frenzy at feeding time. Hungry birds will climb over each other to get at feed, resulting in scratches that can get infected and need to be trimmed or discarded at processing (17). Since not all the birds will be able to eat at once, only the most aggressive will get enough feed, and growth will not be uniform. If feeders do not run empty, there is no frenzy and no need for all birds to have access at one time (53).

Some producers intentionally restrict feed because they are limiting growth (i.e., for broiler breeders). They have sufficient feeder space for all birds to eat at once. Shell makes a raft of PVCpipe feeders. If you are exclusion-feeding to keep ruminants out, make sure your whole flock canfit in the feed area. In his usual spirit of innovation, he has considered feeding pellets and wholegrain in the grass.

Few U.S. range producers are using automated feed systems such as conveyor-and-pan and trough-and-chain. However, these feeders can provide a uniform distribution of feed throughout a house. They can be adjusted to the proper level as birds grow. In French free-range production, automated feeding is commonplace in stationary houses, and bulk feeders are also placed on pasture.

Feed should be used within four weeks of milling to prevent nutrients from deteriorating (2). Store feed off the floor and away from moisture. Many small-scale producers use clean plastic trash containers; larger producers may use bulk bins on wagons in the field. Stationary houses may use a feed bin on a pad.

BROODING AND TRANSITION TO PASTURE

Chicks need to be brooded after hatching to prevent chilling until they are fully feathered.They also need protection from predators. The temperature at the start of brooding is 95F and is reduced by 5F every week for 2 to 4 weeks. Books and Extension publications are excellent sources of general brooding information. After brooding, birds are moved out to pasture.

BROODING SET-UPSBrooding can be “cool-room” or “warmroom” Cool-room heats a localized area with heat lamps or a large pancake brooder. Warmroom heats an entire room with space heaters. The conventional industry often does “coolroom” brooding in a large house using pancake or infrared brooders; birds are confined withbrooder guards or cardboard curbs. Pancake or infrared brooders are sometimes called “hovers”. They are usually umbrella-shaped and use electric or gas heat. Most range poultry producers use the cool-room method.

Small-scale poultry producers brood in a variety of set-ups. Heat lamps are generally used above a box that confines the chicks close to the heat source and reduces drafts. Litter covers the floor. Sand can be used but is not useful for composting later as shavings are. The box is usually placed in an outbuilding. For more birds, more or larger lamps are used and the chicks are confined in a larger area such as a small brooding house. Some producers brood in a greenhouse. Plamondon has an interesting description on his website http://www.plamondon.com/brooder.shtml for an electric-lamp brooder in awooden hover. It was developed in the 1940s by the Ohio Experiment Station and was popularfor small commercial flocks.

Small-scale producers sometimes use brooder boxes. These are individual boxes that contain their own heating element, feeder, and waterer. Some are floor brooders that are placed on litter. Battery brooders are brooding boxes stacked on top of each other to save space. They have wire floors. Hatcheries such as Murray McMurray (54) sell brooder boxes and battery brooders. It may be possible to find older used battery brooders.

Salatin Brooder

After brooding, transition to the field is a concern. In the spring and fall, producers may brood birds up to three or four weeks before moving them to grass. In the summer, birds only spend a couple of weeks in the brooder and may not be fully feathered when they go to pasture. With field pens in particular, young birds can be chilled, especially by contact with wet ground.

Adaptations can be made to houses to ease the transition. Aaron Silverman in Oregon has built a run onto the side of his brooder house. A sheltered roosting compartment in a field pen or straw for extra warmth can be useful before releasing birds to pasture. Wire-floored sunporches were used in the past. Some were even positioned above the grass to allow the birds to eat some forage.

Total field brooding holds potential. Robert Plamondon believes that the potential exists to brood from day one in a portable brooder house in the field, if appropriate heat sources are used, such as small propane hovers. “The U.S. models are all enormous 500+ chick brooders, but the British Maywick brooders seem to be available in sizes that can be throttled back to a reasonable level of heat for a small flock. They have a U.S. distributor. (My experience with using hundreds and hundreds of feet of extension cords to run heat-lamp brooders has not been encouraging)” (55). David Schaffer (15) in Kansas has used a propane brooder in a hoophouse on pasture, but the propane lasts for only three days. After that, he uses body warmth of the flock for heat (500 chicks). The hoop house has flaps that enclose chicks but some wriggle through to the pasture at three days old. Advantages included not having to move chicks after brooding and putting chicks on pasture sooner. However, with fieldbrooding it is more difficult to closely monitor the chicks.

WEATHER

Weather is the big variable for outdoor poultry operations. Year-round production systems can be planned for hot summers, cold winters, and prolonged periods of wet ground. However, seasonal production systems provide less shelter and are more vulnerable to drastic, unexpected temperature swings, storms, and winds. Strong winds can chill birds and overturn pens and houses that aren.t staked down.

WINTER PRODUCTION

Range layers are often overwintered. Layers can handle cold weather fairly well as long as they are dry, but wet conditions are a problem. Some housing for range layers is heated in the winter, but unheated housing is also common, even in the North. Many producers rely on the heat that layers generate together at night. Field pens are generally not used for winter, but some producers have tried to winterize them for layers by wrapping plastic around the pens. Pens are hard to move in the snow and would require litter. Bales of hay can be added to enclosed housing to help insulate the birds. Temporary winter quarters can actually be built from straw bales.

Measures need to be taken to prevent water from freezing, and warming the water will help production. Birds may not drink water if it is very cold. Some producers are content with dumping a frozen bucket of ice out every morning and refilling it with fresh water. A heated metal platform can be used to warm the water; one producer recommends using a metal waterer rather than a plastic one because metal heats better. Heat cables or heater tape can also be used to keep water from freezing. Some producersdo not provide water if there is clean snow.

Although the goal of seasonal producers may only be survival of the birds during winter, the goal of year-round producers is continued production. They want the birds to keep laying well. U.S. range producers usually do not raise broilers in winter, but there is interest in range production systems and housing that will allow year-round production.

Enclosed housing, such as hoophouses, is important to continue broiler production in winter. In the past, houses were designed with open ends in order to draw them together in a row in winter to make servicing multiple units easier during a time when birds do not venture outdoors as much. For areas with long winters, more floor space is required, since birds stay indoors. Some houses are designed to capture solar energy in winter. Bioprocessing litter can also add warmth.

Winter Production Issues

• Birds do not have green forage and insects to eat in the winter but there are still advantages to outdoor access in winter, including exercise and fresh air. Birds may venture out in snow if it has a layer of straw or is beaten down by other animals.

• Hauling thawed water through snowdrifts can be a problem for producers.

• Frozen ground makes using net fencing difficult in winter; it gets hard to pushthe posts into the ground.

• In unheated housing, eggs can freeze. Some producers collect every two hoursto prevent freezing; some heat the nestboxes.

Wintering Case Study

Joel Salatin uses a stationary hoophouse for layers in the wintertime in Virginia. Although the 20. x 120. hoophouse is unheated, bioprocessing in the litter provides significant warmth. The temperature of the house reaches about 70F even on cloudy winter days.

PREDATORS AND PESTS

Predator control is an important consideration in range poultry production. Most predators are nocturnal (raccoon, opossum, weasel, owl, etc). Daytime predators are mainly stray dogs and hawks. It is important to identify the predator affecting your flock so you can control it. Nocturnal predators can be controlled by shutting the birds in houses at night, as long as the houses are predator-proof. During the day, stray dogs can be controlled by fencing. Other predator controls include moving the house frequently to keep predators off guard, grazing on shortgrass pasture which predators do not like to cross in the daytime, keeping housing away from wooded areas, keeping the housing close to yourresidence, grazing birds with cattle or other large animals, and using guardian animals. Flashingred lights mounted on posts have been developed by pheasant producers in Minnesota to discouragenight-time predators. Robert Plamondon comments that, in his losses to predators, he hasnot noticed plumage color to be a factor (56).

However, there is no proven control for aerial predators such as hawks and other raptors during the day. Some producers have a lot of predator pressure and lose several birds per day to hawks; others lose only a few per year. Bald eagles wiped out a range turkey operation in Wisconsin; spectators came to view the eagles.

Young Cornish-cross broilers are not known for seeking shelter from raptors. Older roosters may be able to sound an alarm and teach young broilers to seek shelter. If the broilers seek shelter but cannot get there in time, wider doors or wider eaves on housing might help them. Tall crops like corn and sunflowers can also help. Breeds other than Cornish cross may seek shelter more readily. Young birds are sometimes kept in the safety of a field pen until they are larger and less likely to be preyed upon by raptors.

Other aerial predator controls include the use of overhead netting, like the type used for fruit trees; however, it is impractical in many range production systems. Producer Jim Hawthorne believes portable radios and realistic scarecrows are helpful. One Alabama producer uses low eaves on his house to deter hawks.panels at the bottom of the sides open like clamshells. Producers have even strung CDs to flash reflected light at raptors. Hawk control in the past included a trap on a post or an electric shock ontop of a post. Today, it is likely to be illegal to trap hawks; check your state and local regulationsfirst. You may be able to trap them in a leg trap without crushing the leg. (One producer recommends padding the jaws and welding a piece of iron to them so the trap does not close all the way.) Then you can haul the raptor to another location; however, hawks may return. Call the local USDA-APHIS office and ask for the local federal trapper. The trapper may have suggestions and can also remove the animals. Rodents such as rats may be a problem, especially in stationary houses. The space betweenthe ground and a raised floor provides a darkened airspace and nesting sites. Make sure thefloorspace is one foot or more above the ground so rodents do not feel protected (57).

MORTALITY

Mortality can be high for beginning range poultry producers – as high as 30% – because of brooding problems, weather, crushing of birds when pens are moved, and predation. After a producer has several seasons of experience, mortality is much lower.

POULTRY BEHAVIOR

In addition to their needs for physical shelter and feed and water, poultry have behavioral needs that should be considered in production. These include eating, drinking, and foraging behaviors; social behaviors such as flocking, aggression, dominance, feather picking, and cannibalism; reproductive behavior; egg laying behavior, including timing of laying and nest-site selection; as well as dust bathing, pecking and scratching, and roosting (8).

ECONOMICS

Range poultry can provide supplemental income on a small scale. Many producers raise about 1,000 birds per year and report that they are easy to direct-market. You can get in with a low initial investment . under $1,000 if you find some of the processing equipment used or make it yourself. Most producers sell meat directly for about $2 per pound and are able to net about $2 to $3 per bird. When farmers start out with their first batch of birds, hourly earnings may be very low. However, as they gain experience and their efficiency increases, hourly earnings also increase. University of Wisconsin studies show anexperienced farmer can earn nearly $10 an hour (58). Eggs provide a particularly good cash flow- you have something to sell every day.

For production budgets detailing income and expenses for both small and larger-scale production, see Growing Your Range Poultry Business: An Entrepreneur’s Toolbox. In addition, the Toolbox can help you study the feasibility of a start-up or expanded enterprise or to plan a business such as a small processing plant. It takes you through a marketing plan, production plan, and using an income statement to determine whether your enterprise will be profitable, as well as a cashflow plan to determine whether you can afford to do it.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

The title of this ATTRA series is Sustainable Poultry. Sustainable agriculture refers to agriculturethat is environmentally sound, economically viable, and socially just. Broad knowledge is needed for successfully raising small commercial flocks. The main considerations include:

• Environmental. The re-integration of livestock with the land base is a key concept of sustainable agriculture. When feed is produced on the farm and manure recycled backto crop fields, nutrient cycles are closed.

• Economic. You should be profitable unless you have planned for it to be a hobby or intentionally subsidize it from other farm operations; otherwise you will not remain in business and will not be able to make a positive impact on your community and environment.

• Social. Agriculture is increasingly more consumer-oriented as more consumers make conscious choices about their food and how it is raised.

REFERENCES

1) USDA National Agricultural StatisticsService.

2) Damerow, Gail. 1995. A Guide to Raising Chickens. Storey Communications,Pownal, VT. 341 p. Order from:Storey Books, 4818 West Converter’s Drive, Appleton, WI 54913, 800-441-5700. $14.95 plus $3.95 shipping

3) NCAT. 1999. Pastured Poultry Producers Speak Out. National Center for Appropriate Technology, Fayetteville, AR. 10 p.

4) Leeson, S. and J.D. Summers. 1991. Commercial Poultry Nutrition. University Books, Guelph, Ontario. p. 181

5) Sharpley, A.N. et al. 1999. Agricultural Phosphorus and Eutrophication. ARS-149. USDA ARS, Washington, DC. 37 p.

6) Daniels, Mike et al. 1998. Soil Phosphorus Levels: Concerns and Recommendations. SERA-17. University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension, Fayetteville, AR.

7) Ensminger, M.E. 1992. Poultry Science. 3rd ed. Interstate Publishers, Inc., Danville, IL. 469 p.

Appleby, Michael C., Barry O. Hugher, and H. Arnold Elson. 1992. Poultry Production Systems: Behaviour, Management and Welfare. CAB International, Wallingford, Oxon, U.K. 238 p.9) Joel and Teresa Salatin, Polyface Farms, Inc. Rt. 1, Box 281, Swoope, VA 24479 540-885-3590

10) Robert Plamondon364775 Norton Creek RoadBlodgett, OR 97326http://www.plamondon.com

11) Thear, Katie. 1997. Free-Range Poultry.Published by Farming Press Books,Ipswich, U.K. Distributed by DiamondFarm Enterprises, Alexandria Bay, NY.181 p.

12) Salatin, Joel. 1993. Pastured PoultryProfits. Polyface, Swoope, VA. 330 p.Order from:The Stockman Grass FarmerP.O. Box 2300Ridgeland, MS 39158-2300800-748-9808Book ($30 plus $4.50 s/h)Video ($50)

13) Egganic Industries3900 Milton HwyRinggold, VA 24586800-783-6344

14) Andy LeeGood Earth Publications1702 Mountain View Rd.Buena Vista, VA 24416540-261-8775 telephone and faxAndyLee@ntelos.nethttp://www.goodearthpublications.com

15) David Schafer and Alice Dobbs760 SW 55th Ave.Jamesport, MO 64648660-684-6035dna76@grm.nethttp://www.schaferfarmsnaturalmeats.com

16) Lee, Andy and Patricia Foreman. 2002.Day Range Poultry. Good Earth Publications,Buena Vista, VA. 308 p. (Orderfrom author for $22.00 plus $4.00 shipping.)

17) Tim Shell407 Mt. Solon Rd.Mt. Solon, VA 22843540-885-4965tshell@firstva.com$12.00 for book18) Beck-Chenoweth, Herman. 1996. Free-Range Poultry Production and Marketing.Back Forty Books, Creola, OH. Orderfrom:Back Forty Books26328 Locust Grove RoadCreola, OH 45622http://www.back40books.comLocustgrove2@ohiohills.com740-596-4379740-596-3079 fax$39.50 (plus $4.50 s/h)

19) Lee, Andy. 1998. Chicken Tractor. StrawBale Edition. Good Earth Publications.Columbus, NC. 320 p. (Order fromauthor).

20) Mollison, Bill. 1988. Permaculture: ADesigner.s Manual. Tagari Publications,Tyalgum, Australia. 198 p.

21) Moore, Alanna. 1998. Backyard PoultryNaturally. Bolwarrah Press, Bolwarrah,Victoria. 151 p. (Also see website http://www.in.com.au/~shanea/COMMEGGS.htm).

22) Kip Glass2169 North Farm Rd 71Bois D.Arc, MO 65612417-732-4122glassmagic@axs.net

23) McWilliams, John. 1993. Chickens in thegarden: possibilities in pest control.Countryside & Small Stock Journal.September-October. p. 28-29.

24) Dr. Jim McNittSmall Farm Family Resource DevelopmentCenterSouthern University and A&M CollegeBox 11170Baton Rouge, LA 70813-0401504-771-2262504-771-5134 faxjmcnitt@subr.edu

25) Clark, M. Sean and Stuart H. Gage. 1996.Effects of free-range chickens and geeseon insect pests and weeds in anagroecosystem. American Journal ofAlternative Agriculture. Vol. 11, No. 1. p.39-47.

26) Brower CompanyP.O. Box 2000Houghton, IA 52631319-469-4141800-553-1791http://www.hawkeyesteel.combroweriowa@aol.com

27) Northern Greenhouse SalesBox 42Neche, ND 58265204-327-5540204-327-5527 faxContact: Bob Davis

28) Winkler Canvas, Ltd.204-325-9548800-852-2638204-325-5434 faxhttp://www.winklercanvasbldg.comcanvas@web4.net

29) North, Mack O. and Donald Bell. 1990.Commercial Chicken Production Manual.4th ed. Chapman & Hall, New York, NY.p. 470

30) Premier2031 300th St.Washington, IA 52353800-282-6631800-346-7992 faxinfo@premiersupplies.comhttp://www.premier1fence.com

31) Kencove334 Kendall Rd.Blairsville, PA 15717724-459-8991724-459-9148 Fax800-536-2683http://www.kencove.com

32)Compass Mountain FarmCompass Fencing and Grazing SystemsSuttons Bay, MI800-968-1778gingrasj@corecomm.netContact: Maggie Gingras

33) Tenax Corp.4800 E. Monument St.Baltimore, MD 21205http://www.tenax.net410-522-7000 office800-356-8495 order line

34) Jim HawthorneP.O. Box 214Rayville, MO 64084816-470-7000

35) Plamondon, Robert. 2001. Re-seedingand lime. Email posting toPasturePoultry listserver. February 21.

36) Plamondon, Robert. 2001. Re: Reseeding.Email posting to PasturePoultry listserver.August 7.

37) Silverman, Aaron. 2001. Re: Summergrass in Oregon. Email posting toPasturePoultry listserver. November 29.

38) Plamondon, Robert. 2001. Dry summerpasture. Email posting to PasturePoultrylistserver. May 27.

39) McDonald, Peter. 2001. Re: Dayrangekilling profits. Email posting toDayRangePoultry listserver. August 1.

40) Nameth, Marc. 2000. Re: Ants. Emailposting to PasturePoultry listserver.September 16.

41) Silverman, Aaron. 2002. Re: Bell waterers.Email posting to PasturePoultrylistserver. January 9.

42) Plamondon, Robert. 2002. Re: Bell waterers.Email posting to PasturePoultrylistserver.

43) Black, Karen. 2002. Re: Bell waterers.Email posting to PasturePoultry listserver.January 13.

44) Val ProductsP.O. Box 958Lancaster, PA 17608717-392-3978717-392-8947 fax

45) G&M Sales4562 South Valley PikeHarrison, VA 22801800-296-9156540-433-9156540-433-4818 faxhttp://www.gmsalesofvirginia.com

46) Georgia Quail Farm (GQF ManufacturingCo.)P.O. Box 1552Savannah, GA 31498912-236-0651912-234-9978 fax

47) Plamondon, Robert. 2000. Re: FeederSpace and Capacity. Email posting toPasturePoultry listserver. May 30.

48) Timothy Shell. 2001. Re: Broiler Feeders.Email posting to PasturedPoultrylistserver. August 24.

49) Kuhl Corporation39 Kuhl RoadP.O. Box 26Flemington, NJ 08822-0026(908) 782-5696Fax: (908) 782-2751http://www.kuhlcorp.com

50) Shenandoah Manufacturing Co., Inc.1070 Virginia Ave.Harrisonburg, VA 22802800-476-7436 or 540-434-3838800-434-3068 or 540-434-3068 faxsales@shenmfg.comhttp://www.shenmfg.com

51) Shell, Tim. 2001. Digest number 301.Email posting to DayRangePoultrylistserver.September 19.

52) Black, Karen. 2001. Re: claw scratches.Email posting to PasturePoultry. May 11.

53) Plamondon, Robert. 2000. Re: FeederSpace and Capacity. Email posting toPasturePoultry listserver. May 30.

54) Murray McMurray HatcheryP.O. Box 458191 Closz DriveWebster City, IA 50595515-832-3280800-456-3280http://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com

55) Plamondon, Robert. 2001. Re: Chickenson pasture.was coccidiosis. Emailposting to PasturePoultry listserver. July5.

56) Plamondon, Robert. 2002. Re: Needadvice on which breed to start with.Email posting to PasturePoultry listserver.January 6.

57) Damerow, Gail. 1994. The ChickenHealth Handbook. Storey Communications,Pownal, VT. 353 p.

58) University of Wisconsin.s Center forIntegrated Agricultural Systems1450 Linden DriveUniversity of WisconsinMadison, WI 53706608-262-5200608-265-3020 faxhttp://www.wisc.edu/cias/pubs/briefs/057.htmlEmail: gwsteven@facstaff.wisc.edu

59) American Pastured Poultry ProducersAssociationP.O. Box 1024Chippewa Falls, WI 54729715-577-5966 (cell)Contact: Jody Padghamhttp://www.apppa.orgGrit@apppa.orgMembership is $20 per year and includesnewsletter.

Further Sections

To continue reading the article, please click on the links below

• Part I
• Part II

Source: National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) – February 2002

Small animals are part of my frugal living regimen. They can be a source of fun and good fresh food. Butchering your own meat or harvesting your own eggs may put you off a bit if you haven’t done it before, but there really isn’t much to it. All you need is a little room and a desire for fresh food.

There are any number of animals that can be raised with ease on a relatively small piece of land. We’ll discuss animal farming on a small scale here to show you what can be done – even in the city.

Raising animals in your backyard in the city is a possibility. Even in New York City, chickens are allowed inside city limits as long as there are no roosters in the flock. They are considered to be pets. Here in Cheyenne, chickens aren’t allowed in town, but I know people that have them. I think the idea is don’t be a nuisance to other city dwellers and the city won’t be a nuisance to you either. That seems fair.

Why raise your own meat and eggs? Well, with all the concern about treatment of animals, you can be sure that your animals for meat and eggs are well cared for. You can be sure that they are indeed organic and free range. It’s always nice to know what’s on and in the food you are eating.

Another reason to raise small animals is because they can also be coordinated with growing your own food. We often feed excess vegetables from the garden to our chickens and turkeys. It is a good way to supplement free range and commercial feed. Our scraps are turned into meat and eggs.

Raising your own small animals for meat is an example of creating marketplace alternatives when the marketplace doesn’t provide what you want, how you want it, when you want it, and at a price you choose to afford.

So what is the range of possibilities on a small place? It is quite an impressive variety. Consider that the following small animals can be raised for meat and eggs in a relatively small area without much trouble:

• Chickens
• Rabbits
• Ducks
• Geese
• Turkeys
• Fish

And, let’s not forget about predators. If you’re raising small animals for meat and eggs, the neighborhood predators will enjoy them as well. You need to understand how to deal with predators that are common in our area. In my neck of the woods I have to deal with rodents, fox, coyote, raccoon, weasel, ferret, skunk and wildcat/cougar. I like wild animals, so strong animal fencing is an important tool in my toolbox for raising meat and eggs. My approach to keeping small animals includes predator deterrence; prevention; relocation; and, elimination.

Also, remember that domestic dog and cat can also become predators of your small animals – whether they belong to you or your neighbors. Dog and cat can become a persistent problem if these animals have been released by others and allowed to become feral in your area.

With that as an introduction, let’s dive into the details of small animals for meat and eggs. Each type of animals has its pros and cons, but there is certain to be one that satisfies your interests.

Chickens

Chickens are my favorite of small animals for meat, and you’ll love the fresh source of chicken eggs. They are easy to care for and allowed (or tolerated) just about anywhere. There are many chicken breeds to pick from, so you could have quite a fancy flock of egg layers.

Learn more about raising chickens and you’ll be better prepared to enjoy fresh eggs and meat from your own backyard. And, it something you can do year round. Chickens in the winter require little care above and beyond what you might offer them in warmer weather.

A small pen or a large yard is just fine for chickens. Fence them in and practice clipping chicken wings to keep them from flying over the fence. Chickens are one of the favorite small animals for predators, and they’ll ruin your vegetable garden if you let them get into it, so you’ll want to cut their flight feathers to keep them safe and out of trouble.

I focus on egg laying chickens because it’s an easy supply of food that lasts a long time in the refrigerator. Here is my estimation of the shelf life of eggs. If you’re going to accumulate eggs, you’ll need to bone up on egg storage techniques and know what to do with old eggs as well. You’ll also want to get some plastic egg storage trays if you’re going to keep your eggs for a long time in cold storage.

Once you get your hens to lay, you’ll be busy cleaning eggs and enjoying them. And, from time to time you’ll have to deal with a broody hen.

I’m glad you inquired “What do chickens eat?” because I have the answer. And, remember, just because you’re raising small animals like chickens doesn’t mean the cost of feed is going to be small. Here are a couple approaches to providing cheap chicken food to your flock. And, here are some suggestions for providing some natural chicken food as well.

Keeping your small animals watered is a common concern, especially for chickens. Here is a discussion about chicken waterers and what we can do to provide plenty of clean and fresh water to our flock without increasing the amount of work involved.

Here’s another nice site that you will enjoy. It’s all about raising chickens. And, if you’re raising chickens for meat, the folks over at Easy Chicken Recipes have a bunch of great recipes for your home-grown source of meat.

Rabbits

A friendly and productive animal that can provide meat and fur, and they don’t require much room at all. Keep them in pens or let them roam about. They are very quiet and easy to maintain.

Here is the place to learn more about raising rabbits for meat and fur (coming soon).

Ducks

Expect a little more noise from these animals, and different behavior than chickens. They are messy with their water. They are a good source of both meat and eggs, and a good bunch of bug catchers.

The photo right is of baby Muscovey ducks, shortly after their 800 mile trip from Minnesota to Wyoming. This was my first adventure with ducks, and I though they were nice animals to keep. Muscovey ducks are a great meat bird, and nearly tame around people.

Click here to learn more about ducks as a source of meat and eggs (coming soon).

Geese

A larger animal that you might raise is a goose. Noisy and a bit aggressive, but still a meat and egg animal that you can handle and be satisfied with. They make a mess with their water just like ducks, and are known as weeders in a mature garden.

As shown on the left, my geese were leaders among the other web-footed animals that strutted around the homestead. These are Emden geese. They have beautiful blue eyes, and a very long neck graced with soft and delicate feathers.

Learn more about the best two-winged long-necked watchdog you’ll ever have, right here (coming soon).

Turkeys

One of the more tame and curious of small animals that you might raise for meat and eggs. They are also closely related to the chicken in terms of limited intelligence. Turkeys peck around to find food, but they don’t scratch and tear up the ground like chickens.

The photo right shows young Bronze turkeys and a couple Giant Whites on the far right. They are healthy eaters, and make the “gobble” sound whenever they hear strange noises or hear another “gobble” sound. They are gentle and fascinating.

Learn more about raising turkeys for the centerpiece at your Thanksgiving dinner.

Fish

One of many underwater small animals that aren’t raised too often around the home for food, but one that can be kept in a relatively small pond or large tanks. Some fish can be quite self-sufficient given adequate surface area and variation of water depth. Different varieties are adapted to survive well in warm, cold, deep, shallow, still or moving water. Also, some are bug and fish eaters, others feed on plants, and some are bottom feeders.

Learn more about fish farming and aquaculture here (coming soon).

So there you have it. Six different types of small animals that are easy to raise and provide delicious fresh meat for your table. Four of the six provide eggs that you can fry up for breakfast. Or, if you’d rather, raise them into young birds and have a wonderful meal, or two or three.

We stew our older hens after a couple years, and make wonderful smoked turkey for when we have company during holiday meals. You know what’s your animals have been fed and how they have been treated, so it’s good all the way around.

If you have a good size pond, ducks and geese will enjoy the surface water, and fish will enjoy the depths. You could set up an aquaculture that is relatively self-supporting if you know what you’re doing.

If you have a field or pasture, chickens, turkeys, ducks and geese will all appreciate the open space to forage for grass, weeds and bugs. They all naturally return to “home” when it gets dark.

Rabbits should be confined with tighter fencing near their homes since they will need to be rounded up at the end of the day.

Some protection is required from predators, and some fencing will be necessary to keep the roamers from visiting with the neighbors. Turkeys roam far and wide. Chickens stay close to home.

The area you live in will determine what type of protection your small animals will need against predators. As far as coyotes, foxes, skunks and raccoons are concerned, it’s free food.

The best way to raise small animals is to know their needs for food, water and shelter, and understand their tolerances to weather conditions. You’ll also need to know a thing or two about predators that will find the meat and eggs you’re raising to be just as tempting as you will.

If you can raise small animals on pasture, you can cut way back on the cost of feeding them. That should fit very well with an approach to frugal living that focuses on providing your own food sources for economy and good health.

Some gardeners enjoy raising chickens, both for their entertainment value, as well as for fresh eggs and cheap fertilizer for the garden. Chickens love searching for bugs and, in the act of digging them up, can quickly decimate your flower beds and garden. Your chickens may also be attracted to your flower plants’ foliage or garden produce. If you garden, take steps to protect your hard work from your hungry chickens.

Containment

Keep your chickens contained in their chicken coop. If you want to let your flock out to enjoy fresh air and sunshine, consider constructing a chicken run that contains them within their own patch of earth. A chicken run typically consists of an enclosure connected to the chicken coop and covered on the sides and top by wire. The wire both contains your birds while preventing predators from attacking them. Construction plans for a run can be obtained from most feed stores or poultry hatcheries.

Fencing

Set up fencing around your flower beds or garden. Most domestic chickens don’t fly very high, and a fence height of three to four feet is typically sufficient for keeping out curious poultry. Fencing can be simply utilitarian, such as chicken wire nailed to wood stakes. Alternatively, setup an ornamental fence like a white picket fence to complement your flowers while still keeping the chickens at bay.

Chicken Leashes

A chicken leash, available from feed stores and mail-order hatcheries, works similar to a traditional pet leash. The soft, cushioned end is connected to the chicken’s foot. The opposite end is tied or pounded to a ground anchor. Leashing allows your chickens to roam in your yard without being able to access your flowers or garden. This remedy offers several advantages over fencing, as it is less of an eyesore and also cheaper. Make sure you supervise your chickens while leashed, as they will not be able to flee from a predator should one approach them.

Strategic Planting

Planting a dense, short shrub around the border of your flower garden can keep out all but the most determined chicken. Examples include false cypress and dwarf boxwood shrubs. This remedy is not fail-proof, and you may still occasionally find a chicken scrounging for bugs amidst your flowers.

Raising chickens is not difficult and they provide many garden benefits, such as control of pests and some weeds. Of course, the major benefit is the continuous supply of organic free range eggs.

There are a few pot-holes to avoid though and as a former inspector for the Victorian Free-range Farmers Association, I have seen just about every mistake it is possible to make when raising chickens – along with some interesting innovations that you probably won’t get elsewhere.

It may surprise you to find that even in commercial free-range production (ie. ‘genuine’ free-range, not just the carton label) the underlying objective is not to feed the birds up so they produce the greatest number of eggs possible. Actually, the aim is to create the most stress-free environment you possibly can.

It is this “Animal Considerate” environment that produces the eggs.

Of course the feed is important, since only about 10% of the birds’ diet comes from the pasture it ranges on, so there is no way of raising chickens without feeding them. However, you may also notice that I said “Pasture”. Keeping chickens in pens that has nothing but bare dirt and manure under foot will never be a low-stress environment – in fact (to me) it constitutes border-line cruelty!

Which brings us to the important issue of managing the health of your birds and the one I will be giving the most space to is ‘de-beaking’. There are of course, those who believe that this is necessary to protect the birds from each other, but they only become aggressive to each other when too many are kept in a confined space. Put simply, if your birds don’t get along then you have too many, they need more space – not mutilation! De-beaking is simply unacceptable.

Of course, my experience with Free-Range chickens is one thing. There are many different perspectives on this subject, so why not share yours with other interested Food Gardeners? You can do this right here, you don’t even need your own website, but if you do have your own site, then why not include a link to it?

Do you have a great story about keeping Chickens or other poultry in your food garden? Why not share it with others interested in food gardening!

Here you have the chance to both learn from the experience of others and “pay it forward” by sharing what you have learned with other food gardeners.

Raising chickens is fun for the whole family. Kids especially love collecting fresh eggs.

If you have decided to start your own backyard flock then you will need to build a chicken coop. When building a chicken coop there are many things to keep in mind. You could design your own chicken coop or you could go with free chicken coop plans available online. There are some excellent step by step plans for building a chicken coop, which will include plans for build in chicken nest boxes and a feed and watering area as well as a roosting bar. Every detail will be planned out for you so all you have to do is build. Some excellent books on chicken coop designs can be found at Amazon.

Some people choose to design their own backyard chicken coop. If you are handy this should be a fairly easy task but here are some details you will need to include in your coop plans:

Nest Boxes: Nesting boxes are necessary. They provide a nice cozy place inside the coop for your hens to lay eggs. You will fill the nesting boxes with hay and the chickens will lay eggs in the box. Make sure you have enough boxes in the hen house. Chickens will share boxes but you should make sure they won’t be fighting over the nest box.

Hen House Feeder: Chicken coop supplies such as feeders come in many sizes and are available at your local feed store in various sizes. Raising chickens is fun for the whole family and with the right sized chicken feeder you won’t have to feed your hens every day. Depending on what size feeder you choose and how many chickens you have, you could end up feeding just once a week.

Proper Ventilation: The hen house will need adequate ventilation. Prior to building a chicken coop you should plan for good ventilation. Good chicken coop blueprints will allow good ventilation because good ventilation will help your flock remain healthy. The coop should have windows or openings to allow fresh air inside. These windows and doors can open to a chicken yard or they can be covered with chicken wire so hens won’t get out.

Chicken House Location: Chicken coops should be placed in a sunny, well drained high location. Plan ahead and make sure your chickens are located in an area which may have drainage issues in winter. Chickens need plenty of light in order to lay eggs. The more sunlight the hens have the better.

Build Your Coop With an Attached Yard: Hens can be down right mean to each other. It’s nice to have a penned in chicken yard for your hens. You can attach poultry wire over the top of the yard to keep your little egg laying friends inside the yard some people choose wing clipping but I haven’t found this necessary. This will allow less dominate hens to get away from mean hens. Build a coop with an chicken door for the chickens to go from the coop to the yard and a “man” door for you to enter the coop. Having a full sized door for you to gather eggs from the chicken house and do some coop cleaning easily.

Build the Hen House with Good Materials: Keep in mind when building a chicken coop predators and all the ways they will try to get inside the coop to your chickens. Innocent looking neighborhood dogs may try and enter the coop and harm your chickens. Using scrap lumber in your coop design is okay but just make sure the scrap materials will not compromise your hens safety.

Raising chickens is a wonderful experience for the entire family. There isn’t anything quite like fresh eggs. Doing research prior to building a chicken coop will save you a lot of headaches in the future and will also help your hens live long and healthy lives.

Tagged as: Chicken Coop Designs

Raising chickens in your backyard farm is the fastest way to a healthy organic garden, and a delightful way to make your homesteading more self-sufficient.In the thirties, during the Great Depression, horror stories abounded about soup lines and folks facing starvation. But those who owned their own land along with a dozen or more hens and roosters never went hungry.

That’s because in a bad economy, those who can raise their own food are way ahead of the game. With a dozen or so hens and a rooster you’ll have a steady supply of eggs and meat.

Live in the city? You probably won’t be able to keep a rooster, but most city ordinances will allow you to have up to six hens. Those lovely birds will supply you with two and a half dozen eggs per week.

The manure from your hens or rooster is one of the most fertile substances in nature. While you should never add the manure directly to your soil – the nitrogen is too strong and can burn your plants – it does marvelous things when added to your compost pile.

Better yet, if you keep goats and some of your hay has gone moldy, add it to your hen’s roosting box or to the brooder. Your hens won’t care, and when they’re done with it, that wonderful moldy, manure-laden hay will jump-start your composting.

Depending on the breed, these birds can be gentle and safe around children. Your little ones will love holding the baby chicks.

Although they do require some special care those first two to three weeks of their life, these birds are – on the whole – easy to care for. All they require is a little shelter, fresh water and food every day. Gallon water feeders are available. Use those and you’ll only need to provide water for your birds once a day.

A survey done by Mother Earth News revealed that poultry – particularly those who live in poultry tractors moved daily – have up to one third less cholesterol and a fourth less saturated fat than commercially raised eggs. They also have more vitamin A and a lot more omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin E and beta carotene than their commercial counterparts.

Free range birds eat more of the diet they are supposed to have – lots of leafy greens, bugs and worms. They enjoy their lives; my birds love it when I move their tractor about. Everyday they get a new supply of grass to scratch in! Commercially raised birds, on the other hand, spend their entire lives cramped in the same small, dark, dirty space. They consume a diet of cottonseed, soy and corn with additives thrown in.

This stressful environment can make them sick, so they’re also given antibiotics to keep them from dying too soon. You and your family ingest those antibiotics when you eat their eggs. Plus, you’re eating eggs from stressed-out, potentially sick birds.

By raising chickens in a free range environment, you’re providing a kinder environment for your brood and better nutrition for your family.

Naturally, the same goes for raising chickens for meat. Less stress and no antibiotics. Plus, the meat will be cleaner. Hens and roosters that are commercially processed and killed are plucked and then thrown into a large vat of hot water until they are ready to be cut up. A lot of fecal matter collects in the vat. The poultry is literally cooking in “fecal soup”.

The feces soaks into the flesh of the bird and is in the liquid that comes in the packaging. When you butcher your own birds, you eliminate the “fecal soup.” Hence, cleaner meat.

Everybody loves fresh eggs, so they are easy to sell. Start raising chickens and they’ll produce more eggs than you and your family can eat. Sell the surplus, and within a year you’ll recoup your startup and feed costs. Keep selling your extra eggs, and the following year, you’ll have free eggs and earn a little income besides.

Looking for a Chicken Tractor Design?Caring for your flock in winterKeeping a backyard flockGet your chicks off to the right start with a brooderHow to care for your flockWhy a portable coop is bestEggs – a great source of homesteading incomeLearn which breed is right for youTips on raising the organic flock

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