Arizona Chickens

[hemet dennis]

All food & feed prices will be going up with the severe drought this past summer and the bizarre weather and storms. I do several things to cut the feed bill; I raise earthworms in a large bed outdoors for adding protein, grew a lot of extra summer and winter squash (which will keep several months over the winter), I collect cull produce from the grocery store (the ducks have a field day when I bring home the lettuce trimmings!) I sprout my whole grain/scratch feed for extra bulk, vitamins and minerals, I ferment my layer mash, and I eat my cull chickens to reduce my own food bill.

Do you feed the earthworms or sell the earthworms ?

 

[Demosthine]

All food & feed prices will be going up with the severe drought this past summer and the bizarre weather and storms. I do several things to cut the feed bill; I raise earthworms in a large bed outdoors for adding protein, grew a lot of extra summer and winter squash (which will keep several months over the winter), I collect cull produce from the grocery store (the ducks have a field day when I bring home the lettuce trimmings!) I sprout my whole grain/scratch feed for extra bulk, vitamins and minerals, I ferment my layer mash, and I eat my cull chickens to reduce my own food bill.

I was just reading up on the fodder (sprouts) this morning. That sounds like it may have to be my next endeavour once the coop is finished. My black soldier fly composter is currently stalled because of the cold, although my mealworm colony is doing well. We don't do gardening yet, but my wife wants to start one this spring. Actually, she wants to start now, but I told her it's too late in the season to plant. Otherwise, sounds pretty awesome.

I'm thinking about using the deep litter method in my coop. It sits two feet above the ground and has six-inch plywood strips making a lower wall to keep the bedding inside. I think in our weather, a six-inch bedding would be adequate for deep litter. Any thoughts on that?

 

[rufus]

I was just reading up on the fodder (sprouts) this morning. That sounds like it may have to be my next endeavour once the coop is finished. My black soldier fly composter is currently stalled because of the cold, although my mealworm colony is doing well. We don't do gardening yet, but my wife wants to start one this spring. Actually, she wants to start now, but I told her it's too late in the season to plant. Otherwise, sounds pretty awesome.

I'm thinking about using the deep litter method in my coop. It sits two feet above the ground and has six-inch plywood strips making a lower wall to keep the bedding inside. I think in our weather, a six-inch bedding would be adequate for deep litter. Any thoughts on that?

I wouldn't bother with the deep litter method in the Arizona desert. We don't need any more heat. I am more concerned with keeping the hens cool.

Chickens are omnivores. They will eat just about anything that won't kill them. They love greens. We are just going into the winter weed season. I clean up the weeds in the alley and vacant lots to feed to the chickens. Give them a ton of weeds before you give them the expensive chicken feed.

Years ago when times were tough, my father got a job sweeping out the local theater. Our chickens survived on the spilt pop corn. Also, they did a great job working over the corrals digging through the poop. Just don't think about it when you eat the eggs.

 

[pimachickens]

Fermented feed? Oh no that's just what I need. Drunk Chickens!

It makes the keep-away game with the grapes so much more fun, though!

 

[flower]

I was just reading up on the fodder (sprouts) this morning. That sounds like it may have to be my next endeavour once the coop is finished. My black soldier fly composter is currently stalled because of the cold, although my mealworm colony is doing well. We don't do gardening yet, but my wife wants to start one this spring. Actually, she wants to start now, but I told her it's too late in the season to plant. Otherwise, sounds pretty awesome.

I'm thinking about using the deep litter method in my coop. It sits two feet above the ground and has six-inch plywood strips making a lower wall to keep the bedding inside. I think in our weather, a six-inch bedding would be adequate for deep litter. Any thoughts on that?

About too late in the season for a garden!!! Na nah there are cold weather crops that you can grow, greens, beets and many more. Just do reseach becuase lots of vegetable like the cold and will not grow in the Az heat such as lettuce, there are even flowers that prefer the cold.

 

[flower]

I wouldn't bother with the deep litter method in the Arizona desert. We don't need any more heat. I am more concerned with keeping the hens cool.

Chickens are omnivores. They will eat just about anything that won't kill them. They love greens. We are just going into the winter weed season. I clean up the weeds in the alley and vacant lots to feed to the chickens. Give them a ton of weeds before you give them the expensive chicken feed.

Years ago when times were tough, my father got a job sweeping out the local theater. Our chickens survived on the spilt pop corn. Also, they did a great job working over the corrals digging through the poop. Just don't think about it when you eat the eggs.

Deep litter is not just for heat. It also makes wonderful compost when aged. Not much will grow without soil enrichment. The SW grow a lot of food because of the sun but not without putting tons of manure into the soil. Rabbit and goat manure can be used fresh, all other sxxt must be aged especially chicken.

 

[Di Gibbs]

I would love to check that out. How do I find the blog? I am always looking for recipes.

http://fresh-eggs-daily.blogspot.com/

Here is the direct link!

Hugs,
Di

 

[Di Gibbs]

After a bit of looking around, I found this article on Mixing Your Own Layer Feed. Although it doesn't have the actual recipe, it links to Backyard Poultry's website and an article titled Making Your Own Poultry Feed. This one has specific ingredient percentages and such, but he notes that these are just samples and recommendations. You're results will vary, of course. I also found a New and Improved Breakfast of Champions that is probably what Di was talking about.


I'll be watching that site more. There's some interesting stuff on it. Thanks for the recommendation, Di!

Glad I could help, you have all taught me so much here. I have learned a lot from Lisa over at the Fresh Eggs Daily blog. http://fresh-eggs-daily.blogspot.com/ - also she has give aways all the time, I think right now there is a giveaway of a Skelter I think it is called. I believe the recipe is called the Breakfast of Champions and they love it. I had no idea that if you don't wash your eggs you don't have to refrigerate them. Thought that was interesting...yet I still put them in the fridge.
Hugs, Di

 

[Demosthine]

About too late in the season for a garden!!! Na nah there are cold weather crops that you can grow, greens, beets and many more. Just do reseach becuase lots of vegetable like the cold and will not grow in the Az heat such as lettuce, there are even flowers that prefer the cold.

Even in this cold front we have going right now? I thought they would need closer to the 80s in order to germinate. I might have to look in to this tonight! Thanks.

Deep litter is not just for heat. It also makes wonderful compost when aged. Not much will grow without soil enrichment. The SW grow a lot of food because of the sun but not without putting tons of manure into the soil. Rabbit and goat manure can be used fresh, all other sxxt must be aged especially chicken.

That was my thinking and where I was going with it. The idea of the heat doesn't bother me because they girls will be out free-ranging during the hottest parts of the day. The tree in my front yard drops lots of leaves year round and that would make good bedding from what I understand of the deep litter method. I also liked the idea because it can also give them the compost critters to eat if they are stuck in the coop for a day or two due to bad weather or something. Just another way to supplement them. As as much as my girls love to poop, especially now that they are free-ranging for a few hours a day...

 

[maryhysong]

Do you feed the earthworms or sell the earthworms ?

right now I just feed worms to chickens. I also write about them: http://www.squidoo.com/vermicomposting-how-to

I was just reading up on the fodder (sprouts) this morning. That sounds like it may have to be my next endeavour once the coop is finished. My black soldier fly composter is currently stalled because of the cold, although my mealworm colony is doing well. We don't do gardening yet, but my wife wants to start one this spring. Actually, she wants to start now, but I told her it's too late in the season to plant. Otherwise, sounds pretty awesome.

I'm thinking about using the deep litter method in my coop. It sits two feet above the ground and has six-inch plywood strips making a lower wall to keep the bedding inside. I think in our weather, a six-inch bedding would be adequate for deep litter. Any thoughts on that?

since the weather has cooled off mine are more like soaked grains but in the summer they were a couple inches long. which was great because there is no grass here or anything in the summer for them to be eating except what I grow in my garden (and most of that I eat myself)

Deep litter, six to eight inches would be the minimum really, because over time the bottom part begins to compost and the top part helps keep the bottom moister, especially here in the desert you have to keep the sun from drying it out too much.

I wouldn't bother with the deep litter method in the Arizona desert. We don't need any more heat. I am more concerned with keeping the hens cool.

Chickens are omnivores. They will eat just about anything that won't kill them. They love greens. We are just going into the winter weed season. I clean up the weeds in the alley and vacant lots to feed to the chickens. Give them a ton of weeds before you give them the expensive chicken feed.

Years ago when times were tough, my father got a job sweeping out the local theater. Our chickens survived on the spilt pop corn. Also, they did a great job working over the corrals digging through the poop. Just don't think about it when you eat the eggs.

chickens are omniverous and eat anything that doesn't eat them first. Mine have killed small snakes, also eat lizards and toads along fly maggots. In fact old poultry books advised farmers to hang up hunks of meat left over from buthering to become flyblown so the hens could have the maggots for extra free protein.

deep litter is not for warmth. deep litter helps grow beneficial microbes and other soil life that promote healthy chickens. The beneficials help keep down internal and external parasites, promote good gut health, produce low levels of natural antibiotics, reduces the amount of fly larvae produced, reduce coccidia infections and a host of other things. It also keeps your coop from stinking when you are keeping too many birds in too small a space.

I do nothing special to keep chickens warm in winter or cool in summer, other than giving them a place out of the wind in winter and providing plenty of water and shade in summer. Also I keep ducks in with my chickens so there is always some cool moist soil for them to dig and lay in (because ducks are sloppy). I believe in letting animals adapt to their environment and not changing it artifically for them (as in using fans and coolers and such). When you do that then the animals become dependent on it and when it's gone like in a power outage they will die ten times faster than if they had never had it. I have never lost a chicken due to weather extremes.

Now I will say I am higher up than Phx and about an average 10 degrees cooler in the summer. If I was contending with 120 degree heat I would cover my runs with heavy shade cloth and put in a heavy deep litter of straw and keep it moist; the water evaporating out of it would help cool the air in the vicinity to help them out during the heat of the afternoon. I also would not live where all the houses are surrounded by brick walls, and the yards are bare of mature shade trees. those brick walls are just big ovens, catching the heat. (yes, I know some of you will say you didn't have a choice...but I'm just saying that *I* would not buy in such a neighborhood, just as *I* refuse to buy anywhere there is an HOA )