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You will probably find that comets aren't worth the effort to butcher - they are egg laying machines with very little meat. My first flock was half comets and I just buried them when they were ready to replace.

I've used lights for many years now. It is set to come on at 3:00am, and I learned from an 'old timer' that a red or pink light will make for calmer chickens than any white light, and my experience has held that to be true. I use a 13 watt red compact florescent in a 6 x 9 coop but will go to a...

If you are trying to sustain them over the winter, cabbage keeps for quite a while if stored properly. Forage beets are an excellent option for feeding later in the winter and early spring. They store very well and seem to be popular with the birds.

I don't know about the beet pulp but I grew red mammoth fodder beets last summer for my flock. The beets are still holding up well in cool storage and the chickens love them. I cut them up a bit so they can eat them easier. I plan to grow many more this year. They store much better than cabbage...

Check out North American Kelp online. Good prices, good product. Depending on where you live, the cost with shipping is pretty reasonable.

I use wood ashes from the stove. Be sure to let them cool for a day or two. The chickens love them and I have read that it kills lice and other pests that can bother them.

I've changed the way I feed my flock and it's been working out just fine. I provide 22% game-bird pellets full time - cost is $15.50 locally for 50lb. The bulk of my feeding is a mix of 2/3 wheat, 1/3 cracked corn. 1/3 rolled (horse) oats and locally grown cabbage (1 big head per day) at $.15...

Mine have always eaten more as the weather cooled. Right now, they are really hitting the wheat+oats+corn scratch mix I put out every afternoon. I picked up 100 lbs of storage cabbage for winter use, since everything except the kale and brussels sprouts has been frozen.

As long as other feed, commercial layer feed and/or mixed grains, are available, the chickens will eat what they need to stay healthy. Greens are not all that deficient in protein as some think. Kale and cabbage are 14-16% and comfrey and aflalfa are even higher that that. The most important...

The price for BOSS right now makes it a mighty expensive treat. Fortunately, mine don't care for it. I use a mix of 20% rolled oats (horse feed, not 'oatmeal') and 80% wheat for scratch. they also have 20% protein game bird pellets available all the time. Greens from the garden are provided...

What are you feeding them? Are they free-ranging or in a run? At that age they should be producing eggs. Nutrition is probably the most likely problem. Protein is very inportant as well as a good source of water.

I agree with Saladin on the deep litter. I tried it one winter and the method just seemed wrong. I now use dropping boards under the roosts that I clean daily and I use pine shavings about 4" deep on the coop floor that I change out every other month, except in the winter, when I shorten the...

I switched mine from crumbles to game-bird higher protein pellets and they took a couple days to get used to them. There is a LOT less waste, so feed costs are lower and by using the higher protein feed, I easily supplement with wheat, oats, comfrey and kale and still have excellent egg...

Based on the tremendous productivity of my garden this year, the more poop the better!! I've never had such beautiful asparagus, spinach, sweet corn, etc. as I now have after using chicken manure for a few years. The poop can be almost as important as the eggs in my opinion.

The study is common sense. I did find it interesting that sunflower seed (BOSS) is listed as a bad player. BOSS is high in omega-6 fats and probably shouldn't be part of a good feeding program. From my experience, it does give a nicer appearance to the chicken's feathers, if that's what you're...

I am having the same problem with my new flock. They are 10 weeks old and only like oatmeal. So far, most greens are ignored except kale. These are RIRs and maybe they are just that way. They seem to hang out in the coop a lot more than my last bunch, which were Golden Comets and BOs. They are...

I'm wondering if anyone has noticed certain breeds that seem to have fewer health problems or some that have more. I started with a flock of 5 Golden Comets and 5 Buff orps. After I lost 1 Orp and 1 Comet to prolapse, and one Orp to a raccoon, I got 4 Production Reds to add to the flock. In the...

If you can, feed them alfalfa as that darkens the yolks. Oddly, I have been giving the hens the excess orange cherry tomatoes from the garden and the yolks have turned a bright orange color- really neat.

Thanks for the replies. My biggest concern with a rooster was the noise factor, but they are certainly less than my neighbor's dogs. For now, I will probably purchase chicks from a good hatchery. I may try the rooster when I develop a larger flock in a few years when I semi-retire. Right now...

I am considering starting a new flock next spring, as my current hens are 3 years old now. I would really like to raise Buckeyes or Chanticlers since they appear to be best suited for our climate. I would also like to start developing a self-sustaining home flock, but I'm really not fond of...