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I am quite thankful that here in Western Massachusetts we do not experience -30° temps. Right now we are in a nasty cold snap and day time highs are around 10° and night temps are dropping to around -10°. I live in an urban area with a backyard coop and our city doesn't allow roos so I don't...

I want to add a couple of new hens to my flock but I do not want to go through the process of buying new pullets or laying hens, quarantine and then hope they will integrate well. I added two hens that way before but ended up having to re-home one of them. The new owner of that hen (Buff Orp)...

Here is a case of two eggs, five yolks!

The Amish don't have commercial sized businesses. They raise enough for personal use and to sell at stands and such. They actually breed their hens to lay double yolks. It is not difficult. It is really no different than any other breeding that is done. There are certain characteristics that...

Strictly speaking, double yolks are a "mistake" in the chickens. However, some hens will be more prone to double yolkers than others. Your best bet to find hens that lay double yolks is in Amish communities. The Amish have an affinity for double yolks and they breed hens that lay them. I have...

Like many people, we chill watermelon and give it to them. They love that as a treat. I think the most important way to deal with the heat is proper preparation in coop/run construction and placement. I built my coop with 18" of space under it for the girls and the whole coop/run is placed...

I have eight hens. Three RIR, three Barred Rocks, one Buff Orp and one Black Minorca. I would like to add a couple of chicks this spring. I know that some people will slip chicks in with a broody hen and they will usually raise them as their own. I would love to do this but I have no hens that...

I have eight hens. 3 Rhodies, 3 Barred Rocks,1 Black Minorca and 1 Buff Orp'n. I would like to add a couple/few chicks but none of my hens are broody. I understand that a broody hen can be used to raise chicks. But what if I do not have a hen that is broody? What are the chances that one of the...

CrosStitching, I am very sorry about your son getting pecked. I understand that it is very upsetting and as a Mom you wish it could have been prevented. Do a search in forums on 'peck eye' or 'pecked eye' and you will see many, many threads from people who have had the same unfortunate...

I came across this poem and thought it was cute, especially for those of us familiar with the "egg song". A codfish lays a thousand eggs, the homely hen but one. The codfish never cackles, to tell you what she's done. And so we scorn the codfish while the humble hen we prize. Which only goes...

I have a Minorca and she has black legs and beak so I think it is safe to say that they be black as chicks. I love my Minorca, Esmeralda!

I am thinking about planting a fall cover crop this fall as "green manure". This mix I am looking at has Austrian field peas, Crimson Clover, Hairy Vetch, Annual and Winter Rye. These cover crops are tilled into the soil about a month before planting and they provide a nitrogen and nutrient...

Agreed. When I decided to raise chickens I educated myself and asked questions. When I learn something the hard way my attitde is not "someone should have told me" as though my misfortune is the result of someone else's negligence to inform me. They are birds and birds will always peck at shiny...

A little blood now and again os normal. Sometimes when they are laying they might break a blood vessel. Not to worry unless it happens often or if their is a larger amount of blood.

I also find it amazing that your girls made such a racket when the hawk was around. My girls normally freeze like statues (except once) and make the whistling/purring sound I mentioned earlier. I have definitely learned to watch their behavior closely though. We live just a couple miles from an...

That is crazy!!! Unfortunately, that hawk has tasted chicken and knows that they are relatively easy to kill so he will come back. I have heard of people with red-tailed hawks going at chickens right in front of them. I even heard of one person who had a red-tailed hawk pin down a chicken right...

I am very sorry about your lost hen. My girls have an enclosed run attached to their coop so they can be out all day in safety. We just have to supervise them in the yard because of the hawks. Just a note of caution, I know it must very disturbing to lose a hen in that way, but all hawks are...

I live in a suburban area. A few weeks ago we heard a large murder of crows, they were harrassing a red-tailed hawk. After some time, they seemed to tire and most of them left but the hawk continued to fly from one tree to the other. We have also had several visits from a Cooper's Hawk. The...