What is your opinion, on the best chicken books out there?
Chicken books
- Thread starter sfisher
- Start date
storeys guide to backyard poultry.
backyard poultry mag- is a good one.
backyard poultry mag- is a good one.
I found a paperback copy of Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens at Half Price Books for about $8. It has everything about chickens, eggs, and...and...stuff!
Also, if you want a story including chickens, I highly recomend "Still Life With Chickens". It was written by a byc member and it is a fantastic read!
extra extraordinary chickens.
http://www.amazon.com/Extraordinary-Chickens-Stephen-Green-Armytage/dp/0810933438
This is what, when I was small, was referred to as a coffee table book, it has many large pictures and an explanation of how these birds and birds show came about.
The cover is different then the one I have. I bought mine about 5 years ago, so this maybe a more updated version.
This is what, when I was small, was referred to as a coffee table book, it has many large pictures and an explanation of how these birds and birds show came about.
The cover is different then the one I have. I bought mine about 5 years ago, so this maybe a more updated version.
I liked Storey's guide to Raising Chickens (by Gail Damerow) a lot more than the Guide to Raising Poultry in the same series (by some guy - Leonard Mercia?). Both are more 'production'-minded, i.e, less chicken-friendly imo, than I prefer, but Damerow does a better job of acknowledging the peculiarities of a hobby flock and also just has more detailed info overall.
Her Chicken Health Handbook is fascinating and prolly a great reference when problems arise (haven't had use for it yet myself) but boy oh boy is it NOT light bedtime reading - it will make you wonder how anyone ever keeps a chicken alive for more than a week, with allthe nasty things that can happen to them
Keep Chickens! by Kilarski is more uh 'inspirational' and encouraging, and aimed at the backyarder with just a few pet type chickens - it is good if you need encouragement, or something to hand to a skeptical husband - but it should not be your only source of information as it is quite thin on details and says a few very debatable things here and there.
There's a book out there, forget the author, called Chicken Coops, but while it has nice pix and a good range of ideas, if your library doesn't have it, don't but it - you can find as much or more on the web for free.
That about does it for *useful* chicken books I've seen. All the British ones I've read seem largely useless for North Americans (such different climates, predators, breeds, societal customs, etc). There's a book caqlled "Hen and the Art of Chicken Maintenence" which is a light amusing read but is not information orientd (just a guy spinning tales of his backyard chicken keeping experiences).
Hope this helps,
Pat
Her Chicken Health Handbook is fascinating and prolly a great reference when problems arise (haven't had use for it yet myself) but boy oh boy is it NOT light bedtime reading - it will make you wonder how anyone ever keeps a chicken alive for more than a week, with allthe nasty things that can happen to them
Keep Chickens! by Kilarski is more uh 'inspirational' and encouraging, and aimed at the backyarder with just a few pet type chickens - it is good if you need encouragement, or something to hand to a skeptical husband - but it should not be your only source of information as it is quite thin on details and says a few very debatable things here and there.
There's a book out there, forget the author, called Chicken Coops, but while it has nice pix and a good range of ideas, if your library doesn't have it, don't but it - you can find as much or more on the web for free.
That about does it for *useful* chicken books I've seen. All the British ones I've read seem largely useless for North Americans (such different climates, predators, breeds, societal customs, etc). There's a book caqlled "Hen and the Art of Chicken Maintenence" which is a light amusing read but is not information orientd (just a guy spinning tales of his backyard chicken keeping experiences).
Hope this helps,
Pat
My fave is "Jackie French's Chook Book"
It has laymans terms only, an excellent intro when you get your first chickens.
Has:
what chooks like
what they dont like
chook habits
Diseases and cures
how to make soap, blown eggs,moisturisers and cleaners and shampoo out of your eggs.
How to cull
How to trap preds
lots of recipes.
published by Aird books, Melbourne
isbn 0947214402
This book is the best for me because it is a small A5 size and is easy to read and the advice is written as if you are listening to Jackie speak to you.
Really funny too.
Well worth the postage to US.
Here is an exerpt from the forward:
" There is nothing more beautiful than a mob of white leghorns like sailing ships flying in the wind, comfortable Australorps in their fluffy Black black knickers, dedicatedly sifting through the old tomato bed for insects and titbits, or a tribe of of RIRs scratching under the Lavender.
Therers no sound as domestic, either as a mob of chooks clucking in in the backyard. It gives you a feeling of safety and security.
I just love the Author's way of writing, and she lives not far from me and hasd children's books out too.
It has laymans terms only, an excellent intro when you get your first chickens.
Has:
what chooks like
what they dont like
chook habits
Diseases and cures
how to make soap, blown eggs,moisturisers and cleaners and shampoo out of your eggs.
How to cull
How to trap preds
lots of recipes.
published by Aird books, Melbourne
isbn 0947214402
This book is the best for me because it is a small A5 size and is easy to read and the advice is written as if you are listening to Jackie speak to you.
Really funny too.
Well worth the postage to US.
Here is an exerpt from the forward:
" There is nothing more beautiful than a mob of white leghorns like sailing ships flying in the wind, comfortable Australorps in their fluffy Black black knickers, dedicatedly sifting through the old tomato bed for insects and titbits, or a tribe of of RIRs scratching under the Lavender.
Therers no sound as domestic, either as a mob of chooks clucking in in the backyard. It gives you a feeling of safety and security.
I just love the Author's way of writing, and she lives not far from me and hasd children's books out too.
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