Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[Smilesabc]

So true about the chickens being a hobby. I think regardless of how long you have been raising chickens your reason for getting chickens in the first place may be very different. Some of that may be generational as well. Someone with chickens for 20 years may just be more likely to have raised them for meat or have been raised to know how to process a chicken from a young age. Because that practice is becoming less common in new chicken owners I think it's only fair to state what your purpose for having chickens is. If you have them for eggs or pets and not for meat then you can't really say you NEED to know how and when to cull. I would never cull any of mine and I am a total newbie, but the amount of joy I get from sitting with my chickens and feeding them and changing their water and having a silly coop is part of why I got into it. I have some breeds that are high producers and some that are horrible producers. I mean...no one gets a silkie thinking "yea i'm going to get so many eggs out of this thing". So just because someones motives for raising chickens are different than yours doesn't mean it's wrong. In the end it comes down to caring for animals. Clean water, food, shelter and if you want them to have a pretty house and treats then whatever, as long as they are cared for who cares if some people have unproductive chickens in their flock.

 

[bruceh]

the acv will eat the galvanizing. use stainless

 

[bruceh]

i watched the chicken video mentioned earlier in this thread. i would like to comment on this.

1.i will never do mouth to beak resesitation

2. i may or may not do the chicken dance

3. the only light my chicken will see is the light at the end of a killing cone.

with that said. i am going to check on the chickens now. it was however halarious.

 

[Helga777]

the acv will eat the galvanizing. use stainless

Thanks, I didn't know that. =)

 

[Mellisa]

Words of wisdom I learned from a production standpoint many years ago: As hard as it is to do, cull your older hens once this years pullets are laying full sized eggs regularly.
Your feed to egg ratio will be in your favor.
You don't have to kill the older girls. I sell or give mine to people who want a small gentleman's flock for fun and a few eggs. Some are put out to pasture in the orchard where they continue to work for me and lay an occasional egg.

Also, banding can help identify if you are purchasing from different hatcheries / sources. Some really are better than others and you don't want to make the same mistake again. One hatchery I won't mention.....consistently sent me the wrong breeds. They somehow managed to send me 4 toed, clean legged chicks as Silkies.

Hens will not lay on scratch alone. They need the right ratio of calcium and protein found in Layer Pellets or Crumble. I prefer pellets because I find less waste on the floor of the coop.

Eggs are better if your flock has a lot of treats from your kitchen or are allowed to forage on pasture (in addition to layer pellets).

Never EVER give anything spoiled or moldy to your flock. Limber neck is horrible.

Clean coop = happy, healthy chickens.

Cull the egg eaters as soon as you notice the behavior. One of these hens will ruin your egg production by teaching the entire flock how delicious a raw egg tastes.

Vaccinate against Mereks Disease or feed medicated feed to chicks. The disease lives in soil for years.

My girls love to get out and forage. Keep them safe from other pets, stray dogs, and wild animals. Coming home to carnage is traumatizing.

 

[tizzielou99]

From what I understand, the metal will corrode from the the ACV and they will have that in their water.

 

[hoorayfortulips]

From Bee on 4/5: Here's a question or two for anybody that may have applied anything they've learned on this thread: What information, if any, did you use?

Hi Bee - in case you're still here and looking for feedback, here's a little. First, a huge thank you to those who have taken time to share your hard-earned experience (and then repeat it again for those who can't seem to figure out the search function). Chickens are new to us this year, and a lot of research and prep went into figuring out how to care for them before they came. Nothing I read was as practical as the good stuff sprinkled in here. We do not have space for a real flock, but much of what is in here still applies to those of us with a few chickens who just want healthy chickens, eggs, chores for the kids and a relaxing hobby. A few things I've done because of this thread:

1) I got the darned chicks out of the house. I started reading this thread a couple weeks back when my chicks were about 4 weeks old (and in my bathroom). I got them outside as soon as I had a spare minute after that. I had read an awful lot of the fluffy "oh my gawd your chicks will freeze and catch their germy death outside" crap that is in most chicken books, magazines, blogs and forums. It was a fantastic mothers day present to get them out, and then clean the hell out of my bathroom.

2) Things I was "worried" about, I now "wonder" about instead. I know that worry is a waste of energy, but its a tempting thing to do when you're starting something new. There is a lot to learn, but I'm not going to worry as much as I learn it. This part has been the most valuable to me.

3) I kept a very long list of cut/paste tidbits that I'll use later, and hopefully some I wont ever need.

I think its time to stop reading for a while and go spend some time with the chickens.
Thanks!

 

[Jersey101]

Well I'm only 18 so by no means an 'old-timer' in the traditional sense but I saw this thread and realised that I qualified as 10+ years of experience. I'm quite proud of that! Our methods have been passed down generation to generation from my mother's side of the family - if I ever have children, their first birthday they will receive their first chickens, just like I did. And they will, of course, be junior members of the Jersey Poultry Society ('the Chicken Club') as I was since I'd want to see their names on the best in show trophy next to mine and my Grandad's!

My advice for newbie chicken keeping families is this- chickens are brilliant for children! They made my childhood so much fun. You learn about where eggs and meat come from, responsibility, handling and taming techniques that become second nature and help with just about any animal, and you have wonderful pets to boot. And like keeping any pets they teach kids about the inevitable end, and how to handle it when it comes.

Plus I'm immune to just about any illness life cares to throw at me - while everyone at school suffered viruses and colds I would be left wondering what all the fuss was about I of course put this down to mucking about with chickens (and making mud-pies).

 

[Kyoht]

I saw a post about this thread on face book and followed it here. I do not have the time to read the 300+ pages but I can give a couple tips.

1) Vaccinate your chicks if possible.

2) Chickens can take the cold and heat. However you may worry about them, as long as they have a good roost,shelter from the wind, and are healthy they will make it in the cold. Always provide shelter from the sun and fresh water in the heat.

3) Chicks don't need to be pumped up with antibiotics for prevention if you keep them in sanitary conditions. Don't cram them in there and don't get your chicks from a dodgy breeder. In fact many horrible diseases are prevented by vaccination and proper husbandry - not antibiotics. As always, something can go wrong but your chances are better if you have good husbandry practices.

4) Chickens like AIR. I have always kept my flock in an old building with a large screen door. The more air you can get to them in their hen house the better. This is one of the most important things that I tell people. I see clients bringing sick chickens into our vet clinic and one of the main problems they face is keeping their birds cooped up in pens. This applies to many different livestock aswell. Chickens are not made to be kept in small hen houses with no air flow. You can do this and be fine as long as you clean it out often. However, I have yet to loose a chicken to extreme cold or heat in my very open chicken houses. I live in Illinois so we have a little of both!

About me: I have 18 years of poultry experience. I have shown in 4-H fairs, worked at a vet clinic, and raised almost every type of poultry out there. I highly support free range flocks and allowing the chicken's own amazing body to do the work - they won't break and they don't need much help from us to be healthy!

 

[chickletteSarge]

Ok OT's out there with kids.
My 4yo is verry attached to her "Belle" a brown leghorn. What's the best way to desensitize her to the fact that she will become dinner? Other than traumatising her by making her watch me as I butcher her favorite pet chicklette