Retired USN. Worked for a major university for 11 years. I have worked with chickens for better than 13 years and have only gone my own way the last 8 or 9 years. There are about 125 chickens (including about 2 dozen roosters) and 5 Bourbon Red turkeys running about as free range birds. My favorite breed is the Black Australorp but have a little of this breed and a little of that. As free range I do not worry about pure breeding. I am very interested in egg layers and therefore few of my hens are sold for meat, roosters yes but not too many hens. The girls have been producing about 14 dozen eggs/week through the entire winter. Last summer my peak was 22 dozen/week. BYC forum was helpful to me recently when I was trying to learn more and a cure for leg mites as I proposed the use of a foot bath and someone suggested used vegetable oil from a restaurant. Haven't yet set up the operation as I need to move goats around as not to interfere and damage it. I will keep the forum abreast of the trial.
Besides chickens what keeps my day full: goats, Great Pyrenees dogs, wife's horse, genealogy, web design (frankdillman.com), exercising, and once in a blue moon stained glass and gardening if I could manage to keep the chickens from eating my veggies.
I believe we who manage our own animals and farms, regardless of size, have a better understanding, and appreciation of our responsibilities for our own health, environment and the purpose of our different levels of government.
Besides chickens what keeps my day full: goats, Great Pyrenees dogs, wife's horse, genealogy, web design (frankdillman.com), exercising, and once in a blue moon stained glass and gardening if I could manage to keep the chickens from eating my veggies.
I believe we who manage our own animals and farms, regardless of size, have a better understanding, and appreciation of our responsibilities for our own health, environment and the purpose of our different levels of government.
