Welcome to The BackyardChickens.com Forum! + Newsletter Archive

[Nifty-Chicken]

Sent December 12, 2009

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Hello BYC Friends,

We hope you're keeping warm and are getting ready to spend some wonderful holiday time with family and friends. Of course, don't forget to say hello to your 45,000+ chicken-loving friends at BYC!

Here are a few items we thought you'd like to know about before the holidays are in full swing:

Official BYC CookBook Available:
Our amazing community pulled together to do something magical! They submitted over 400 of their favorite recipes that have all been organized (thanks MissPrissy & everyone else that contributed) into a professionally printed masterpiece. You can read more about the Official BYC Cookbook here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=272473

You can also buy a Cookbook and 2010 Calendar together and save 20%. Buy them both here.

Gift That Keeps Giving:
From now until Christmas if you buy two 1-year GFM's ($40) for yourself, a friend, or any two peeps, you'll get a FREE 2010 BYC Calendar mailed to you with FREE shipping!
Note: 2010 Calendar stock is dwindling, so order them before they are gone!
http://www.coopedup.net/store/product_info.php?cPath=40&products_id=200

Coop Contest Ending 1/5/2010:
We've got some of the best submissions we've ever seen in the current coop contest. In fact, there are so many that we will be giving away multiple prizes! The contest will be closed to new submissions on 1/5/2010, so get your coop submitted here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=253464

BYC Trivia Challenge:
Tomorrow (Sunday) at 6:00 Pacific Time we'll be having another fun and exciting trivia contest. Come and play with us. We'll have three winners again! See details here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=275569

Want a free BYC Calendar?:
We've got a lot of smart members in our community with a lot of diverse experience. BYC is full of lots of great content, but we need help building out the content at our sister sites. While supplies last, for every 3 approved articles you write you'll get a free 2010 BYC Calendar! Details here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=274815

We'll see you in the forum!

The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

Sent on 26 January 2010
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Hello BYC Friends,

Can you believe we're already full swing into 2010?! As many of you know, 2009 was an amazing year for the growing trend of raising backyard chickens. With that said, we fully expect that 2010 will be bigger and even more exciting!

2009 Highlights:
BYC has been on the forefront of the raising chicken movement. Here are just a few of the highlights over the year:

* New BYC Golden Feather Memberships
* New Buy Sell Auction System
* Advanced BYC Chicken Breed Database & System Introduced
* Raising Chickens For Dummies, The Official Book Of BYC, Released
* BYC CookBooks Printed

Of course, you can see the entire list of BYC Announcements here.

Contest - Guess 50,000 Members:
We started 2009 with 20,000 members and we're getting really close to 50,000! If you can guess the day and hour it will happen you'll be a winner! Post your guess here!

Winter Sale - 15% Off - Ends 1/31:
We've marked down all our Winter clothing by 15%! Sale ends on Sunday 1/31 and supplies are very limited! BYC Clothing here.

Coop Contest Winners:
We had over 100... yes 100 submissions to our recent chicken coop page contest! Picking a winner was impossible so we chose a bunch! See the winners here .

Of course, we've got the new coop page contest here .

New Buy Sell Auction System Upgrade:
We've been working hard to make it even easier for you to see the items that are being sold in our BSA system. Check out the upgrade here .

BYC Trivia Challenge:
This Sunday (1/31) at 5:00 Pacific Time we'll be having another fun and exciting trivia contest. Come and play with us! More info here.

Featured Sponsors :
Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of our great community:

* Purina Mills - Animals make better people, we make better animals
* Mt. Healthy Hatcheries - A hatching tradition for over 80 years
* Fleming Outdoors - Your online farm supply store
* Meyer Hatchery - Affordable Poultry Since 1985
* Purely Poultry - Great prices on over 300 breeds
* MyPetChicken - Day old chicks, buy as few as 3 at a time

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here.

If you're interested in advertising on BYC you can see our brand new advertising options here.

We'll see you in the forum !

The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

Sent on 02 March 2010
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Hello BYC Friends,

We're starting to see the hatching of an exciting 2010 chicken season. Hold on tight because we're going to see even more amazing times at BYC!

Congratulations on 50,000 Members:
In January 2007, the BYC community forum was created. It took us 1.5 years to get to 10k members, and about one year later we hit 25,000 members. Well, in less than a year we doubled our membership and hit an amazing milestone; 50,000 members! Join the celebration here

50k Members = 50% Off Select Items. Ends 3/15:
WOW, 50% off all BYC clothing (except breakfast items). Hurry while the limited supplies last: http://www.coopedup.net/store/index.php?cPath=10

50k Members = 50% More Image Storage Space:
We've increased the image storage space for all our members by 50%! Just in time for you to show off all the forthcoming Spring pics!

$5 Rebate on Raising Chicken for Dummies:
Are you or a friend looking for a good chicken book? Well, now's a great time to purchase the official chicken book of BYC and get $5 back! Details here

Incubator Contest Ends 3/14:
Hurry and put those final touches on your homemade incubators and submit them to the contest here

BYC Trivia Challenge:
This Sunday (3/7) at 5:00 Pacific Time we'll be having another fun and exciting trivia contest. Come and play with us! https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=303937

Featured Sponsors: Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of our great community:

* Randall Burkey Company - Poultry Supplies - Chicken Hatchery, Baby Chicks, Gamebird, and Poultry Products
* Tractor Supply Company - Get $10 Off Your Next Purchase at Tractor Supply With Printable Coupon - See Details
* J.M. Hatchery - Specializing in Freedom Rangers: strong, robust and highly suitable for free range, organic, and pastured environments.
* Horizon Structures - Offering a complete line of high quality, pre-assembled chicken coops and coop kits
* Nature's Hatchery - Over 400 varieties of fowl, our selection includes chickens, guineas, ducks, geese, and much more!
* Mad Cow Cutlery - Specializing in quality cutlery, sharpeners, and kitchen tools for commercial or home.

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here

We'll see you in the forum!

The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

Sent on 27 March 2010
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Hello BYC Friends,

Happy Spring everybody! For many of us (at least most in the Northern Hemisphere) things are warming up and we can see the signs that Spring is in the air. With Spring comes even more excitement at BYC!

Chicken L.O.R.E. Project (Free GFMs):
An amazing project is in the works to map out all the places where chickens are legal in the US. We've already got a great start. Check out our new "local chicken laws" feature and learn how you can help (and also earn a free Golden Feather Membership): https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=310268

BYC Mugs:
We've still got a few of our new BYC Breakfast Mugs available. See them here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=308850

Chicken Brooder Page Contest:
Just like our other "homemade" contests, we want to create a section where we can show off the best chick brooders from around the world! Learn more here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=310049

BYC Bumper Sticker Blowout - Just $0.25 Each!:
Yup, you read that right... just a Quarter... 25 pennies, for your very own BYC Bumper sticker! Get yours today and share your love of chickens with the world (or at least those that like to drive right up on your bumper): http://www.coopedup.net/store/index.php?cPath=19

55,555 Members Contest:
We had such fun with the two 55k member contests that we started another. Guess when we'll hit 55,555! https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=308112

Incubator Contest:
We announced our contest winner here for our contest. Check out all of our homemade chicken incubators. Submit your incubator to the new contest here.

BYC Trivia Challenge:
This Sunday (3/28) at 5:00 Pacific Time we'll be having another fun and exciting trivia contest. Come and play with us! https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=311986

Featured Sponsors: Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of our great community:

Ideal Poultry - The largest supplier of backyard poultry in the United States, shipping close to 5 million chicks annually.
Murray McMurray Hatchery - The world's largest rare breed hatchery.
Shop The Coop - Where having pet chickens is the norm!
EggCartons.com - Discount Supplier of Egg Cartons, Egg Trays, & Poultry Supplies.
HenSaver.com - Makers of the patents-pending Hen Saver

hen apron / chicken saddle.
Critter-Cages.com - Your one stop shop for all your critter's housing needs.

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/LC-supplies.html

We'll see you in the forum!

The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

Sent on 28 April 2010
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Hello BYC Friends!

Spring is in full swing and so is "Chicken Season!" BYC has been hoppin' and we're seeing even more interest in raising backyard chickens than we saw last year! Keep spreading the word and help us achieve our goal of "a chicken in every yard!"

$5 Rebate Ending This Week:
Hurry and order your copy of Raising Chickens for Dummies by April 30th to receive $5 back by mail-in rebate. Details and rebate form can be found here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=303885

BYC Sister Sites:
We've been surprised to hear that many of our peeps don't know about our sister sites!? You should totally check them out:
www.SufficientSelf.com
www.TheEasyGarden.com
www.BackYardHerds.com

New Feature: Breed Selection - Search Tool:
Our community has done a great job of building the best chicken breeds database on the internet. We've got a great new feature that allows you to search for specific breed characteristics. Read more about it here .

Coop & Brooder Contests:
We've extended our two contests for one week (ending on 5/9)
Visit both of the contests: Homemade Brooder Contest and the Coop Contest .

Do you BYC?
Share your love of BYC and raising chickens with everyone you meet and anyone visiting your website. We've got some easy to use links and images here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/share.php

Featured Sponsors: Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of our great community:

* MyPetChicken - Day old chicks, buy as few as 3 at a time
* Purina Mills - Animals make better people, we make better animals
* Mt. Healthy Hatcheries - A hatching tradition for over 80 years
* Fleming Outdoors - Your online farm supply store
* Meyer Hatchery - Affordable Poultry Since 1985
* Purely Poultry - Great prices on over 300 breeds

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here

We'll see you in the forum!

The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

Sent on 29 May 2010
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Hello BYC Friends!

Thousands of new friends have joined us on BYC and we're super glad to have them (and their chooks) with us! Here are some items we want to share with all our old and new friends:

Brooder & Coop Contest Winners:
All those tens of thousands of new chicks need a place to be happy and healthy. We've had a ton of great new brooder and coop pages added to BYC and you can see the contest winners here: Brooders or Coops .

Chicken LORE:
Wow! We already have over 700 cities submitted by BYC members to our Chicken Laws Ordinances Rights & Entitlements project! Read more about the current state of the project and see an interactive map here !

BTW, a ginormous THANK YOU to our community members LareePQG & Coopa Cabana for managing this huge project!

Uncle Sam Expects YOU To Raise Chickens!
Having a hard time getting your local city officials to approve chickens? Maybe they need to see this: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=351110

"Other Poultry Breeds" New Feature:
We have added an exciting new feature that will hopefully be the largest and best database of “Other Poultry Breeds” on the planet! Create a page that is approved and earn a GFM or a BYC Store gift certificate! We've got all the info here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=328791

BYC Trivia Challenge:
Tomorrow (Sunday) at 5:00 Pacific Time (8:00 pm EST) we'll be having another fun and exciting trivia contest. Come and play with us!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=351149

Featured Sponsors: Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of our great community:

* Mad Cow Cutlery - Specializing in quality cutlery, sharpeners, and kitchen tools for commercial or home.
* Randall Burkey Company - Poultry Supplies - Chicken Hatchery, Baby Chicks, Gamebird, and Poultry Products.
* J.M. Hatchery - Specializing in Freedom Rangers: strong, robust and highly suitable for free range, organic, and pastured environments.
* Horizon Structures - Offering a complete line of high quality, pre-assembled chicken coops and coop kits
* Surehatch - No. 1 online source for discount egg incubators and poultry supplies.
* Backyard Poultry Magazine - A bimonthly publication with information on raising, breeding, marketing and housing domestic fowl for small business or hobbyists.

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/LC-supplies.html

We'll see you in the forum!

The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

sent on 26 June 2010
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Hello BYC Friends!

Summer (for most of us) has officially begun! While we hope everyone will continue to enjoy participating in our 60,000 member online community, we want to encourage you to enjoy beautiful weather and great times with friends outside!

Of course, we all need an occasional break from all that "outside fun time" so when you need a break inside a hopefully air-conditioned house, you can check out the following:

First Ever Contest - Chicken Feeder / Waterer:
Over the years we've seen hundreds of fantastic chicken feeder and waterer designs posted in our forum. Some very simple and others very extravagant. In an effort to make these designs more accessible we've created a contest to get all these designs added to BYC in an organized system (like the coop pages). If you have, or know someone that has, a homemade feeder or waterer please submit it to our contest here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=355643

Creative? Help Design A BYC Shirt:
We're overdue for another BYC shirt design. Feeling creative and wanna help? Submit your ideas here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=364877

Platinum Poultry Members:
After many requests, we've created a new User Group in our community. In a nutshell this group gets unlimited Private Messages, Image Uploads, and BSA Listings. Read more here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=351802

More BSA Visibility:
We have more peeps selling on BYC than ever before. To help give our sellers even more visibility we've added "ending items" to the homepage of BYC and to the top of the forum index. Details here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=359511

Topics In Which To Participate:
Looking to participate in a random thread on BYC and have some fun? How about giving these two "oldies but goodies" a try:
How did you get your screen name?
Submit your picture - Put a face to a name!

Coop Giveaway:
Horizon Structuresand Mother Earth News have joined forces to create a free "All-in-One Coop" (valued up to $2,195) giveaway! You can enter the sweepstakes here:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/chickencoop

Featured Sponsors: BYC is very thankful for the companies that support our great community. Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of BYC!:

* Murray McMurray Hatchery - The world's largest rare breed hatchery.
* Critter-Cages.com - Your one stop shop for all your critter's housing needs.
* EggCartons.com - Discount Supplier of Egg Cartons, Egg Trays, & Poultry Supplies.
* Ideal Poultry - The largest supplier of backyard poultry in the United States, shipping close to 5 million chicks annually.
* HenSaver.com - Makers of the patents-pending Hen Saver

hen apron / chicken saddle.

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here

We'll see you in the forum!

The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

sent 25 July 2010
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Hello BYC Friends!

Here are some exciting announcements and other items we think you'll want to check out!

New Book: Building Chicken Coops for Dummies:
Almost exactly a year ago we announced the "Raising Chickens for Dummies" book. We're very excited to announce a wonderful follow-up book: "Building Chicken Coops for Dummies"! Please help us spread the word about this great new resource: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=376032

BYC In The News:
People all over the world continue to realize the benefits of raising BackYard Chickens! This is even more evident by the great coverage we see in the media. A few quick examples: TIME Magazine & The Wall Street Journal

Check It Out!
Here are a few fun areas on the BYC Forum to check out!

* New Member Introductions - We've got about a bazillion new members on our wonderful community. Make sure you introduce yourself and/or say hello to new friends!
* Hatching Grocery Store Eggs - Did you know you might be able to hatch the eggs you get from your local grocery store?

BYC Page Creator Update:
We've read that many members with newer web browsers were having trouble using the BYC Page Creator, so we've updated the system to hopefully resolve these problems. Give the new page creator a try by creating a page for your homemade incubator, chicken coop, or homemade waterer / feeder !

Featured Sponsors: BYC is very thankful for the companies that support our great community. Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of BYC!

Purina Mills - Get Rewarded Today! Learn more about the Purina Difference™ Rewards Program
Purely Poultry - Great prices on over 300 breeds
Mt. Healthy Hatcheries - A hatching tradition for over 80 years
Fleming Outdoors - Your online farm supply store
MyPetChicken - Day old chicks, buy as few as 3 at a time
Meyer Hatchery - Affordable Poultry Since 1985

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here

We'll see you in the forum!

The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

sent on 20 August 2010
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Hello BYC Friends!

Here are some exciting announcements and other items we think you'll want to check out!

Easy Peasy Avatars:
We've seen a lot of feedback from members that have had a hard time setting up an avatar (the tiny picture that represents yourself to the community). We've now made it super simple to upload an image so there's no excuse not to have an avatar. Give it a try by following the instructions here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=378505

Check It Out!
Below are some popular threads started over the past few weeks that you may be interested in:
• Advice for buying breeding stock at shows
• Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!
• When will I hit 10k posts? Free hatching eggs for prize!!!
• Pet Sitting Service questions.
• Lawnmower vs Rooster GRAPHIC PICS
• Bless Their Heart... And Other Southern Sayings
• Proudest Roo Around Contest 8/9-8/23 Enter Quickly!!!
• 40 Minute Hamburger Buns or Rolls

BYC Contests Ending Soon:
The following contests are ending on 9/12, so please pull all your info and pictures together and create a page. If you need help, just let us know:

Chicken Coop Contest
Homemade Incubator Contest
Homemade Waterer / Feeder Contest

BYC Coloring Book:
Do you like to draw? Submit your drawings to be included in the BYC Coloring Book.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=388679

What Do You Want?
Are there features, information, or anything else you want added to BYC? Let us know here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=388925

Featured Sponsors: BYC is very thankful for the companies that support our great community. Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of BYC!
Mad Cow Cutlery - Specializing in quality cutlery, sharpeners, and kitchen tools for commercial or home.
J.M. Hatchery - Specializing in Freedom Rangers: strong, robust and highly suitable for free range, organic, and pastured environments.
Horizon Structures - Offering a complete line of high quality, pre-assembled chicken coops and coop kits
Backyard Poultry Magazine - A bimonthly publication with information on raising, breeding, marketing and housing domestic fowl for small business or hobbyists.
Surehatch - No. 1 online source for discount egg incubators and poultry supplies.
Randall Burkey Company - Poultry Supplies - Chicken Hatchery, Baby Chicks, Gamebird, and Poultry Products.

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here

We'll see you in the forum!
The BYC Team

 

[BYC Support]

sent on 25 September 2010
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Happy Fall!

For many of us on BYC we've waved goodbye to Summer as we usher in Fall. As the seasons change, so does the format of the BYC newsletter! Hopefully this new design will be easier to read and navigate.

Preparing for cooler weather
Now is the time to prepare your coop for the changes in weather. Here are a few articles that may be helpful:

- Keeping your coop warm
- Fix a muddy run
- Prepare for winter 101

Read more >>>

Vote for your choice: save PM's?

Are you tired of forgetting to check that pesky box at the bottom of your private messages that you're sending to your BYC buddies? Well, now's your chance to tell us what you want us to do!

Vote and let us know if you want us to change the PM system default to "save".

Vote here >>>

Promote BYC and win!
We often receive requests from our members to provide banners to link to BYC from their websites, blogs, etc. so we created the BYC Share Page. For even more fun we've created a contest. Link to BYC and you could win a GFM!

Read more >>>

Worst chicken molt picture contest
Is your chicken dropping feathers like a bad habit? Take some pictures and submit them to our "Worst Chicken Molt" contest!

Enter contest here >>>

Most annoying rooster crowing contest!
What, you think that crowing rooster is annoying all your neighbors? Well, now he can annoy thousands of people around the world! Take a video of your rooster crowing and submit it to the "Annoying Rooster Crowing Contest" and you could win $50!

Read more >>>

How many chickens do you have?
We've created a new Official BYC Poll to find out how many chickens our members have. Please take a quick second to post your chicken count!

Read more >>>

Featured Sponsors
Our sponsors help keep BYC running. Please take a few minutes to visit the BYC Sponsors' sites and tell them you appreciate their support of our great community:

Happy Hen Treats - The world's first line of treats for chickens
Ideal Poultry - The largest supplier of backyard poultry in the United States, shipping close to 5 million chicks annually
EggCartons.com - Discount Supplier of Egg Cartons, Egg Trays, & Poultry Supplies
Critter-Cages.com - Your one stop shop for all your critter's housing needs
Murray McMurray Hatchery - The world's largest rare breed hatchery
HenSaver.com - Makers of the Hen Saver

hen apron / chicken saddle

You can see a list of all the BYC Sponsors here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/LC-supplies.html

We'll see you in the forum!
The BYC Team