Categories
Poultry

Speckled Sussex: Heritage Breed Poultry Profile

Speckled Sussex heritage chicken breed
images by Erin Snyder

Speckled Sussex chickens are gaining popularity in small backyard flocks across America. These speckled beauties are perfect for people desiring a cold-or heat-hardy chicken that excels at egg laying. With these traits, it’s easy to see why the speckled Sussex is gaining popularity.

But what else is making the speckled Sussex breed a popular choice for backyard flocks?

History

Bred in the mid-1800s in Sussex, England, the breed was initially developed as a meat bird. Before Cornish Rocks gained popularity, Sussex was the primary meat bird of England.

Even though the Sussex’s original purpose was to be a meat bird, they are not prone to the health issues often occurring with Cornish Rocks.

Color

The Sussex comes in a variety of colors: speckled, red, light, Columbian buff and white. The striking speckled—a mahogany color with each feather ending in a black bar and white speckle—is the most popular color in the U.S. With each passing molt, the speckles become more numerous.

Speckled Sussex heritage chicken breed

Meat & Egg Production

Sussex chickens make an excellent choice for the table. They are known to have incredibly tender meat, especially when butchered at a young age. Each chicken should average a dressed weight of 6 to 7 pounds. However, speckled Sussex are slower to mature than Cornish Rock crosses (averaging 20 weeks to reach butchering age).

This trait puts them at a disadvantage to faster-growing breeds, who reach butchering age in 9 weeks.

Speckled Sussex are excellent egg producers who will lay eggs without declining for several years. Each hen averages four to five light brown eggs per week for the first four to five years of her life.

Personality

If you are looking for a pet chicken, you don’t have to look any further than the speckled Sussex. These hens crave human interaction and will do anything to get attention. Sussex are chatty, curious, friendly, intelligent and energetic.

They love being the center of attention. They also love to be held and will carry on animated conversations with their owners.

Hens of this breed are very energetic and benefit from directly supervised free-ranging. Even so, they still tolerate confinement well if allowed to stretch their legs. If bored, they often will find ways to entertain themselves. Sussex can bully other flock members when bored, so provide lots of mental stimulation.

Providing Entertainment

The Border Collies of the chicken world, Sussex are intelligent and energetic hens who require physical and mental stimulation. Providing your hens with fun activities will keep these chickens healthy and happy.

If you have a bored Sussex, try one of the ideas below.

Fresh Straw

Putting clean straw in your coop or run will provide chickens with endless entertainment. Even when your other breeds have tired of the game, your Sussex will continue to scratch happily through the straw.

Because if there is anything a Sussex likes to do, it’s scratch.

Chicken Swings & Perches

Speckled Sussex chickens like to know what is happening in the world around them. Having perches and swings for them to sit on and watch the world go by is another way to enrich their lives.

Teach Your Chickens Tricks

Speckled Sussex are intelligent chickens and can learn commands and tricks. You can teach your hen or rooster to come when called, follow you around, and hop up on your lap. Some Sussex will even stroll around their yard with their favorite human.

Speckled Sussex heritage chicken breed

Health Concerns & Lifespan

Speckled Sussex are very healthy and hardy chickens so long as they maintain a healthy weight. They are, however, prone to overeating and obesity.

To help prevent obesity in your chickens, feed them a proper diet and allow plenty of exercise.  Feed Sussex twice daily versus unlimited free choice feedings.  This practice will keep your girls from doing unnecessary “snacking” (yes, chickens do snack). Provide feed to chicks, growing pullets and cockerels at all times.

When allowed to become obese, Sussex hens are more prone to oviduct prolapse and egg binding.

Speckled Sussex lives an average of six to eight years, providing you with lots of fresh eggs, love and entertainment. So, what are you waiting for? Give these friendly, energetic chickens a try. You’ll be so glad you did.

This article about the Speckled Sussex heritage chicken breed was written for Chickens magazine. Click here to subscribe.

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Recipes

How to Roast Sunflower Seeds With the Shell On

roasted sunflower seeds recipe roasting
Ievgen Skrypko/Adobe Stock

How to roast sunflower seeds with the shell on is similar to roasting pumpkin seeds and pretty simple.  

This recipe begins after you’ve harvested your sunflower head, removed the flower heads on each seed (the disc florets), removed the seeds from the sunflower and rinsed your seeds. 

Yield: 1 cup 

Ingredients

  • 1 cup raw, fully matured sunflower seeds with the shell on 
  • Water, as needed (about 3 to 4 cups) 
  • 2 tbsp kosher salt (or more if desired) 

Instructions 

In a medium-sized saucepan, add rinsed and prepared sunflower seeds. Fill with water to cover the seeds 2 inches. Any seeds that float to the top are likely empty seeds that did not mature and can be scooped out and discarded.  

Stir salt into water. Once the salt is dissolved, sample it and see if it’s salty enough for your liking. Add more salt if needed. 

Bring the seeds to a simmer and simmer for 15 minutes. 

Strain seeds and allow them to sit in the strainer for 10 minutes to allow them to dry. You can also spread them out on a lint-free towel briefly to absorb excess moisture. 

Meanwhile, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F. 

Spread out the sunflower seeds into a single layer on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. 

Bake for 15 minutes, remove from oven and stir them around with a spatula. Return them to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes. If not done, return to the oven in 5-minute increments until they are lightly browned and dried.

They tend to quickly go from undercooked to overcooked, so set a timer. 

How to Roast Sunflower Seeds: Notes  

If you don’t want to salt the seeds, do not add salt to the water before simmering. 

Do not cook any seeds that are moldy. 

After you simmer and strain the seeds, feel free to add any seasonings you’d like before roasting. Garlic powder and Cajun seasoning are two of our favorites to add to roasted seeds. 

This story about how to roast sunflower seeds was written for Hobby Farms magazine. Click here to subscribe.

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Uncategorized

Growing Good Podcast #86: Cambodian agroecology educator Panha Suon

Cambodian agroecology educator Panha Suon talks with Hobby Farms Presents: Growing Good podcast host Lisa Munniksma about farming in Cambodia, from climate to crops and the challenges that farmers are facing there. Listen to how Panha became involved in agroecology and why he’s dedicated to educating others about the impact human activities have on the environment, particularly in a less-industrialized country like Cambodia.

Hear about Dassatek—meaning to awaken in Khmer—the project that Panha is developing to train Cambodian youth in agroecology. He talks about what motivates young people in his country and how he sees Dassatek appealing to them, including through an apprenticeship and a small seed fund to start their own agroecology project. Panha also talks about the social business enterprise model, as opposed to structuring Dassotek as a nonprofit or for-profit entity.

Learn about Panha’s 3-year homestead-building plan using natural building methods and how this suits Cambodia’s climate. He offers his advice for building your own earthen structure, focusing on using what you have on hand.

Listen to the very end to hear about Panha’s favorite traditional Cambodian farm meal!

Links from this episode:

Dassatek on Facebook

Dassatek on LinkedIn

Categories
Poultry

Heritage Breed Chickens: How to Choose

heritage breed chickens breeds silkie
Shutterstock

Heritage breed chickens are traditional breeds developed through many years of selection and passed down through generations. The exact definition varies with who’s talking. The Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities defines a heritage breed as being old and rare and defines “old” as existing before 1940.

A more specific definition for heritage breed chickens comes from The Livestock Conservancy, which offers and suggests that such terms as heirloom, antique, old-fashioned and old-timey should be considered synonymous with heritage.

According to this definition, heritage breed chickens must:

  • have been recognized by the American Poultry Association before 1950;
  • reproduce through natural mating;
  • have the genetic ability to live a long and vigorous life;
  • thrive outdoors under pasture-based management;
  • and have a moderate to slow growth rate

Compared to chickens developed for industrial purposes, heritage breed chickens generally have calmer dispositions, are more disease-resistant, are better able to adapt to variable climates and environments, and are more likely to brood (hatch their own eggs). The trade-off is that the heritage laying breeds don’t lay quite as well, and the meat breeds don’t grow as fast, as industrial-strength chickens.

In selecting heritage breed chickens for your own flock, consider first your purpose in keeping chickens. If your goal is to harvest lots of eggs, choose a breed known to lay well. If your goal is to produce healthful meat, select a heavy breed. For the best of both, choose a dual-purpose breed. If your desire is to have pretty chickens gracing your yard, take a look at some of the ornamental or exhibition breeds. Here are just a few of the many possibilities.

Great Egg Layers

The top layer by far is the Leghorn, the breed selected by the egg industry to develop into laying machines. Production White Leghorn hens lay more than 25 dozen medium to large white-shell eggs per year. Heritage Leghorns, on the other hand, average just 20 dozen eggs per year, but the hens come in several plumage colors that are less conspicuous to predators than pure white. This small-bodied breed has a reputation for being noisy and nervous, but is also early maturing, hardy and heat-tolerant.

The most popular brown-egg heritage breed is the Rhode Island Red (pictured below), averaging about 16 dozen large eggs per year. As with Leghorns, some strains of Rhode Island Red have been developed purely for production purposes. This breed comes in one color pattern—dark red with a black tail. Rhode Island Reds, like layer breeds in general, tend to be lightweight and rangy, and therefore less suitable than heavier breeds to raise for meat.

rhode island red heritage breed chickens breeds
Shutterstock

Best for Meat

The large breasted Cornish chicken, with its compact body, is an ideal meat bird. The white Cornish is in fact, one of the breeds selected by industry to hybridize for efficient meat production. Heritage Cornish don’t grow as fast as industrial strains—taking 16 to 20 weeks to reach market weight, compared to 6 to 8 weeks for industrial Cornish hybrids—but they don’t develop the same bone ailments and heart failure resulting from excessively rapid growth. Additionally, heritage strains come in plumage colors other than white.

Cornish chickens are unusual in that hens are identical in conformation to males, although somewhat smaller; market weights for heritage hens are 61⁄2 pounds compared to 81⁄2 for roosters. Cornish hens average only about six dozen eggs a year, making them uneconomical as layers. Other large heritage breeds suitable for meat production, that lay somewhat better than Cor–nish, include Cochins and Jersey Giants.

Dual-Purpose Breeds

Dual-purpose breeds appeal to people interested in sustainability—keeping hens for eggs and roosters for fertility, hatching future replacement hens, and butchering young surplus roosters for meat. Dual-purpose breeds lack the blocky body of meat breeds, and they don’t lay quite as well as the layer breeds. Expect only about 15 dozen eggs per year from a dual-purpose hen.

The New Hampshire is a dual-purpose breed created through selective breeding of Rhode Island Reds to improve growth rate and meatiness. Like Rhode Island Reds, New Hamps come in a single color—a light reddish bay, more golden than the Rhode Island’s rich mahogany. The hens lay large eggs with brown shells.

The Plymouth Rock (pictured below) is another large, meaty dual-purpose breed. It comes in a few color varieties, the original and still most popular of which is black and white barred. The hens lay large brown-shell eggs. Other dual-purpose breeds to consider include Orpington and Sussex.

barred plymouth rock heritage breed chickens breeds
Gail Damerow

Awesome Ornamentals

Not all heritage breeds are ideal for egg or meat production. Some are bantams, or scaled-down chickens, that make a good choice for people with limited chicken-keeping space. Bantams lay eggs, just like the bigger chickens, and although the eggs are small they may be used for all the same purposes. Raising bantams (other than bantam Cornish) for meat would be akin to raising pigeons—small, but tasty.

Silkies, with their furlike feathers, are by far the most popular heritage bantam breed. They come in a several color varieties, most commonly black or white. They are friendly, docile chickens that don’t fly well. (Some won’t even perch.) The hens are decent layers of ivory-colored eggs and are such excellent setters they are often kept solely for incubating the eggs of other poultry.

One of the most important reasons to keep a heritage breed is to help preserve genetic diversity. The Livestock Conservancy lists heritage breeds according to conservation priorities. Review the many options and select one that most appeals to you. When it comes to heritage chickens, you can’t go far wrong.

This story about heritage breed chickens originally appeared in Hobby Farms magazine. Click here to subscribe.

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Crops & Gardening

Fall Gardening: Try Some New Veggie Varieties

cabbage grown for fall gardening
Cabbage (Brassica oleracea) in vegetable garden. Adobe Stock/Nailotl

Fall gardening is a great time to try something new. Combining hybrids and heirlooms can yield more productive, flavorful fall produce. With cooler temperatures and shorter growing seasons, fall gardens may be a little more limited than their summertime counterparts, but they actually have a lot to offer. The soil’s already warm enough for rapid seed-starting, and there are fewer insect pests with which to contend.

In fact, when it comes to herbs like cilantro, fall can provide the perfect do-over. If yours bolted early this summer, you can always reseed in the fall. What’s more, many of the roots and leafy greens you can grow right about now are real superfoods.

And, with new varieties being released every year, the fall garden doesn’t have to be boring.

Fall Gardening Essentials

Diane Blazek is the executive director of both All-America Selections and the National Garden Bureau. While each group highlights new garden varieties each year, All-America Selections, in particular, is a plant-trialing organization.

Blazek explains, “For edibles, we have 35 different judges all across the U.S. and Canada and we divide it out by region. The judges are sent the entry, which is anonymous, and they’re sent two comparisons.”

Judges grow the different varieties, taking note of criteria such as growing habit, productivity, yield, taste and texture. If the tested variety performs better than its comparison varieties, it merits All-America Selections recognition.

Among 2020’s All-America Selection Award winners, Blazek recommends Snak Hero Peas for fall gardeners. “It’s 65 days to maturity and it looks a little bit more like a green bean, because it’s long and slender,” she says. “But it really is a stringless, snap pea. I grew it this spring, and I was just amazed at how sweet and tender it was.”

As for the National Garden Bureau? “Our membership covers pretty much every single breeder that’s doing work in North America,” Blazek says. “They submit varieties to us that they want to feature—it’s the newest of the new.”

If you’re looking for a striking new lettuce, you might like Lettuce Marciano. Vitalis Organic Seeds developed this butterhead variety for 2020, and it’s available via Johnny’s Selected Seeds. Along with improved resistance to downy mildew, lettuce mosaic virus and lettuce leaf aphids, Marciano features a bright burgundy exterior and splashes of green on its interior leaves.

These 5 tips will help you as you establish your fall garden.

More Good ‘Greens’

Renee Shepherd, founder of Renee’s Garden, offered two new and notable kale varieties in 2020—Mars Landing and Purple Moon. “They’re both gorgeous,” she says. “They’re unique for their color and very, very good flavor and really pretty form.”

“The Mars Landing has a lot of mauve in it and it has these interesting ruffled tips,” she says. “And, if you look at Purple Moon, those purple colors come up really strong—especially in cool weather.”

“If you plant them in fall, they just get sweeter and sweeter,” Shepherd adds. These kale types also hold their own well in cold temperatures, and they pack an extra nutritional punch. “They have a lot of purple in them, and purple is one of the colors that is most healthy. Color means more antioxidants and flavonoids.”

Shepherd also suggests trying Five Color Rainbow Gourmet Beets rather than your usual Detroit dark reds. Similarly, there are myriad Swiss chard varieties worth your time, too. Swiss chard’s large leaves can be stuffed like grape leaves or cabbage.

“There’s a huge array out there with more colors that many people don’t grow,” she notes. “The virtue of it is the more color, the more nutrition.”

For fall gardening variety, Shepherd also suggests gardeners consider growing stir-fry greens, braising mixes and Japanese baby turnips.

Turnips are healthy, tasty—and fun to carve!

Heirlooms and Hybrids

Adding new hybrids or new heirloom varieties to your fall gardening is another good way to shake things up—particularly if you’re partial to just one or the other. “Some heirlooms are wonderful, and some new varieties are wonderful, too,” Shepherd says.

For example? “If you’re going to grow broccoli, you as a home gardener will do infinitely better with hybrid broccoli, because it’s a thousand times more disease-resistant, it grows more side shoots, and it’s more compact,” she says. “Heirlooms are important for some things, but not all things.”

To further boost your fall gardening productivity, you might also want to top certain crops with a floating row cover. Not only will it protect sensitive crops like broccoli from flea beetles and other pests, but it also can prolong the growing season.

“If it’s going to be colder, and you want to extend your harvest, a floating row cover will give you three to five degrees,” Shepherd says.

This article about fall gardening was written for Hobby Farms magazine. Click here to subscribe.

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Crops & Gardening

Yarrow Look-Alikes: Get to Know These Similar Wildflowers

Queen Anne's lace wildflowers
liz west/Flickr

Yarrow look-alikes can be abundant in the summer and early fall landscape. Beware! There are three wildflowers – Queen Anne’s lace, yarrow and poison hemlock – that look similar, each with a white umbel blossom. While two of them can be eaten or used medicinally, one is extremely poisonous. Here’s how to know what’s what.

1. Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota)

Queen Anne’s lace (pictured above) is one of the first flowers I learned to identify as a child. I’ve always remembered it thanks to the legend surrounding one of its identifying features. As the legend goes, Queen Anne was sewing a piece of lace, when she pricked her finger, and a drop of blood fell in the center. Thus, a good way to tell Queen Anne’s lace wildflowers from the list of yarrow look-alikes is to look for a small purple flower in the center of the umbel—the drop of blood.

Queen Anne’s lace grows to be about 2 to 4 feet tall. It has finely dissected leaves, white umbel blossoms that emerge in a flat cluster and hairy stems. (Think: “Queen Anne has hairy legs.”) Flowers emerge from April through October. You’ll find them in disturbed areas such as roadsides.

Queen Anne’s lace is also known as wild carrot, and, as you might suspect, it belongs to the carrot family. In fact, the root is a favorite wild food among foragers, and you can eat it just as you would a carrot. As the plant is a biennial, harvest roots only in the first year. Second-year roots can be woody. The rest of the plant is edible, as well. Throw the flowers in a tea or use them to flavor pickles. Chop up the greens for a stir-fry or salad. You can use the seeds in tea as a diuretic or to relieve gas. You can also use them as a seasoning, similar in flavor to caraway. However, avoid using the seeds if you’re pregnant, as they have a history of use as a contraceptive.

2. Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)

yarrow wildflowers
Meredith Leigh Collins/Flickr

Yarrow and Queen Anne’s lace can be easily mistaken for one another. The two wildflowers grow about the same height, in the same areas, at about the same time of year. Yarrow grows about 1 to 3 feet tall and can be found in disturbed areas. It also produces a white (and, on rare occasions, pink) umbel flower head. The blossoms appear to me to be a little more hardy than that of Queen Anne’s lace, which looks more loose and lacy. Yarrow also has finely dissected leaves but with a more feather-like appearance. You’ll see its flowers popping out between May and October.

Yarrow is best known as a wound healer—you can literally pluck the flowers out of the field, give them a little chew to macerate them, and then stick them on a bleeding wound to make the blood flow stop. The legend goes that during the Civil War, people used these wildflowers as a poultice to stop the bleeding of wounded soldiers.

You can also use the aerial parts (flowers, stem and leaves) internally—dried, fresh or tinctured—in many ways. Yarrow can help regulate menstrual cycles in women. In combination with other herbs, it can treat colds and flu. It also helps treat hay fever, high blood pressure and circulation issues.

3. Poison Hemlock (Conium maculatum)

poison hemlock wildflowers
TJ Gehling/Flickr

Of the wildflowers on this yarrow look-alikes list, properly identifying this one is most important because the name doesn’t lie—eating it can be fatal. Unfortunately, as a member of the carrot family, it looks like many other edible plants, including Queen Anne’s lace, cultivated carrots and parsley. A farmer friend told me of a friend who raved about “parsley” that “suddenly appeared” in her garden that she’d been nibbling. Knowing that parsley doesn’t tend to “suddenly appear” where it wasn’t planted, my farmer friend asked whether she could see it. Turns out it wasn’t parsley at all, but poison hemlock. Thankfully, the person and her family hadn’t fallen sick from the bits they’d ingested, but this is a perfect illustration of the need to follow the golden rule of foraging: If you can’t definitively identify the plant, don’t eat it.

Poison hemlock can grow between 2 and 6 feet tall. It has a hollow, grooved stem, nearly as thick as an index finger, with distinctive purple spots. The leaves have a finely dissected appearance typical of those in the carrot family, though the general shape is that of an equilateral triangle. Like Queen Anne’s lace and yarrow, it has white umbel flowers. However, the stalk is highly branched, so you’ll see more umbels per plant on poison hemlock than you will on the other two species mentioned here. Like the other two plants, though, it grows in disturbed areas—I often see it in our area along creek beds or old cattle grazing areas.

I cannot overemphasize: This plant is extremely poisonous. Merely touching the poison hemlock can cause dermatitis. If taken internally, its toxic alkaloids can affect the nervous or respiratory systems. Even small amounts can result in death. If you find poison hemlock growing in an area where pets or children roam, remove it promptly and carefully. Wear long sleeves, pants and gloves. Dispose of the plant in plastic garbage bags, and do not let the plant touch your skin. Be sure to clean off any tools, such as clippers, you use so that you don’t inadvertently come in contact with the toxic juices. For more on poison hemlock control, visit the website of the University of California’s Integrated Pest Management Program.

Yarrow Look-Alikes: Foraging Advice

Foraging can be fun, but some yarrow look-alikes make it tricky. As you observe what grows in your area, find a guidebook and/or a plant identification app and learn more about what you see or, better yet, follow an experienced forager. Again, never eat something if you can’t identify it with 100 percent certainty.

This article about yarrow look-alikes was written for Hobby Farms magazine. Click here to subscribe.

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Animals

Goat Shelter Options: From Sheds to Barns & More

goats in a goat shelter barn
Adobe Stock/Laura

Goat shelter and housing options are critical, as finding suitable housing can prove tricky due to goats’ destructive behaviors. This guide offers several goat housing options, from sheds and barns to calf hutches and more, to fit your needs.

Goat Shelter Requirements

Whether raised in the city or on a farm, goats require shelter from the elements. Housing should have at least three sides and a roof to protect them from wind and precipitation.

Three-sided goat housing should have a window on the north side and another on the south side (change window locations to east and west if you live in a particularly hot climate). Add a door to keep out the elements and potential predators whenever possible.

Goat housing should be spacious to prevent overcrowding, with each goat requiring a minimum of twenty square feet.

Other housing requirements include straw or hay for bedding, a feeding area (equipped with feed buckets and a hay manger), and a water trough or water buckets.

Goat Shelter: Barns

If you live in a rural area, you may already have an unused barn on your property. Using existing barns and other outbuildings is an excellent way to shelter your goats without stretching the budget.

Barns have another advantage: they are usually spacious, making it convenient if you are looking to expand your herd to a small business or hobby farm.

Also, many barns have stalls already built in and are move-in ready for goats.

Barn Disadvantages

If you don’t have an existing barn on the property, a barn is probably not the best option for many hobby farmers, as building even a small barn can prove costly.

If housing goats in an old barn, look for safety issues, such as rusty nails, old paint (old paint may contain lead, causing lead poisoning and death if ingested), or unsafe living conditions due to deterioration. Goats are strong, and even gentle Pygmy goats can damage outer walls if housed in a deteriorating barn.

goats resting under a goat shelter
Adobe Stock/Aaron & Wera

Goat Shelter: Sheds

Sheds are the best goat housing option if you live in a suburban or urban area, as they are generally more eye-pleasing than other shelters. If you don’t already have an outbuilding, sheds are a great option, as they are more affordable than building a barn.

Sheds are another excellent option for those who keep several goats as pets, as they do not require as much upkeep as a large barn.

Another advantage of housing goats in a new shed is that there is no need to worry about toxic paint.

If goats are being housed in a shed, test the shed structure to ensure it can withstand goats like a barn. Look for loose or rotting boards, weak spots, and other structural damage.

Shed Disadvantages

While sheds aren’t as expensive to build as barns, they may not be affordable for those with tight budgets.

Sheds will only accommodate several goats, so if you want to expand your herd, you will need multiple sheds.

Goat Shelter: Calf Hutches

If you live on a dairy or beef farm, you may have some unused calf hutches. These hutches work well for housing goats and are an excellent low-cost option.

Built to hold up to calves, these hutches can support the weight and abuse goats inflict on their housing.

Chain the goat to the hutch when housing goats in calf hutches to prevent them from jumping out. The chain should be long enough that the goat can freely move around the hutch but not so long that it can leap out. Attach the chain to the goat’s collar for easy on/off.

Calf Hutch Disadvantages

Calf hutches are usually three-sided, so they are not the best option for keeping out the elements. They also offer little protection against predators such as coyotes.

 Calf hutches have a rural look, so if you have neighbors nearby, you may want to choose a more eye-pleasing goat house.

Goat Shelter: Three-Sided Out Buildings

Three-sided outbuildings are the most popular goat housing as they are more affordable than other options, allow plenty of airflow, and protect goats from the elements.

This affordable goat housing option is excellent for those in climates with mild winters. However, the roof must be sloped to prevent rain or melting snow from dripping on the goats.

Another advantage of these structures is that if you are handy with tools, plans are available online for building your own.

Three-Sided Building Disadvantages

Three-sided buildings are one of the most popular goat housing choices, but they still have disadvantages. One of the most significant disadvantages is that three-sided buildings do not offer protection from all the elements. Goats are sensitive to wet conditions and cold weather, so having a fourth wall for extra protection may be necessary for cold or damp climates.

Another disadvantage of a three-sided building is the lack of predator protection. Three-sided buildings are accessible to coyotes, as they can easily jump over barn gates and fencing to access the herd. Coyotes can severely hurt or even kill goats, so care should be taken to protect your herd in locations where coyotes are prevalent.

No matter what goat shelter and housing options fit your needs and location, the necessities are identical. So, whether you choose a barn, shed, or calf hutch, select the one that will best protect your herd from the elements and the predators in your area for the best goat-keeping experience.

This article about goat shelter and housing options was written for Hobby Farms magazine. Click here to subscribe.

Categories
Animals

Hay Quality: The Importance of Testing Feed Hay

cows being fed good hay quality rations
Limousin beef cows eating hay at a cattle feeder. Adobe Stock/gozzoli

Hay quality is important since it makes up a large percentage of the diet in many domesticated livestock species, including cattle, goats, sheep and rabbits. Large farming outfits often keep hay fields that they harvest for their own animals, saving money by recycling the manure from those animals back into fertilizing the fields. In this way, they keep nutritional levels in the vegetation high and costs down. For the small homesteader, this is often impractical though, and buying hay from nearby farms is more common.

As fertilizer grows more expensive, trusting in providers to keep their hay at top-quality may become harder in certain areas. In areas already prone to poor soil, animals can literally starve to death with full bellies if fed hay that lacks the nutritional make up they need.

What should you look for in a hay provider, and how can you tell if your animals are getting the nutrients they need?

Types of Hay

The first step to getting livestock adequate nutrition is to make certain to buy the correct type of hay for their needs. While it is common to see all dried grasses referred to as hay, there are several varieties, depending on their makeup. Alfalfa, clover, timothy, orchard grass and other labels can make a difference in the nutrients, and how they may affect the diet of your animals.

For instance, most rabbit dietary information will call for rabbits to be fed pellets and a generous amount of “Timothy hay.” This is a type of hay high in fiber and tends to be tougher to chew, which helps to prevent dental issues.

However, if you are feeding them the standard, baled hay from a farm, you may very well be giving them meadow hay. Meadow hay is designed for larger ruminants, softer in texture and with a more varied nutritional content. This is fine as long as you provide the rabbits with wooden toys to chew and adapt their pellet intake.

Alfalfa, however, is a high-nutrient hay and should not be fed to rabbits alongside pellets. Doing so can cause obesity, difficulties with breeding and other health concerns.

Hay Quality

Goats have a reputation for being able to eat anything and they also have a reputation for being wasteful eaters. The reason for this discrepancy is that goats require highly nutritious vegetation and excel at judging and discarding anything that doesn’t meet their needs with just a taste. Trying to save money by feeding them low-quality cheap hay will result in a lot of wasted money on the floor of their stall. The same is true of sheep and other ruminants. A good rule of thumb is that the coarse the hay, the less likely animals are to enjoy it.

Finding high-quality hay can result in healthier animals and less waste. While not all animals will require alfalfa or ultra-fine hays, all livestock still require a certain nutritional quality in their feed. If your hay supplier has their bales tested for nutrient levels, ask if you can have a copy of the results.

Be careful if you don’t have a relationship with the hay supplier though – some can get defensive about these types of questions! However, if they do, this also suggests that perhaps looking elsewhere is best.

Testing Your Hay Quality

If you already have the hay in your barn, you can have it tested as well. While not ideal – since a supplier is unlikely to take low-quality hay back – at least you will know whether you should supplement your animals with other minerals or feed over the winter. Testing can be done with the help of your local feed store, or by yourself.

Developing a solid relationship with your local feed store is good for multiple reasons. In this case, the benefit is that they may have the resources to help you get your hay tested. If so, the representative will make an appointment to come out, take several core samples and you will receive results once they’ve been completed.

If you have access to a core sampler you can also take your own samples. Your local extension office can help you find a lab to have the testing done. The lab will give you directions on how to take the samples, package them, when to expect results and where to mail them. There will be a fee, and you may still need someone to help you understand the results when you get them.

The Importance of Good Hay Quality

Good nutrition is a core part of keeping livestock healthy. Especially in areas of the country where hay nutrition may be poor, suppliers should be expected to provide high-quality hay. Regular testing is the best way to keep these nutritional standards high.

This article about the importance of hay quality was written for Hobby Farms magazine. Click here to subscribe.

Categories
Poultry

Natural Poultry Supplements for Stronger Birds

chickens eating poultry supplements from a farmer's hand
Adobe Stock/September

Poultry supplements are a great way to ensure that what we put into our poultry will be what we get out. Poultry performance, whether that be for show, egg production, meat or pets, relies heavily on nutrition and sometimes a few poultry supplements to help our chickens go a long way.

You might be surprised to discover that you don’t have to go to your local feed-supply store to get premium supplements. In fact, many simple supplements can be found in your home cabinets that can help stabilize feathers, increase egg quality and boost the general health of your poultry.

Apple Cider Vinegar 

Apple cider vinegar is a panacea for many common health conditions, which applies to that of our chickens as well. Studies have shown that chickens given a dosage of apple cider vinegar in their water will have a higher percentage of beneficial antioxidants and lower toxic stressors in their cells. These antioxidants help fight against bacteria that cause conditions such as salmonella and E-coli, giving your chickens a stronger immune system and health.

By cleaning out your chicken’s system of those harmful bacteria, chicken raisers are also supporting their chicken’s gut health. This helps with the absorption of beneficial nutrients and digestion to bring your chickens the nutrients they need, making them stronger for any purpose.

Give chickens 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar per gallon of water at least weekly, being careful not to serve in a metal watering system, because the acidic vinegar — especially when organic —may corrode the metal which will make the water harmful for chickens to drink. From immunity to gut health to claimed egg production increase, apple cider vinegar is a mainstay poultry supplement that can easily be added to make a big difference in your coop!

Eggshells 

Who knew that chickens could even produce their own poultry supplement that can be given back to them? That is the verdict, however, of researchers and chicken raisers alike who grind their flock’s eggshells into unrecognizable powder (to avoid egg eating) and feed the eggshells to chickens alongside their daily feed.

Eggshells are made up almost entirely of calcium, which is exactly what hens need to produce adequate shells for their eggs and maintain skeletal health. Thankfully, hens are good regulators of their calcium needs and will eat as much shell as needed if it is available. Crushed eggshells should only be given to hens already laying to avoid pullets laying too early (resulting in laying and overall health issues). Shells should also be from the flock that is consuming the shell; store-bought eggs or shells from other flocks could carry bacteria causing disease. When given their own eggshells, chickens are given a crunchy side supplement to bring healthy eggs to your table.

Molasses 

The thick, dark syrup isn’t only for home cooking! Molasses is a natural supplement for chickens that is rich in nutrients to help build stronger muscles and heart health. Molasses can also act as a mild laxative for chickens, which is a pro and con.

Beneficially, molasses can be used in emergency situations if a chicken derives botulism from eating spoiled feed or toxic substances by absorbing the substance and flushing it out. Being a laxative, however, too much molasses or availability to it can lead to dehydration.

Mississippi State University Extension Service says to add one pint of molasses to 5 gallons of water. “Offer the drinking solution free-choice to the affected birds for about four hours. Treat severely affected birds individually if they can’t drink. Return the birds to regular water after the treatment period.”

Molasses may also be used to give chickens a boost, whether given as a couple drops in chicks’ waterer to boost energy and give nutrients after being stressed from shipping or poured over feed to give an ailing chicken motivation to eat. Whatever the cause or reason, molasses is a sweet poultry supplement to have on hand for many of your flock’s needs!

Sugar

Chickens may not have typical teeth, but that doesn’t stop them from having a sweet tooth! Sugar isn’t only a treat to chickens, but a poultry supplement also when fed in moderation and at a young age. The sugar is easily absorbed in chicken’s digestion system, making it an ideal energy source to give young or sick chickens that need a pick-me-up.

To give your chickens a sweet treat with healthy benefits, mix 3 tablespoons of sugar for each quart of warm water and allow them access for a couple of days. Sugar water has also been said to help chickens who are molting, making it an easy solution to try the next time your coop becomes covered with feathers.

Sugar (or honey) also can act as a medicinal ointment for chickens. If a chicken has an open wound, make a paste with sugar and petroleum jelly to apply to the wound and leave covered until it’s healed. The complex sugars in the honey or the sugar itself act to draw out infectious bacteria and restore skin much healthier and faster than if not treated. Whether directly applied or given as a sweet treat, sugar is one supplement with many sweet benefits!

Garlic 

While fresh garlic may be a natural repellant because of its smell, it’s a natural immunity booster and beneficial supplement to draw chickens back to health. Small amounts of garlic given to chicks twice a week help the birds acquire the taste and build a stronger immune system that builds momentum for life.

Garlic is also full of probiotics that promote gut health, helping the large intestine fill with beneficial bacteria that will absorb more out of the supplements and nutrients given in a chicken’s daily diet. Adding four crushed cloves per gallon of water may also help stimulate chickens’ appetite, helping your flock to fill out and eat when they may be sick.

Garlic may also become a favorite poultry supplement for anyone having to clean the coop as well! In The Chicken Health Handbook, author and chicken expert Gail Damerow suggests mixing 1½ pounds of garlic powder with 50 pounds of feed to neutralize odors of chickens’ feces without causing any effect on the taste of the eggs. For those who raise chickens, garlic is one supplement they’ll want close!

Herbs 

Winter months mean two things for those raising chickens: cold weather and bare chickens, as many flocks migrate into their own season of molting. While it may feel helpless, herbs such as dill, mint, oregano, basil and parsley can help chickens regenerate new, stronger feathers to help them through the molting season — or any season they may need some shine, fluff and added number to their feathers.

Feathers are made up of approximately 90% protein, which means protein needs to be added to a flock’s diet to help build a supplement to regenerate new feathers, such as the levels of protein found in these herbs. They also are full of nutrients and vitamins that aid in the digestion of other supplements, which will help stretch your supplementing efforts further.

Milder herbs such as parsley and dill can be added to your flock’s feed (ideally dried and crumbled) while stronger or more pungent herbs such as oregano and mint be offered alongside the daily ration for your chickens to eat at will. In addition to helping bring your chickens’ coats back, herbs will help neutralize odors and leave your coop smelling fresh!

Sunflower Seeds 

To give your chickens’ feathers a boost of shine and improve cardiovascular health, sunflower seeds may be just the trick! Black oil sunflower seeds and striped shell sunflower seeds contain large amounts of oil which stimulates the oil production in chickens that then gives their feathers a glossy glow.

Because of the high oil content, however, sunflower seeds are a fatty snack that can lead to obesity and fatty liver syndrome if fed on a regular basis, so moderation is key. Soaking sunflower seeds overnight or feeding shelled sunflower seeds are the most beneficial ways to supplement sunflower seeds in small amounts of one tablespoon per three to six birds.

By scattering the seeds in your chickens’ courtyard, stirring them in their daily feed or feeding them by hand, each seed is a special treat that your chickens will always be hungry for.

Flax Seeds

To give your hens’ eggs a boost of omega-3 levels, mix 1 tablespoon of flaxseed per chicken into their daily feed. The flax seeds are rich in omega-3s, which makes their way into the yolks of select breeds of hens when fed in moderation and provide healthier eggs for human consumption and healthier, heartier chicks according to some studies.

Flax seeds also may improve the strength and appearance of your chickens’ feathers, which makes it an ideal supplement during molting season. It’s also thought to improve lay rates to war against the symptoms of molting.

As with any poultry supplements, moderation is key, however, as high dosages over a long period of time can lead to liver hemorrhages or obstruction of nutrient absorption. When fed as intended, however, flax is a handy standby supplement that can help your hens improve and give you some nutritious boost as well!

Kelp

Although kelp may not be a product you have on hand, seeing the benefits and differences in your chickens may make it a new standby on your list. The seaweed is loaded with vitamins and nutrients and amino acids that help improve fertility in roosters, hatching in fertile eggs, feather endurance and appearance and bone development in chicks.

Kelp also is rich in omega-3s, which along with boosting egg quality can aid in oxidative stress on their digestive system, helping them to absorb more nutrients that might be otherwise missed and absorbing more out of the nutrients themselves.

To add kelp to your flock’s diet, add 1 cup of dried kelp per 40 pounds of feed once a week or 1 teaspoon per 4 pounds of feed three times per week. Although kelp can help chickens of any age, give this supplement to chicks or pullets for their development. Although the seaweed may not look appealing to us, kelp is a natural poultry supplement and a treat chickens tend to flock after.

Poultry Supplements 101

While it may be easy and fast to pick up a commercial supplement for your chickens’ health and needs, a natural supplement is always a plus and can sometimes be the hearty boost your chickens need to be at their best.

Poultry supplements aren’t necessary once an issue arises with your flock either. You can use preventative supplements to raise stronger chickens and repel issues before they even take wing. Whether your flock is in need or full, these supplements, when used correctly by not making up more than 10% of a chicken’s daily ration, are ideal at any time and offer your chickens a natural way to be stronger, healthier and at their best.

This article about natural poultry supplements by Caitlyn Decker was written for Hobby Farms magazine. Click here to subscribe.

Categories
Poultry

What Do Chickens Eat? How to Raise a Healthy Flock

feeding-chickens

What do chickens eat is a common question. Feed stores are filled with bagged feed options and then there are the treats and supplements plus seasonal considerations and free-ranging. It can be a daunting task.

In the days before commercial chicken farming, small flocks on family homesteads mostly fended for themselves.

When it comes to dining out, chickens have eclectic tastes. Worms squirming in the manure pile, dangling tomatoes and raspberries, and minuscule seeds all attract a hungry chicken’s sharp eyes.

As more chickens were relegated to chicken houses where foraging wasn’t an option, chicken feeding became a more complicated affair.

Even after commercial diets emerged on the scene in the early 1900s, meeting chickens’ nutritional needs posed a challenge. Birds suffered from deformities and illnesses caused by vitamin and mineral deficiencies, which underscores the importance of a chicken’s balanced diet with optimal amounts of protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.

If allowed to roam free around the urban backyard, our domesticated birds will lead an omnivorous chicken lifestyle similar to that of their wild ancestor, the Red Jungle Fowl of Asia.

No matter whether they free range or not, providing chickens with nutritional feed is easy nowadays. Head to your local feed or urban farm supply store and you’ll find commercial chicken feeds formulated especially for your chickens, whatever their age or purpose.

Specialized Chicken Diets

But beware of grabbing up any old bag that looks like chicken feed. A chicken’s nutritional needs change during different stages of its life. Newly hatched chicks, for instance, require a starter feed with high levels of protein for growth—about 20 percent for egg layers and slightly more for meat chickens.

From 6 to 8 weeks on, the layer chicks, now called pullets, receive a somewhat lower protein “developer” feed, while broiler pullets usually get an aptly named “finisher” feed until slaughter. (Keep in mind, not all feed stores carry these more specialized diets).

When egg production finally kicks in at around 20 weeks, hens will lay eggs every 24 to 26 hours if they are receiving the right nutrition and if they have a safe place to lay their eggs. Layer hens should be given a layer diet, which generally contains higher levels of calcium for egg production.

“A layer diet consisting of 16 percent protein is good for most areas,” says Kenneth Macklin, PhD, a research fellow at Auburn University’s Department of Poultry Science in Alabama. “However, one containing more protein [18 to 19 percent] will be needed to keep hens from going out of lay in areas that have hot summers. Chickens eat less when it’s hot out.”

Finding higher-protein feed can be difficult, but you can supplement layer feed with oyster shells.

What Do Chickens Eat? Other Feed Options

But hold that credit card—you may have even more options. Spurred by increasing demand for pesticide- and antibiotic-free foods, certified organic feeds have come on the market.

Cheryl Clarke, a chicken raiser and zookeeper in Carnation, Wash., switched to feeding her chicken flock organic feed because her chickens’ overall health seemed poor, and some of the chickens suffered from reproductive tumors. Since making the conversion to organic feed, she feels her chickens’ health, weight and plumage have improved.

Feed stores carry an assortment of other bagged and bulk grains, including scratch and even organic cracked corn or oats. Be aware that some chicken feeds, particularly chick starters and broiler chicken diets, are commonly medicated with antibiotics and coccidiostats, which are used for the control of a parasite called coccidia. Check the feed bag for feeding directions and withdrawal times.

Diet Supplementation

Looking for a nutritious treat for your chickens? Try these recipes for Bird Bread and Bird Salad. Many experienced chicken raisers concoct their own chicken diets. However, Macklin recommends feeding a commercial corn/soy feed to laying chickens for a simple reason: The chicken feed already contains the proper nutrition.

“Mixing your own feed, though possible, takes some knowledge of the nutrient contents of each component to get the right mixture,” he says.

Because formulated chicken feeds already contain the vitamins and minerals chickens need, your flock should require little in the way of supplements. Chickens without access to sufficient natural grit, like tiny rocks or coarse sand, should be offered granite grit free-choice to help them grind hard seeds and grains in their gizzards. Supplementing a layer chicken diet with oyster shell, which provides extra calcium for egg production, won’t hurt your birds and may help if their diet is imbalanced, says Macklin.

Commercial chicken feeds are considered complete diets. Adding scratch grain mixtures and other foods to the feed isn’t necessary and could lead to health or productivity problems.

Many chicken raisers cut their feed bills somewhat by augmenting their flock’s formulated fare with leftovers from the kitchen. Chickens love greens, corn, berries, apples, cereal, bread and even cow’s milk. Just don’t overload them with goodies so they spurn their balanced feed. Avoid offering onions or garlic (which might taint egg flavor), raw potatoes, high-salt foods and anything spoiled or moldy.

In winter, Clarke provides her chickens with some extra carbohydrates in the form of scratch to help them stay warm.

What Do Chickens Eat? Don’t Forget Drinks

Finally, when you’re focused on what do chickens eat, don’t forget the water. A constant supply of fresh, clean water. Like us, chickens are made up of lots of water (a whopping 55 to 75 percent); it also comprises more than half the volume of an egg. Water is essential for proper functioning of the digestive, metabolic and respiratory systems, so make sure your chicken flock has plenty to drink during hot spells. Give them extra containers if necessary and a source of unfrozen water on frigid winter days.

This article about what do chickens eat was written for Chickens magazine. Click here to subscribe.