How to Feed a Mixed Flock of Poultry How do you feed a mixed flock of poultry with differing food requirements? What can a chicken owner do when they want to add more chickens or even add ducklings into the mix? Let me give you a few pointers that have worked for us concerning how to feed a mixed poultry flock. What to Feed a Mixed Flock of Poultry The important thing for any animal is getting the best nutrition. It is possible to house chickens, ducks, partially grown pullets and ducklings, together, and still provide the nutrition that each requires. The key, to put it simply, is
to feed them all a non medicated chick feed and then add the extra nutritional requirements of laying hens and ducks in separate feeders. In the meantime, supply the laying hens with free choice calcium in the form of crushed oyster shells or dried crushed egg shells. The chicks who don t need it will not eat it, and the hens can eat all of the free choice calcium they need. Excess calcium in feed can lead to extra fast bone growth in growing chicks and result in weakened bone structure.
The Special Needs of Ducklings Ducks have a few special requirements in a search for what to feed a mixed flock. The laying ducks will need some extra calcium from time to time. Most of the time, my ducks have very strong shells without adding calcium to the pellet feed. When ducklings are growing it is important to monitor the amount of protein that they are receiving if their diet consists mainly of commercial feed. Too much protein can lead to wing abnormalities and leg bone issues due to too fast of a growth rate. The wing condition known as Angel Wing is a result of commercial food for ducks and not enough forage and insect eating. Ducks are excellent foragers and when they get most of their nutrition from a processed poultry food and not enough green grass and bugs, they can have problems. There are a few ways to work around this in a mixed flock. 1. if possible, keep the ducklings separate from 3 weeks of age until 10 weeks of age. 2. feed some forage material to the ducklings and chicks such as fresh grass clippings (chopped small to avoid choking) or timothy/orchard grass hay. Our ducks would rather eat grass hay than duck pellets any day of the week. Niacin is a requirement for ducklings. An easy way to increase niacin for your ducklings is through supplementing with Brewers Yeast. Adding this to the feed will not adversely affect the chickens. A second way to increase niacin content is to ferment the feed you use. Fermenting increases the nutrition available in the feed. (links to other posts on fermenting chicken feed Natural Probiotics for Chickens, How to Save Money by Fermenting Chicken Feed Fermented Chicken Feed )
Commercial Flock Raiser Diet for Mixed Flock The feeds formulated for mixed species have a higher protein percentage than is needed for ducklings. These flock rations are intended for meat birds who will have an abbreviated life span. I have stopped using these flock feeds for my ducklings and use a lower protein percentage non medicated chick starter for ducklings. By paying a little more attention to the rations you use to feed a mixed flock, you can successfully keep a mixed flock of poultry even if they are varying ages.
(this post appeared first on Backyard Poultry Mag.com ) Have you seen my new book? Chickens from Scratch is available through my website or by visiting Amazon.com for paperback or kindle version. It is a guide to how to raise your chicks, from hatch to egg laying and beyond! If you are thinking about raising chickens this will clear up the questions you have about how to get started. Simple no nonsense guide to get you started on your way to happily collecting eggs from your own backyard.
Essential Oils for Chicken Care Essential Oils for Chicken Care How to start taking care of your flock naturally Did you know that chickens breath differently than mammals? They do not have a diaphragm like mammals, and use the rib cage and breast bone to move the air in and out of the body. In addition, the lungs rely on air sacs to distribute the oxygen to the avian body. Some of the air sacs are also connected to the bones, which makes it really easy to inhale toxic levels of bad air in a short time. The physiology of chickens and how the air flows in one direction, instead of the in and out pattern of mammals, the chickens will breath in a higher concentration of oxygen and what ever else is in the air. (poultrykeeper.com)
A buildup of fumes from chicken droppings, spilled water and cleaning products irritates the delicate breathing system and leads to illness. Using a coop cleaner made with natural products will not only clean but disinfect and deodorize the coop, without irritating the chicken s respiratory system. Use Citrus Cleaning Essential Oils for Lemon and other citrus fruits have natural cleaning and disinfecting capabilities. You can easily make a homemade coop cleaner that is easy on your nose and easy on the chickens respiratory tract. When you clean out the old shavings or coop bedding, spray down the coop with something like this recipe for Homemade Chicken Coop Deodorizing Cleaner. Allow the damp
areas to dry completely before adding the clean shavings. You can also use this mixture to clean and disinfect feed bowls, water founts, cages, and the chicken crate used as a hospital for your sick or injured birds. Rinse well before re-using.
Wound Care Ointment You can make a wound care ointment with essential oils for chicken care. Melalueca oil for wounds with Frankincense, Lavender and Coconut Oil, will pack a powerful punch against sores and open wounds. Makes a solid paste that can be scooped out with fingers or popsicle stick to apply to wound. The ointment softens quickly, and smells pleasant too. The important thing to do when treating open wounds is to keep them moist while the open wound heals. Applying the coconut and essential oil blend wound ointment, the open sore will not get crusted over while the underneath skin layers heal. This will be more comfortable for the animal and help keep infection away. This recipe is very quick to make and easy to keep on hand in the barn first aid kit. It is great for helping to promote healing. This wound ointment is the one I use for superficial wounds, cuts and scrapes. We recently had a situation where I had a wounded chicken from a fox attack. I used a lot of this ointment to fight secondary infections. (Read more on predator attacks here.) Wound Ointment 4 ounce container with a lid 4 ounces of solid coconut oil 12 drops lavender essential oil 12 drops frankincense essential oil Melt the coconut oil, add the essential oils and mix. Allow to harden in the container. Ready for use! If you leave it in a warm area it will liquify. To prevent this you can also add melted bees wax to the recipe for a more solid ointment.
Oregano as a Feed Additive for Internal Health Oregano essential oil There is plenty of evidence available now that shows results of using heavily diluted oregano essential oil for chicken care. Many types of uses from wound care to intestinal worms, to a replacement for routine antibiotics in flock health care and prevention. A large chicken farm in Pennsylvania, Bell and Evans Poultry, switched to using an oregano oil based feed additive instead of using any antibiotics and had great results. (Bell and Evens Poultry story) Prairie Homestead Link Using essential oils and chicken care can be a wonderful combination in a more natural approach to chicken keeping. As with anything that you are doing to help improve your farming practices, make sure to do your own research and ask questions until you are comfortable that the choice is the right one for you to use. Some General Guidelines When you are using essential oils around your animals, always make sure you are using diluted strengths. Some oils, such as peppermint or oregano are considered hot oils and can burn
skin. Always research the oil and its uses before using on any animal or child and make sure that you dilute the oil with an oil such as fractionated (liquid) coconut oil or liquid almond oil before applying. I hope that this information will encourage you to try using essential oils for cleaning, disinfecting and healing around your barnyard too. If you would like more information, you are welcome to leave a comment here, or email me at garmanjanet@gmail.com. Disclaimer : Please always consult your veterinarian before
you use any homemade remedy on your animals if you feel there is any question as to it s safety for that animal. I am not a veterinarian and post these recipes as a way of sharing information that I have had success with in my own animals and farm and home. This post was Magazine.com first published on Backyard Poultry Make a Chicken Coop from a Garden Shed
Make a Chicken Coop from a Garden Shed! The day I brought home the first two chicks, I went against all the advice I give to people thinking about getting chickens. We had a farm but had no chicken coop or really any plan to build one. But two chicks followed me home from work at a feed store and the future was changed forever. Not long after, twelve more chicks arrived to keep the first two chicks company. We now had fourteen baby chicks growing up in our house but they could not stay there forever. It was very clear that in the near future we were going to need a chicken coop on the farm.
We had two garden sheds in our yard. Downsizing was in order because having two sheds just meant that you saved and held onto twice as much stuff. We would use one of the sheds for a coop but first it needed to be emptied and then moved to the barn area.
The first step in converting the shed into a coop happens before the shed even arrives. Level the ground and get materials for elevating the coop off the ground several inches. You could use 6 x 6 timbers or cinder blocks. We opted to go with the treated lumber 6 x 6 timbers to raise the coop up from ground level. There are two main reasons to do this, one is to allow drainage and air flow under the coop and prohibit rotting. The second reason is to deter predators and pests from chewing into the coop from the ground.
Inside the coop we spread a layer of cement and let it cure for a couple of days to dry completely. This also deterred rodents from chewing into the coop from the ground level. Once that prep work is complete it is time to retrofit the shed and turn it into a coop. add are Some things you will need to
Roosting bar /Roosting area Many people use a 2 x 4 board as a roost. This should be turned so that the 4 inch side is flat for the chickens to perch on and comfortably cover their own feet with their feathers during cold weather.
Nesting Boxes There are many formulas on calculating how many nest boxes for the number of hens in the coop. I will tell you that no matter how many nest boxes you have, all the hens will wait in line for the same box. Sometimes a few will crowd into one nest area. I recommend having a few nest boxes in the coop but don t be surprised if one nest box becomes the popular nest.
Windows Our shed did not have any windows in it. Before we could use it for a coop we added four windows in the back and two windows in the door. This allowed cross ventilation, and daylight to enter the coop. Since chicken wire will not keep predators out, be sure to securely fasten quarter inch hardware cloth to any windows or ventilation into the coop. holes you cut Exterior latches We added a couple extra latches in addition to the door handle. We have a wooded property and the racoons are literally everywhere. Racoons have a lot of dexterity in their paws and can open doors and latches. So we have a secure lock down situation for our chickens! A fan Hanging a box fan will keep the chickens more comfortable and help with air circulation during the hot humid summer days and nights. We hang ours from the ceiling pointing towards the back windows. It makes a big difference. Be sure to keep the fan clean because dust will build up quickly from being used in the coop, which can become a fire
hazard. Droppings board The droppings board is one thing that is missing from our coop. We didn t know about it when we started with chickens and just never added it. But if I was starting over again, I would want this feature. Basically, the board is installed under the roost bar and is removed to clean the droppings off of it.
Extras Our coop is not fancy. No frilly curtains, or interior paint. I did paint the one nesting box in a very cute pattern and added lettering that stated Farm Eggs. The girls still pooped all over it and decided to peck the lettering off of the top. I still think it would be fun to paint the inside and add some wall art. I ll add that to this Spring s To Do List!
Before the nest box was added to the coop after the nest box was used I hope you enjoy this short video tour of our chicken coop! For more on building your own chicken coop take a look at
these posts Pallet Project Build A Cheap Chicken Coop Chicken Coop Expansion How Much Space Does a Chicken Need Anyway Coop Raising Day Raising Chickens on a Budget Making a Chick Brooder Making a Chick Brooder for Home
The season for buying chicks is approaching. I want to show you how easy making a chick brooder at home can be. Lucky for us, chicks start out small and don t need a lot of room for the first few weeks. This makes keeping them warm and safe in our homes much easier. There are many ways to put together a brooder for your chicks. I have seen some very elaborate set ups, some that work very well and some that do not work at all. The one that does not work well is using a cardboard box. The cardboard will not hold up to the water and droppings very well. A one quart water bottle will provide the chicks with enough water for the day, under most circumstances. When they outgrow the brooder it may be time to go up to the gallon size water fount.
As an alternative, a pint or quart mason jar can be used with the traditional water fount base I once saw a homemade brooder box that was gorgeous. It was made out of plywood, had posts built into the sides to hang the heat lamps from, and included a sturdy floor. It was really nice but heavy too and not easy to move around. It would be a good brooder to keep in a garage type enclosure. Commercially, there are kits you can purchase that are plastic coated corrugated panels. The panels connect together to form an enclosure. The drawback is that while it is lightweight, it is hard to move from room to room. For many of us, we will be keeping our four to six chicks in our homes until they are ready for the big kids coop. My favorite way to do this, with minimal mess and space is to use a plastic bin, or storage tote. I prefer to use the clear style but I am not sure it really makes a difference to the chicks. The large plastic storage totes are easy to relocate if necessary and cleanup is a breeze. This type of set up should carry you through the first six weeks of the chicks life. If the weather is still too cold for them to go to the big coop, you may need to come up with a grow out pen for the chicks.
The totes come in a few different sizes and I would buy the largest one I could find and that I have space for. When I worked in a feed store we sold brooder kits. The kits were packed in a plastic tote and contained everything that you needed to go home with the chicks and get started. Included items were, a package of pine shavings, five pounds of starter chick food, a water fount, a feeder, a booklet of helpful tips on chick raising, a heat lamp and red heat bulb. Some additional items you may want on hand include something like Nutri-drench for chickens and a pkg of electrolyte powder to have on hand, just in case. Nutri-drench is a commercial product intended to give the chicks a good energy boost of vitamins and calories. We would add a few drops to the quart of water when doing a water change. Drops of molasses can also be used. The only other thing I would suggest would be a brick to place the water fount on to keep it a little higher than the shavings. This will keep the water cleaner. If you need to keep the lid on the plastic bin make sure you cut a hole in the top and cover it with some type of wire. Be careful to keep the chick brooder away from curious household pets, when not being supervised. Also be careful to securely hang the heat lamp far enough away from the plastic bin to avoid fire hazards.
If you don t have a brooder thermometer, don t worry! You can observe the chicks behavior while in the brooder to determine if they are comfortable. If the chicks are clustered together under the heat lamp, they are too cold. If they are hanging out on the edges of the box, they are probably too hot. Adjust the temperature by raising or lowering the heat lamp until the chicks are moving about freely, eating, drinking and napping. Enjoy your baby chicks! They grow up so fast! My new book, Chickens From Scratch, is available through this website and the kindle version is available through Amazon.com. Please let me know how you like it! I love to
talk chickens! This post first appeared on Backyard Poultry Magazine. Thanks to From The Farm Blog Hop for featuring this post Surviving Our Wintery Week Surviving Our Wintery Week This week was extremely wintery for our area. I heard that we had record low temperatures that we haven t seen in 20 years. And we had a significant snow event. I always laugh
when the news people get going with the hype about the weather. In the end, we really only had about 5 inches of the white stuff. I make no secret of my love for snow. I love a good snow storm and I realize that many of my family and friends do not share my love of snow. So to make you all feel better I will admit that I am not a fan of the extreme cold that we are experiencing! As far as I am concerned, anything lower than 15 degrees above zero is just too cold! Everything is frozen! Now before everyone starts telling me what a wimp I am, hear me out. The water carrying to the barn job starts when the temp is in the low 20 s above. Anything colder than that and you are still carrying water to your chickens and barn animals. Unless you have unlimited electric power and can run lots of water heaters for all the bowls. We have to let the pigs and cows in the large fenced areas have the water deicers. The rest of the critters have a water service (me) that comes in three times a day to break up ice and add non frozen water to the bowl and buckets. That s a lot of water, 20 to 30 gallons of water per day is carried back to the barn
and coop area. And I am ok with doing this. We have done it for a long time. It s how we get through winter. But it is cold. If only I could have snow with mild temperatures! The animals have mixed feelings about the snow. They all have shelter to go into and can stay out of bad weather. The momma pigs are all tucked into stalls with their babies. I can t believe how fast the babies are growing. And Charlie had a reunion meeting with the love of his life, Mariah. They chatted over the fence and then she moved on to root around and enjoy some baby free time while her litter napped. Charlie really misses her but we already have quite the population explosion with Layla, Mariah and Squishy all delivering within the last two weeks.
The pigs really seemed to enjoy the snow and rooting around. It was funny to see their noses come up all covered with snow. Then they would go back inside and burrow under the hay and take a nap! Sounds perfect!
Reba, our only red head, is a good big sister to all the younger weanlings. She takes good care of all of them but she gets her way! The sheep are also big fans of snow. The first morning after the storm, I thought maybe they would prefer to munch on hay in the stall rather than go out and stand in the snow. They literally stalked me as I walked by their pen, feeding the
goats and doing chores, until I put some hay outside. A slight increase in the amount of grain helps everyone stay warm and peaceful. The goats would not put one foot outside with snow or rain. They will happily remain inside until the ground is dry.
Up in the chicken, duck and rabbit area we have differing opinions too. The ducks, being the happy go lucky beings that they are, ran right out into the snow. They proceeded down the hill, at which point I directed them back up to their area. Chief helped me herd them back. Who knows where they were planning on going that morning. After they had a big splash in the room temperature water I brought with me, they
settled down to preen in the sun. They probably would have taken a swim if I had filled the pool. Rabbits don t mind the snow. The bright white light however was a bit too much for their eyes to adjust too. Looks like
Quincey needs some shades! Gizmo was front and center to see what I brought for breakfast. Over in the chicken run, things were pretty quiet. With the temperature being much colder than our birds are used to, I kept them in for most of the cold weather at the beginning of the week. After the storm passed and the winds died down I gave them the option to come out during the day. Most of the time, the mere glimpse of snow on the ground will deter them from stepping outside. But this week, quite a few ventured out to scratch around any spots that were dry of snow. I spread out some hay for them to stand on because nobody likes cold feet.
We may not experience winter weather like some parts of the country and I am glad we don t have as much winter as New England, the Great Lakes area and other colder regions. For those of us in the mid-atlantic area of the East coast, this is cold enough. My pioneer spirit is rising to the occasion and I am grateful that we have not lost power with the heavy winds. I have become quite obsessed with refilling the water jugs as soon as I get back from the barns. Because you just never know what s around the next corner and if there will be running water and electric when you get there.
Stay safe and warm! Wintery weeks don t stay around forever. I am sure Spring will arrive someday. For more on winter preparedness read Poultry and Livestock Quick Winter Tips for