Guides for Raising Healthy Chickens Anywhere
Last month, a friend called me in a panic. Her Buff Orpington had pecked a neighborhood child who reached into the run uninvited. The child needed minor first aid, and the parents mentioned involving their insurance. My friend assumed her homeowners policy would handle it. She was partially right, but the situation revealed just how … Read more
Last summer, my neighbor’s rooster got loose and scratched a delivery driver who was dropping off a package. The driver needed a tetanus shot and minor wound care. What should have been a simple insurance claim turned into a nightmare when my neighbor discovered her homeowners policy specifically excluded livestock-related injuries. The medical bills, potential … Read more
When my neighbor’s coop got destroyed during a severe thunderstorm last autumn, she assumed her homeowners policy would cover the damage. The answer surprised both of us. According to discussions among chicken keepers on the BackYard Chickens forum, coops are often considered outbuildings and may be automatically covered under standard homeowners policies. However, according to Allstate’s … Read more
What’s the best thing to put in the bottom of a chicken run? I asked myself this question desperately during my first rainy season with chickens, watching my run transform into a foul-smelling mud pit that swallowed my boots with every step. My chickens stood on their roosts all day, refusing to touch the ground. … Read more
Where to store chicken feed might seem like a simple question, but getting it wrong cost me an entire 50-pound bag of layer pellets in my first year of chicken keeping. I had stored it in my laundry room for convenience, thinking the indoor location would be sufficient protection. Within three weeks, the humidity from … Read more
Should chickens have feed all the time? This was the question I asked myself after noticing two of my lower-ranking hens were losing weight while the dominant birds in my flock seemed perfectly healthy. I had been feeding twice daily, convinced I was doing things correctly. The answer changed how I approach feeding entirely. The … Read more
When I first started keeping chickens six years ago in a tropical climate, I made nearly every feeding mistake possible. I gave my flock too much scratch grain, not enough calcium, and had no idea that some common kitchen scraps could actually harm them. Here’s what would have saved my first two hens: understanding exactly … Read more
The Buff Brahma rooster is arguably one of the most visually stunning birds you can add to a backyard flock. With warm golden plumage that seems to glow in afternoon sunlight and an imposing size that commands attention, these roosters have earned their reputation as the “Gentle Giants” of the poultry world. Unlike many large … Read more
The Dark Brahma rooster is one of the most visually striking birds you will ever see in a backyard flock. Unlike Light Brahmas where roosters and hens share nearly identical coloring, the Dark Brahma variety displays dramatic sexual dimorphism that makes telling males from females remarkably straightforward, even from a distance. When I first encountered … Read more
If you have ever stared at a brooder full of fluffy Light Brahma chicks and wondered which ones will grow into majestic roosters and which will become your gentle laying hens, you are not alone. Light Brahmas present a unique sexing challenge that trips up even experienced chicken keepers. Unlike breeds where males and females … Read more