Have a look at this ingenious use for a Subaru! Next time you need to relocate your flock, here’s what to do!
Archive for 2011
26 Dec
The Urban Chicken Consultant Recommends: Chicken Sitting
You have chickens. You need to go out of town for the week. Who ya gonna call? May I recommend a new niche business? Urban chicken sitting.
Our society has baby sitters, dog sitters, house sitters, and cat sitters. Why not chickens sitters? Many city dwellers like to leave urban bliss for much-deserved vacation at least once a year. If you’re chicken savvy and want to earn a few eggstra bucks, why not start a chicken sitting business?
What are the basic duties of a chicken sitter?
Here are some recommendations for what you might offer:
- Two home visits each day the owner is gone.
- Morning visit: Let the birds out of the coop, feed, water, collect eggs.
- Evening visit: Close the birds up in the coop, feed, water, collect eggs.
- Extended in-home service: Watch the birds for an hour or two while they free range in the yard.
- Emergency vet visit: Take any birds that appear sick to the vet.
What are the requirements for a chicken sitter?
Birds and mammals are very different. In order to care for someone else’s birds, you should be able to do the following:
- Like birds!
- Have your own transportation. Having access to a car is a big plus, especially in the case of an emergency situation.
- Keep strict quarantine. If you have your own fowl, clean shoes thoroughly with a bleach solution when you go between your client’s yard and your own. Change soiled clothing to avoid contamination of either flock with foreign bacteria, coccidia protozoa, or other nasties.
- Respect the birds’ routines. Birds are creatures of habit, and changes in routine can cause undue stress. Try to feed and water on the same schedule as your clients. Feed the same food, in the same amounts.
- Know and observe the flock’s behavior. Observe your client’s flock before you begin chicken sitting to determine what normal behavior is. Knowing normal behavior will help you know if something out of the ordinary is going on in terms of health or pecking order.
- Know the signs of distress in birds. For more information, see my post on Subclinical Illness.
- Know what to do in an emergency. If something goes wrong, you should know what to do or whom to call. Feel free to contact Home to Roost, or you can contact one of the recommended avian vets listed on the Resources tab.
- Consult with the owner about the cost of treating a sick bird. How much will the owner want to spend on a vet bill? Will you have to foot the bill and seek reimbursement from the owner?
If you have any thoughts about what you’d like to see in an urban chicken sitter, please post below!
7 Dec
Give the gift of …. chickens!
With the holidays approaching, I’m sure you chicken fanciers are perplexed about how to spread the chicken love with those who just don’t get your fowl proclivities.
Might I suggest spreading holiday cheer by giving… chickens!!
Heifer International, a 501(c)(3) charity, takes donations and uses the money to purchase farm animals for poor families in two-thirds world countries.
“Heifer’s mission is to work with communities to end hunger and poverty and care for the earth.
By giving families a hand-up, not just a hand-out, we empower them to turn lives of hunger and poverty into self-reliance and hope.
With gifts of livestock and training, we help families improve their nutrition and generate income in sustainable ways. We refer to the animals as “living loans” because in exchange for their livestock and training, families agree to give one of its animal’s offspring to another family in need. It’s called Passing on the Gift – a cornerstone of our mission that creates an ever-expanding network of hope and peace.”
You can present a loved one with a certificate for a flock of chicks that was given to a needy family in Peru for as little as $20! Other options include ducks, rabbits, sheep, cows, and water buffalo.
Consider alternative giving for the holidays and share your love of chickens!
You can find more information about giving chicks through Heifer International on this page from the Heifer site.
3 Dec
Subclinical Illness
A few months ago, I posted about subclinical illness in birds. I feel this topic is very important for anyone who has fowl, not just chickens, so I’m going to address this again.
Subclinical illness refers to sickness that goes undetected because the animal (or person) does not display symptoms. I was diagnosed with subclinical appendicitis only after the surgeon removed my diseased appendix. Until that point, my symptoms were not consistent with those of classic appendicitis, and the doctors were not sure what was going on. So exploratory surgery was needed.
Many bird owners say “My parakeet caught a draft and died” or “The bird just died suddenly. He must have been frightened to death.” Many times, the bird has been sick for a while and subtle symptoms are present, but because birds hide the signs of illness so well, the owners fail to realize the bird is sick. This is called subclinical illness.
In order to understand why subclinical illness is prevalent in birds, it’s necessary to understand their psychology. Birds are flock animals. They live together, fly together, eat together, and sleep together. A sick bird draws predators to the flock. Therefore the flock, to prevent danger to itself, will exclude sick birds. Individuals who are sick need the protection of the flock to survive, so they have become adept at hiding signs of illness.
So what can you, the chicken owner, do about this?
For starters, you should know your birds’ behavior:
- How much do they eat?
- How much do they vocalize?
- What kinds of things do they do during the day?
- How active are they?
- Who is on top in the pecking order?
Also get to know their bodies. Pick them up from time to time. Check the following:
- Crop
- Eyes
- Nares (nose)
- Keel (breastbone)
- Vent
Know what is normal for your birds. If anything looks unusual, keep an eye on it. If it gets worse or has not changed in a day or two, seek medical attention. Once you have noticed something, the bird may not have much time.
If you notice the following symptoms, the bird is in distress and needs help immediately:
- Listlessness, not moving
- Gasping for breath
- Tissues protruding from the vent
- Lying on one side
You know your birds best, so know get to know what’s normal for each bird. You may be able to prevent a problem from becoming deadly!
3 Dec
Fat Chicks
Ok, this post is not a disrespectful one about obese women. Rather, it’s about hens that are… pudgy.
You give your girls treats: corn, scratch, meal worms. That’s great! They love these goodies! It’s cute to see them running willy-nilly to get the good stuff. Life is good. Right?
Well, maybe not. Those foods things are high in fat and carbs, and feeding too much of them can leave to overweight birds. Excess fat puts pressure on organs and can interfere with the egg-laying process. Overweight hens are at risk of fatty liver disease, prolapse, heatstroke, and egg binding.
You may think that hens need a layer of fat to keep them warm in colder climates, like Chicago; however, the birds come with their own down coats. Many breeds, especially the dual-purpose breeds and those with small combs, are already adapted to life in colder climates.
I recently conducted a Healthy Hens visit at a home where a hen had died mysteriously. The owner was concerned that she had done something wrong and that her other birds would die, too. I checked the coop and environment and then did an exam of all the live birds. I thought one of them felt a little pudgy.
Then I conducted a necropsy to try to determine cause of death. When I opened the abdominal cavity, I found it was packed with yellow fat deposits. Everywhere. I’ve never seen that much fat on a bird. The living hens’ pelvic bones, which are a good indicator of body weight, felt very well cushioned, indicating that they also had high body fat.
If you think your hens are overweight, you can take the following steps:
- See that they get exercise. Like humans, chickens need exercise to burn calories. Give them out-of-cage time or build a large run for them.
- Reduce the amount of carbs they get. Cracked corn, scratch, and whole grains are good to feed in the winter, right before the birds go to bed. They should not be a regular part of the diet if your birds are overweight.
- Increase the amount of vegetables. This provides calories without excess carbs.
- Eliminate high-fat treats. Mealworms and other high-fat treats are yummy, but they pack a punch in terms of fat.
- Feed a balanced layer ration. Put your hens on a nutritionally balanced layer diet, with proper amounts of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and other key nutrients. A mature, dual-purpose (egg and meat) bird, will ideally consume between 3 and 4 pounds of food per week.
- Limit the amount of food. It is always better to provide layer ration as free choice (at all times). This ensures that all your birds get food. However, if they are overweight, you can limit the layer ration to what they are able to eat in 20 minutes, two times per day (morning and evening).
Note: Chickens will eat more during the winter in cold climates than in the summer. In cold weather, metabolic activity increases to help them maintain body temperature. During heat waves, they will eat less.
Your flock needs the same dietary care as you do: high on nutrient value and low on junk food. Keeping your birds’ diet on track will keep them healthy, happy, and providing you with breakfast!
11 Oct
November 5, 2011: Backyard Chicken Basics Workshop with Home to Roost
Basic Backyard Chicken Care
November 5, 2011 10:00am
Farm fresh eggs from your own back yard?
YES!
Please join Home to Roost and Angelic Organics Learning Center for a workshop on best practices for Basic Backyard Chicken Care in Chicago and surrounding communities.
Raising chickens as pets and for eggs is LEGAL in Chicago – and part of our growing local food and urban agriculture scene.
This compreHENsive class will teach you how to keep you, your chickens, & your neighbors happy – from daily needs and year-round care to relevant city regulations.
You will leave the workshop with the knowledge, recommendations, and resources you need for your own home flock – and you’ll make connections with other chicken enthusiasts in Chicago.
For more information about the Learning Center’s registration & refund policies – click here. If the workshop fee presents a barrier to your participation, please inquire about limited work-exchange scholarships.Actual costs of workshops are close to double our workshop fees. If you are able, please consider making an additional donation to help cover the full cost of your workshop.
Price: $35.00
Location:
Angelic Organics Learning Center’s Chicago Office
6400 S Kimbark Avenue
Chicago, IL 60637
First Presbyterian Church of Chicago
Register online on the Angelic Organics site.
11 Oct
Brookfield Gives the Thumbs-Up to Chickens
Last night the Brookfield village board approved the long-sought hen-keeping ordinance! Congrats to the Brookfield chicken group! Read more here on this link!
6 Oct
Brookfield, IL, Chicken Hearing on Monday, 10 Oct.
This coming Monday (10/10) is the day the Village of Brookfield will be voting on the backyard hen ordinance. Please come out! Let’s make one big, last push toward this positive change.
http://brookfieldchickens.blogspot.com/2011/10/monday-1010-is-voting-day.html
5 Oct
Live Clip from New Hampshire Public Radio
Well, here it is! http://player.nhpr.org/city-chickens!
1 Oct
Oct. 5, 2011: Home to Roost on New Hampshire Public Radio
Home to Roost will be interviewed LIVE on New Hampshire Public Radio on Weds., October 5, from 12:15-12:30 Eastern Standard time. Listen on the web! Go to http://player.nhpr.org/city-chickens and select LISTEN/ Listen Live.
Home to Roost 