Iowa City Joins the Backyard Chicken Movement


I got a call yesterday from the University of Iowa and spoke to a reporter who documented the Iowa City chicken-keeping efforts in this article, published online today (4/17/2012).

This movement was seeded by a former chicken keeper from Albuquerque who wanted backyard hens at her new home.

“Everyone comes to the table with different reasons [for urban chicken keeping],” said LaBadie, who organized several chicken-keeping groups in Albuquerque. “… But it’s not like it’s a brand-new thing. They’re allowed in New York City, Los Angeles, Albuquerque, and larger urban areas. I feel like they could work in Iowa City.”

Go, Iowa!

 

Chicken-related Word for the Day


† oologize, v.
Forms:  18 oologize,   18 oölogize.
Etymology: <  oology n. + -ize suffix.

N.E.D. (1903) gives the pronunciation as (oˌǫ·lŏdʒəiz) /əʊˈɒlədʒaɪz/.
 Obs. rare.

 1.  trans.To take the eggs from (a bird’s nest).

1870  J. R. Lowell My Study Windows I. 21 The children of a man employed about the place oologized the nest.
 2.  intr.To collect birds’ eggs.

1870  J. R. Lowell My Study Windows I. 22 The red squirrel, I think‥oölogizes, I know he eats cherries.

Fake Chicken: The Wings of the Future?


Ethan Brown makes chicken. Not chicken dishes. Chicken meat. From soy.

This country goes through a lot of chickens: We raise and kill nearly eight billion a year — about 40 percent of our meat
consumption, compared with roughly 30 percent beef and 25 percent pork. Chickens are grown so quickly that The Veterinary Record has said that most have bone disease, and many live in chronic pain. (The University of Arkansas reports that if humans grew as fast as chickens, we’d weigh 349 pounds by our second birthday.)

So are McNuggets really all chicken? Debatable. The USDA allows meat to be supplemented by soy protein. How about a soy-based product that imitates the look and feel of chicken? Check out this article and the accompanying video about Ethan’s chicken-making endeavors.

Garden Designs for the Urban Chicken Farmer


If you’re looking for a resource to help you design a garden that will work well with your hens, Free-Range Chicken Gardens may be a good resource. From the book’s website:

In Free-Range Chicken Gardens, award-winning garden designer Jessi Bloom covers everything a gardener needs to know, including chicken-keeping basics, simple garden plans to get you started, tips on attractive fencing options, the best plants and plants to avoid, and step-by-step instructions for getting your chicken garden up and running. For anyone who wants a fabulous garden where colorful chickens happily roam, this essential handbook is the guide that will bring the dream home to roost.

Enjoy, and happy gardening!

Palatine, IL, Wants Chickens


A Palatine couple seeks the right to keep chickens. For more information and a link to their Facebook page, read this article.

“Consider being a part of this group to support green living in the Palatine area by allowing backyard hens!” the Facebook page states.

4/12/2012: Chicks are at Belmont Feed and Seed!


We currently have in stock one-week-old sexed chicks:
Araucana/Americana chicks,
Golden Laced Wyandottes
Gray California Leghorns.

3 Araucana/Americana 6 week old pullets & 2 Black Austrolorps that are
now 9 weeks old.

Our next shipment, due to arrive April 24th, will include all sexed:
Barred Rocks
Black Austrolorps
Buff Orpingtons
Isa Browns/Red Stars
Black Sex Links
Rhode Island Red
Silver Laced Wyandottes
Black Jersey Giants (per customer request)

Our BEE KEEPING supplies, including the Bees, keep on streaming in.
Stop in for a look around or to place a special order.

Contact:

(773) 588-1144

3036 W Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL 60618

 

Chickens and Property Values


One of the common complaints of village boards when considering allowing chicken keeping is “But property values will go down.”

Urban Chicken Advocates of Nashville (UCAN) examined the property values of cities that allow chickens and determined that there seems to no direct correlation between chicken keeping and property values. To read the article, click here.

REMINDER! April 14, 2012: Green Metropolis Fair


Come out this weekend for the Green Metropolis Fair!

Join Home to Roost and Backyard Chicken Run at the Green Metropolis Fair. This fun, day-long event has something for the whole family! This year it is at the Green Exchange. Meet animals, learn about I-GO cars, ask a composting expert a question. For more information, head to the Green Metropolis website.

Northbrook, IL, Shoots Down Chickens


In a disappointing 5-2 vote last night, the Village of Northbrook, IL, razed hopes for backyard chicken keepers. Attendees felt the trustees had made their decisions prior to the meeting, rather than entertaining the evidence presented.

This, of course, overshadows the Cubs 7-4 loss over the Brewers.



			

Poultry at Feed Store, Harlem and 55, Summit, IL


As of April 10, 2012,the Feed Store (Harlem and 55) currently has

  • sexed ISA brown and black Australorp pullets
  • straight-run Javas and coturnix quail

Will be getting on 4/20

  • sexed ISA browns, buff Orpingtons, silver-laced Wyandottes, araucanas
  • unsexed bronze and white turkeys
  • mallard, Pekin, and blue Swede ducks

For a link to their location, see the Resources tab.