Happy chickens and nesting boxes

Today I only sold a dozen eggs. I got a new job working the grave yard shift anf I'm just getting used to the hour changes. Slept in rather than getting to the sale site at my usual time. I guess I missed my regular customers. Oh well, eggs will keep.

As you can probably see, the chickens are molting. I find it a little strange that just as the weather turns cold, they lose their feathers. Weird chickens! I put a heat lamp on them at night to keep them laying even though the days are shorter. I was told they do that due to the less tham optimun 10 hours of daylight the need top keep producing. I increased their calcium uptake by adding lots of oyster shells to their feed. Keeps the shells strong enough for me to handle. I usual drop 1 or 2, sometimes 3, just from not paying attention. I guess you could call them aborted future chickens. Oh well, I don't know if they were fertilized or not. Red doesn't seem to have the stamina to jump 22 hens every day.

The top left photo is of the site I go to every Sunday with my eggs. As you can see you don't need anything special, just a place to set the eggs down, up or whatever and a chair. The next photo below it is of the nesting boxes. They don't always use every box. Seems they have a favorite and no matter what I do, they will lay in that box until the previous eggs start getting crushed. I have to check that box more often to prevent that from happening.

I will try to keep you posted more regularly about these fine little "money makers".

The coop

The coop is finished. Hallelujah!

I didn't think I'd ever see the day. It wasn't that difficult, its just that I had to do most of the work by myself therefore it became a back breaker. Holding long boards while trying to drill screws is a real pain but I 'gotter dun'. I made it from discarded lumber and left behind stuff from Habitat for Humanity. It kept the cost down. I did put a real steel roof on it which cost more than I expected but I didn't want to have to do it again or have the roof blow off in some of the terrible storms we get here in Arkansas. Because it didn't take that many sheets of roofing, they all matched. The roofing manufacturer always has left over 'ends' from the rolls of steel that they will discount. A neighbor gave me the door from a house she and her husband tore down.

Chickens just love it, close and cozy, warm and out of the weather. I hung a heat lamp that also produces light as I was told chickens need at least 8 hours of daylight to keep laying eggs.

All the racket I created disturbed the egg laying process so they hung back a couple of weeks before it was business as usual. I sold all my eggs plus a quart of pickled aggs Sunday. Staying at the same place at the same hours on the same day establishes a routine that new customers soon become familiar with. My excess production went in about an hour and a half.

I get rave reviews about how great my eggs taste and that it reminds people of the eggs they ate as children. Can't get any better than that.

I planted a patch of grass for them to chew on during the winter. Because the winters here are not that bad, winter rye is all it takes to keep them happy. I just throw it out on the bare ground, water periodically to keep it moist and Voila! Grass. Chickens go nuts over it. That and leaves. They will scratch in a litter of leaves to the point that you'll have leaves from here to breakfast.

Free Recipes

Basic Egg Pie

This recipe is an old family favorite from the South. Southern cooks added either chocolate or coconut to make it special.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2 eggs, separated
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup flour
3/4 cup sweet milk (a Southern description as opposed to Buttermilk)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 unbaked pie crust

Beat egg yolks until thick and lemony. One by one, beat in the sugar, butter and flour. Add the milk and vanilla, blending well.
Pour into unbaked pie shell and bake in hot oven (425 degrees) for 10 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for another 20 minutes. The top of the pie should be crusted and golden brown.
The egg whites can be beaten (add 2 tablespoons of sugar to sweeten) until stiff and holds firm peaks. Pile on top of pie and return to oven for short time until tips of peaks are slightly brown.
Serves 6-8


My Favorite Egg Custard

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2 Tablespoons butter + 2 teaspoons cut into 8 pieces
2 cups milk
3 large eggs
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Whisk all ingredients together in bowl with pouring spout. Pour into buttered ramekins (I use 6 as they are usually sufficient). Place in hot water bath 3/4 way to top of ramekins. Place a dot of butter on top of each ramekin. Bake in middle of oven for approximately 40 minutes.

Let cool before eating. Custard is a great and easy dessert that can be made ahead of time. Watch handling the hot water as it is easy to burn yourself if you're not careful.

I add cinnamon to the custard because I love the flavor.



Any of the above recipes can be made with artificial sugar (the powdered kind) that is spoonable for a diabetic dessert. I use it to keep the calories down whenever I want something sweet or just to make it for my diabetic friends.

Finding Support Groups or Selling Your Excess Production

Everybody loves FRESH eggs.

Finding someone to buy your eggs may be easier than you think. Depending on how many chickens you have will determine how many extra eggs you'll be able to sell. The good thing is they will stay fresh if refrigerated for many days even weeks. Just look at the eggs for sale at your neighborhood grocer. If they were laid that day or even the day before, you'd have to live on top or near an "egg factory". I always judge the freshness of the eggs by how easily they peel after hardboiling. The harder they are to peel, the fresher.

Ask your friends if they would be interested in buying your excess eggs. I guarantee the first time they taste your eggs you will have a built in market.

Using fresh eggs for your favorite recipes will make you an instant success at any potluck party you're invited to. I make custards and all kinds of custard pies depending on my mood and what I have available.

My chickens and I are fast becoming friends if that's the correct description of an animal that lets you dig under them while feeling for eggs, petting them and letting them know you're just checking. I would have never believed that you could actually feel as close to them as you would any pet. I really enjoy watching them scratch, squabble (the ol' peckin' order is alive and well), hunt for grubs and anything else that catches their fancy. Not having a bug problem is a real bonus. Raising a garden is another issue. Keeping them out of your prized flowers or vegetables means standing over them and letting them know when they've trespassed. It can be daunting if you don't have the time to oversee them when you let them run as I do. I enjoy their company too much to complain.

Each hen has her own personality. I've got "Amelia Earhart". She's takes off without filing flight plans, Hortense, the beauty queen, Junior, Red's first offspring that I successfully hatched the first time Hortense "sat", and Billie, Red's other offspring. I didn't know if she was going to be hen or a rooster so we let time decide. If she/he was a "rooster" his name would be "Billy". As you can see it was a "she".

As the flock grew from natural attrition (you'd be surprised how many people have chickens and don't know what to do with them), I quit naming them and just call them "Ms. Gray" or "Specks 1 and 2". or "You Ornery Critter, get out of there!" Threatening them with the stew pot doesn't faze them so I wouldn't suggest that unless you really want a "fresh" chicken dinner. I'm not sure anymore,that if something happened to one of them I wouldn't have a funeral for it.

Getting to Know Your Chickens

This is Hortense, an Austrolorp breed. She was the blue ribbon winner at the Garland County Fair 2 years ago. They are one of the most prolific layers and one holds the record for the most eggs produced in a year.

When I brought her home I almost split my sides laughing at her and the other chickens. Being penned up without male companionship must have raised her hormone levels. As soon as I put her in the pen, the other hens ran at her to establish pecking order. Red was going to have none of that. He raised a wing and ambled between the other hens and Hortense as much to say, "Back off, this lady is mine."

Hortense proceeded to dig a hole. She put her fanny up in the air and Red had his way with her. She was head honcho from that point on. She'd strut around the other hens, chasing them away from anything she thought should rightfully be hers first. So I called her "Hortense" to bring Her Majesty down a peg. Didn't work. She still thinks she runs the coop.

Phew! That Smell! (or Are you my gardening friend?)

The first thing you'll notice is the smell. It is easily controled with lime and your gardening buddies. Let them 'clean' the cage for all the poo they want. Wonderful fertilizer and best if put in the composte pile for awhile to decompose enough not to burn the plants befors spreading. The lime neutralizes the odor and the acidity so it should decompose rather quickly. The more chickens the more poo so keep a list of your gardening buddies handy.

Raising Chickens in the City

Chickens are one of the easiest kinds of livestock to raise. Their requirements are so easy to meet that city-dwellers can often find room for at least 2 or 3. They are not picky about what they eat and they will reward your care with fresh eggs that contain no hormones or antibiotics. Be sure and check with your local goverment for restrictions on how many if any you are allowed to have.

GETTING STARTED

A small coop, big enough for you to move around in easily is necessary. This can be free-standing or a wired-off part of a larger building. An enclosure six feet by eight feet and about five feet or more high will be fine. Depending on the weather where you live, they will need to be protected from the elements. If you have more room, make it larger if you like. You will need a couple of nest boxes. Five-gallon plastic pails, cut in half, top to bottom, and fastened to the wall will make fine nest boxes. Fill the nest boxes with straw or long pine needles. Chickens don't mind sharing and in fact are encouraged to lay more if there is already an egg in the nest. You can use golf balls as incentives to get the process going. Also you must provide containers for food and water that the birds can eat from. Chickens are messy eaters so expect to see their food all over the place. They will eventually eat it all though so there is little waste.

FEED AND WATER

While it is possible to raise healthy chickens on "Scratch" your birds will be happier if you feed them Purina “Layena” or similar chicken feed for layers. All you have to do is carry a bag home and dispense to the birds. They appreciate chopped greens from your kitchen and love whole-kernel corn and stale baked goods, like good chickens everywhere. Always keep fresh clean water available to your birds. Make sure it stays clean and does not freeze in winter.

WHAT KIND OF CHICKENS TO GET

Simply put, the bigger the better! Rhode Island Reds are great because they lay nice, big brown eggs so get the best stock you can find. Another good layer is the Austrolorp. These can usually be found at your county fair. and are the most consistent layers, averaging almost an egg a day.

SIT BACK AND WAIT

For the types of chickens available:

http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html