Grit and Oyster Shell?

Why do Chickens need Grit and Oyster Shell?

Someone asked me the other day why chickens eat their own eggs. My answer to this question is pretty simple, “Chickens are smart, if they need something in their diet they are not getting, they will find it”. What they need in their diet when they are eating their own eggs is,  1) calcium from the egg shell and 2) protein from the egg. Which leads to the question of, supplementing with Oyster shells and or Grit. And what is what?

So why do they need grit? Chickens don’t have teeth so they use this (insoluble) grit to grind down their food. If they are free ranged they can find it for themselves. If they are in a coop most or all of their lives, you will need to provide them with their needs. Layer Chicken feeds do provide both grit and oyster shells, and the bag will tell you there is no need to supplement, that the food is fully digestible, but is it enough? If you are only feeding food scraps, treats or scratch feed, to chickens in a coop, yes, you need oyster shells and grit.

Chickens have this thing called a gizzard. You know what that is, they fry or steam them at your local chicken place for a tasty chewy  treat.  In a chicken, before food get to the gizzard there is this thing called, the proventriculus, food is mixed with acids and digestive enzymes. Then on to the gizzard where (insoluble) grit accumulates, which with a strong muscular action, grinds the food down. So to digest their food correctly, chickens need insoluble grit. It is cheap enough to buy so it’s easy to provide some, just to make sure they are getting enough.

Grit- VS- Oyster Shell

Oyster shell also called Soluble Grit (the most common being Oyster shell grit) often gets confused with Insoluble grit. Insoluble grit is usually made of granite or flint.

Don't confuse oyster shell with grit.  Grit is insoluble.  It stays in the gizzard and it's used to grind food.  Oyster shell dissolves in the gut. Its job is not to do with digestion - it's to add calcium to the diet of laying hens, for optimum health your chickens need both .

 

Soluble grit (oyster shell) is digested by the hen and contains calcium, most of which is used to form strong egg shells. The majority of an egg-shell is made up of calcium carbonate and a constant supply of oyster shell grit ensures they have sufficient calcium in their bodies. If sufficient calcium isn’t available, hens can lay soft or poor quality shelled eggs.

As an alternative to oyster shell grit, baked crushed egg shells can also be used since they are mainly calcium carbonate too. Hopefully you will have a good supply of egg shells!

Do all chickens need oyster shell?

No, absolutely not.  Chickens who aren't laying will get enough calcium from their normal feed.   Only hens who are laying eggs need to be given additional calcium in their diet - when they're in active lay, they use four times as much calcium as a non-laying hen. Giving additional calcium to chickens who are not layers is detrimental to their health - it can damage their kidneys and is potentially fatal.

Why do laying hens need oyster shell?

Making egg shells takes a lot of calcium, and some laying hens create one egg each day.  That's a lot of calcium.

If a hen doesn't have enough in her diet, her body will steal calcium from her bones to create the egg shell.  That leaves bones very brittle with the potential for easy breakages - like osteoporosis in humans. 

Lack of calcium in the diet can also lead to soft-shelled eggs, which in turn can lead to egg-binding, a potentially fatal condition.

Although some commercial feeds contain calcium, it is not enough to supplement the amount a laying hen uses.  She therefore needs to be offered additional calcium in her diet - and oyster shell is an excellent source.

When should a hen be given additional calcium?

Most hens will start to lay when they're about 20 - 21 weeks of age.  Oyster shell needs to be given from around 18 weeks - just before they're due to start laying.

Do not be tempted to give additional calcium supplements in any form earlier than that - it is potentially damaging to a young chicken's kidneys.

Hens who are not laying eggs, and roosters (cockerels) do not need additional calcium. Don't worry about working out who needs what - as long as you offer it freely (i.e. leave it available all the time) they will instinctively know to take it as and when they need it.

Make it available to your flock year round. If hens aren't laying as much in the winter, they will simply slow down on how much oyster shell they take.

How should oyster shell be given?

Different laying hens have different calcium needs.  Not every hen, for example, lays an egg every day.Young hens and all ages of male chickens (cockerels / roosters) do not need additional calcium at all.

For that reason oyster shell should never be mixed in with feed.  Doing this risks damaging the kidneys of those who do not require it.

It is suggested that you give oyster shell grit in a separate container than their chicken feed. Using a hopper or gravity feeder attached to a sheltered wall protected from wind and rain. If you’re on a budget, or want to leave it outside, you can make a hopper out of a plastic flower-pot. Bury half of it in the ground, make sure it has holes in the bottom. Top it up with oyster shell grit. When it rains, it will be able to drain freely through the holes

Chickens will instinctively take as much as they need; those who don't need it will not touch it.

Insoluble Grit (flint or granite) There are different grades of insoluble grit depending on the age of the chicken. Baby chicks should have a very fine mix; as they get older it should be more coarse.

At what age should chicks be given grit?

If you're raising chicks in a brooder, i.e. without a broody hen, do not feed treats (and grit) too early.  Chicks need to learn first what their 'proper' food is, because that's where they will get the balanced nutrients they need. 

I don't recommend giving  treats until they're at least two week old but that's personal preference - with a broody hen they'll eat other foods from a couple of days old and will pick up grit naturally as they peck.

Babies who are eating nothing but a commercially produced starter feed do not need grit. The food is soft enough to be absorbed without the need for grinding.

However, as soon as chicks are given any kind of treat food, or grains such as scratch feed, they need some form of grit.  It doesn't matter whether you think the treats are soft and easily digested - any food other than chick starter requires it.

Grit for babies up to three weeks can be something as simple as bits of sandy soil still attached to a lettuce, or a clod of grass with earth attached.  If using sand it needs to be a builder's or all purpose grade : play sand is too fine and won't aid digestion.  It will go in one end and straight out the other.

Once they're over three weeks you need to look for a 'grower' grit which is coarser; they can use that from three weeks until around two months, after which they will require an even coarser, adult mix.

When do adult chickens need grit?

Adult chickens who are fed only commercial food and do not have access to any other food or treats do not need grit.  The feed is soft enough not to require grinding.

However, just as with baby chicks, once your flock is eating anything else including any form of treats, they need to be given something to help them grind the food.

An adult chicken needs a fairly coarse mix so you need to ask your feed store to make sure you're getting the right grade.  If it's too fine, it will pass through the system without stopping.

Any age of chicken eating anything other than commercial chicken feed needs to have a source of grit freely available. Pecking dirt from the ground may not be enough.

Any age of chickens eating anything other than commercial feed need to have a source of grit.

How to feed Grit?

You can feed grit the same as you feed oyster shells in a hopper or sprinkle it on the ground. Chickens are going to pick it up in their daily pecking and scratching. In free ranging chickens they will scratch and pick it up as they need it in nature. You may not want to mix it due to the fact that some chickens may want or need one or the other. Remember they are smart they will find what they need.

References

http://www.raising-happy-chickens.com/grit-and-oyster-shell.html

https://poultrykeeper.com/keeping-chickens-faq/why-do-chickens-need-grit-oystershell/



Moulting, it's that time again

I found this a very good article on moulting. Keep in mind it is from Australia so being in the southern hemisphere, their seasons are the opposite of ours in the USA (their Summer is our winter). I really like the way they break it down, and give solid information on moulting.    

 

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/articles/217/moulting-a-natural-process/

 

Moulting - a natural process

26 September 2004

by M R Ellis, Poultry Branch, Agriculture Western Australia, Reviewed by DPI&F officers - During the autumn, many household poultry keepers, particularly people keeping poultry for the first time, are often puzzled because although their laying birds appear healthy, egg production has markedly declined or ceased altogether.

Some people just accept this situation and hope for an improvement, while others look upon it as a strange disease. This seasonal decline in egg production occurs when birds go into a condition known as the “moult”.

Moulting is the process of shedding and renewing feathers. During the moult the reproductive physiology of the bird is allowed a complete rest from laying and the bird builds up its body reserves of nutrients.

The provision of new feathers or coat (a feature inherent in most animals) is a natural process, designed by nature to maintain the birds' ability to escape enemies by flight and to provide greater protection against cold winter conditions.

Normally, under natural conditions, moulting in adult birds will occur once a year, though it may occur in certain individuals twice in one year, and more rarely only once in a period of two years.

The pullet

The chick goes through one complete and three partial moults during its growth to point of lay, after which the mature bird normally undergoes one complete moult a year, usually in autumn although this depends on the time of the year at which the bird commenced laying. Generally complete moulting occurs from 1-6 weeks and partial moulting at 7-9 weeks, 12-16 weeks and 20-22 weeks, and during this latter moult the stiff tail feathers are grown.

The laying hen

Natural moulting usually begins sometime during March-April and should be completed by July when egg production recommences. The three main factors which bring about moulting are:

• physical exhaustion and fatigue
• completion of the laying cycle. Birds only lay eggs for a certain period of time
• reduction of day length, resulting in reduced feeding time, and consequent loss of bodyweight.

Eleven months continuous production is expected from pullets hatched in season, so that if a flock of pullets commenced laying in March at six months of age, they should continue laying until the following February, although the odd bird may moult after laying for a few weeks. These few birds however should begin laying again after June 22 (the shortest day of the year) and continue in production until the following autumn.

Pullets coming into lay in June should lay until the following April thereby giving eleven months continuous egg production without the aid of artificial light. Pullets coming into lay in spring (August) should lay well into April (9 months) but unless artificial lighting is provided, most of them will moult during May and June. 

Moulting and nutrition

Cessation of lay and moulting indicate that the birds' physical condition is deteriorating, and is therefore unable to support egg production, continued nourishment of their feathers and body maintenance. Feathers contain protein and are more easily grown when laying ceases, because of the birds difficulty in assimilating sufficient protein for both egg and feather production. During the moult the fowl still requires a considerable amount of good quality food to replace feathers and build up condition.

Good layers and moulting

The time at which a laying hen ceases production and goes into her moult is a reliable guide as to whether or not she is a good egg producer. Poor producing hens moult early (November-December) and take a long time to complete the process and resume laying i.e. she will hang in the moult and be out of production for a long period - from six to seven months. Poor producers seldom cast more than a few feathers at a time and rarely show bare patches. High producing hens moult late, moult for a short period (no more than 12 weeks) and come back into production very quickly. Rapid moulting is not only seen in the wing feathers of good producers, but also in the loss of body feathers generally. Because of this it is common to see a late and rapid moulting hen practically devoid of feathers and showing many bare patches over her body.

The moulting process

Moulting takes place in a fairly definite order. Feathers are confined to definite tracts or areas of the body surface, with bare patches of skin between. The first plumage is lost from the head and neck, then from the saddle, breast and abdomen (body), then the wings and then from the tail.

While the first feathers are being dropped from the neck and body, good layers will often keep laying, but when the wing feathers begin to drop, laying usually ceases.

The main wing feathers consist of four tiny finger feathers on the extreme tip of the wing, then ten large primary or “flight” feathers, the small axial feather, and the fourteen secondary feathers, which are smaller and softer than the primaries.

When the wing moults, primary feathers are shed first, from the axial outwards to the end of the wing, and then the secondaries, which are not shed in such a set order as the primaries. The axial feather is dropped at the same time as the secondary next to it. The new quill starts to grow as soon as the old feather is out and takes approximately six to seven weeks to grow. The moult is complete when all primary flight feathers on the wing are replaced. The feathers of the moulted bird are large and full, softer, cleaner, brighter and glossy in contrast to the feathers before moulting which were small and hard, dry, frayed and tattered.

Figure 1 (above). The moulting process. Primary feathers are shed first from the axial feather outwards to the end of the wing. Number 1 primary feather is first to drop followed by a number 2 and then in order to number 10. While the primaries are being shed the secondaries begin to drop but not in any set order

Figure 2. Moulting - a natural process

The difference between a rapid and slow moulter is not due to a difference in growth rate of the individual feather, but because the rapid moulter renews a large number of feathers at the same time. With this knowledge, the rate of moulting can be ascertained by examining the number of flight feathers on the wing being replaced simultaneously. If a hen is found to have grown some of her primaries before starting to moult her secondaries, it may be assumed that she laid well into the moult and was therefore a good layer.

Sometimes, high producing hens do not moult all their primary feathers but carry them on for another year. Generally a layer moults when production ceases although if the bird has an inherited tendency for high production, moulting will probably precede cessation of production, and conversely if she is a poor producer. Modern laying breeds should moult in late autumn because they have been bred specifically for egg production i.e. to lay at a higher rate and for a longer period of time.

Vacation moults, neck moults or partial moults

Old feathers are usually retained by a laying bird which lays regularly. Should she cease production for any other reason than for mild sickness or broodiness she will lose her feathers.

If a hen ceases production during spring or summer, she may moult one or two primaries, then stop moulting and come into lay again. This is known as a vacation moult. When she starts her full moult later in the autumn, she will drop the next feather in sequence and moult in order of the remaining primaries. A neck or partial moult is sometimes experienced by a bird without any loss of production, but if the moulting extends beyond the neck moult stage the hen ceases production.

The presence of “pin” feathers (new emerging feathers) usually indicate a short or partial moult.

Some birds moult continuously and can be easily detected in the flock by the spotless condition of their new feathers. These birds are poor producers and should be culled.

Stress factors and moulting

Natural moults can occur any time of the year due to birds being subjected to stress. A bird is stressed when the environment or management present a challenge to which the bird cannot respond without suffering a harmful effect. A hen subjected to a mild stress condition in late spring when in full production will suffer a drop in egg production whereas the same stress condition applied to a bird in the autumn will cause her to cease laying and moult.

The following are common stress factors which can induce moulting:

• Lighting
  • decreasing daylight
  • decreasing artificial light
• Loss of bodyweight
• Disease
• Internal parasites
• Climate
  • excessive cold
  • heat waves
• Feed, feeding and feedstuffs
  • deficiencies of essential ingredients
  • irregular feeding
  • insufficient feed
• Predators eg. cats and dogs
• Fright - wild birds and children
• Peck order - low vitality
• Prolonged broodiness
• Mismanagement: overcrowding, movement to another house, water deprivation, insufficient feed and water space, faulty ventilation, wet litter, debeaking, vaccinations, exposed housing, etc.

Force moulting

Force moulting is a practice adopted by some commercial egg producers to bring about a rapid moult so that all the birds come back into lay for a second time at a certain time of the year, usually in autumn. It is achieved by subjecting a flock to a programmed combination of mild environmental stress factors causing the birds to cease laying and consequently moult e.g. decreasing the artificial lighting programme. Force moulting is a practice not normally applicable to the household situation. Natural moulting is slower and more erratic than force moulting.

Production and moulting

After moulting, the second year of egg production will be between 10 and 30% less than that achieved by the birds in their first year of lay. This is because the rate of lay is lower and the birds cease to lay earlier in the following autumn. Birds which have moulted twice and are laying for their third year will lay only 70 to 80% of their second years eggs i.e. about 60% of their first year's production.

Moulting cockerels

Like hens, cockerels also moult, and while in this condition are nearly always infertile due to loss of bodyweight and because their reproductive physiology is undergoing a resting phase. Care must be taken to ensure that cockerels do not lose more than 25% of their bodyweight while moulting as this can lead to sterility.

Advantages and disadvantages

The advantages of keeping hens during the moult and the following year is fourfold:

• it is cheaper to carry a bird through a moult than to buy replacement pullets
• fewer replacement pullets may be needed, and buying can often be deferred, which can mean a saving of money, time and transport
• moulted birds are hardier, and not as prone to disease
• if strict culling is carried out during the first year, only high producing, efficient birds will be retained.

The main disadvantage is that although moulted birds eat less feed than pullets, they also lay less eggs. Overall, their conversion of feed into eggs, and feed cost per dozen eggs is higher.

Other disadvantages are:

• during the moult the birds continue to eat but remain unproductive
• if the birds are to be slaughtered for the table after two years of laying they will not be as tender to eat
• too few birds may be retained to provide sufficient eggs the following year.

Year-round laying and moulting

All-year-round egg production can be achieved by purchasing pullets at point-of-lay in the autumn to provide sufficient eggs while the older birds are moulting. When the rate of lay of the pullets declines in the summer, the additional eggs from the moulted birds should sustain an adequate supply. The following autumn the older birds can be killed for the table, the best pullets allowed to moult and another lot of pullets on point-of-lay purchased. In effect therefore, allowing for 20% wastage of pullets due to deaths and culling, only 70% of the normal pullet requirements need to be purchased, and at the same time a relatively constant year round supply of eggs is guaranteed. 

Why the Chicken crossed the World?

The Surprising Ways That Chickens Changed the World

Civilization was powered by the humble chicken, says author.

By Simon Worrall, for National Geographic

PUBLISHED December 21, 2014
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/12/141221-chickens-civilization-avian-flu-locavore-turkey-ngfood-booktalk/

             
book jacket courtesy Atria Books, Simon and Schuster

 For most of us, the word "chicken" spells a cold, clammy slab of plastic-wrapped white meat plucked out of the refrigerated section of our local supermarket. But in the ancient world, and in many cultures today, chickens had deep religious and social significance.

Speaking from his home in North Carolina, Andrew Lawler, author of Why Did the Chicken Cross the World: The Epic Saga of the Bird That Powers Civilization describes how fried chicken has its origins in West Africa, why the Puritans tried to ban the word "cock," and how the backyard chicken movement is bringing roosters to towns and cities all over America.

Andrew, you know what my first question has to be: Why did the chicken cross the world?

The answer's actually quite simple. The chicken crossed the world because we took it with us. Humans can't do without chickens. Chicken is the most popular meat today. Americans eat more than 80 pounds a year, more than pork or beef. So we tend to think people must have domesticated the chicken because it was good to eat, right? Well, no. Scientists now believe chickens were not domesticated to eat in the first place.

Every chicken you see on Earth is the descendant of the red jungle fowl, a very shy jungle bird that lives in south Asia, all the way from Pakistan to Sumatra and Indonesia. It's a small, pheasant-like bird hunters like because it's very hard to find, so it poses a great challenge. The strange thing is that these birds are so shy that when they're captured in the wild, they can die of a heart attack because they're so terrified of humans. So the question is, How did this bird, that is incredibly shy, become the most ubiquitous bird on Earth?

You suggest that the evolution of the chicken has powered human civilization—that's a pretty big claim. Justify it.

It is a big claim, and I would not have made it when I first started looking into the chicken. Like most people, I thought of it as a bird that provides us with meat and eggs but not much else. But when I started to dig into it, I discovered that the chicken has actually played more roles across human history, in more societies, than any other animal, and I include the dog and the cat and cows and pigs. The chicken is a kind of a zelig of human history, which pops up in all kinds of different societies.

If you go back to ancient Babylon, about 800 B.C., in what is now Iraq, you find seals used by people to identify themselves. Some of these have images of chickens sitting on top of columns being worshipped by priests. That expanded with the Persian Empire. Zoroastrians considered the chicken sacred because it crowed before dawn, before the light appeared. And in Zoroastrian tradition, the coming of the light is a sign of good. So the chicken became associated with an awakening from physical, as well as spiritual, slumber.

I had no idea that chicken soup and the flu vaccine have something in common. So Jewish mothers were right?

Absolutely. There have been several scientific studies in the past decade or so that show quite clearly that chicken soup contains something that helps us get over a cold. It won't cure your cold. But it will definitely help take care of some of those symptoms, like a runny nose or fever. In the ancient world, the chicken was considered a kind of two-legged pharmacy. If you had diarrhea, if you were depressed, if you had a child who was a bed wetter, you name it, there was some part of the chicken that could cure you.

Culturally, you explain that both African-Americans and women were at the forefront of the chicken and egg farming industry in the U.S.—why is that?

When slaves were brought here from West Africa, they came with a deep knowledge of the chicken, because in West Africa the chicken was a common farm animal and also a very sacred animal. The knowledge that African-Americans brought served them very well, because white plantation owners for the most part didn't care much about chicken. In colonial times there were so many other things to eat that chicken was not high on the list.

Whites felt chickens weren't important, so they were often the only animals slaves were allowed to raise in places like Virginia and South Carolina. They would raise chickens and sell them to their owners or to other slave owners. As a result, the chicken business became dominated by African-Americans. Most cooking on the plantations was also done by African-American women.

So whites began to eat more chicken. They also began to like fried chicken. Most people agree that West Africa was a center of this cuisine, where you would fry chicken parts in palm oil. And the slaves brought that tradition to the South. Over time it became one of the most important cuisines of that region.

       
This vintage poster shows 52 breeds of chickens. Despite being shy in the wild, chickens became the most ubiquitous bird on Earth.

Photograph by GraphicaArtis, Getty

Urban chickens are a new fad—sometimes a controversial one. What are the issues?

There's a backyard chicken movement that has started to take off in a lot of cities. There have been numerous legal battles. People who don't want chickens in their neighbors' yards—people who don't want roosters crowing before dawn. There's been a lot of antipathy among some people, who feel farm animals don't belong in the city.

But in the past four or five years, the chicken has begun to triumph in American cities and towns, as they relax their regulations prohibiting farm animals, specifically hens, from backyards. This goes hand in hand with the back-to-the-farm movement, the idea of being of "locavore." Backyard chickens are providing people with a clear and simple way to connect with what lands on their plate.

We have some friends who have free-range chickens. They thought they were just getting eggs, but they're getting a number of other benefits: They have no slugs in their garden, no mosquitoes and no ticks in their yard. What else do chickens do that are good for us?

As I said before, I think one of the most important things that chickens can do for us urban folk is to remind us where our food comes from. In earlier times chickens ate the scraps that the housewife threw out the door after dinner. The chickens took care of insects. In West Africa, they were important for exterminating pests. So chickens were welcome around the house, unlike, say, pigs and cows, which traditionally were kept farther away from dwellings. When archaeologists study ancient sites in the Middle East, they find chicken bones right in the living area. That's because the chicken does a lot of things for us. It cleans things up, gets rid of bugs, and provides us with those eggs we like to have for breakfast.

Do roosters really have no penis?

This is true. And the odd thing about it, of course, is that roosters are the byword for the male reproductive organ. Yet they don't have penises. Ducks and a lot of other birds do. But chickens are among those birds that don't need a penis. When two chickens get romantic, they have a cloacal "kiss," pressing their cloaca against one another. The reason the rooster has been for so long the symbol for sex as well as the male organ is because they're randy creatures. They will mate continuously, and with different partners. In the ancient world, that was considered a sign of vibrancy and fertility. So they became associated with human sex.

In Puritan America, we tried to stamp the word "cock" out of our English language. It used to be you would call a weathervane a weathercock or a water spigot, a water cock. But in the 17th and 18th centuries in New England, people decided that they shouldn't even use the word cock, because it was too suggestive. [Laughs] Luckily, it didn't catch on.

What about the dangers of chickens in the form of avian flu? Are we heading for a human pandemic?

One of the tradeoffs we've made is that animals we domesticate pass on their diseases to us. Pigs and cattle, as well as chickens, have given us things like the flu and the common cold and all kinds of other even more severe diseases.

When it comes to the chicken flu we read about in Asia, there's no question chickens can be a vector. Mostly, these viruses stay within chickens, so they're mainly a threat from one chicken to another. Can chickens give diseases to humans? The answer is yes. And in our modern world it's very easy for a virus that begins in a remote village in Thailand to come to our schools here in the United States. So, it's certainly something to worry about.

But I think we've made the calculation that while the chicken can be a vector for disease, we need the chicken. In a world that's increasingly urban, particularly in places like South America and China, we need the chicken to feed ourselves. If you took the chicken away tomorrow, there would be devastating economic consequences.

It's the festive season. What's the relationship between chickens and turkeys?

When Hernán Cortés, the Spanish conquistador, arrived in Mexico, he described this very large chicken people raised and ate. Scholars have puzzled over that. But it's pretty clear that Cortez was describing the turkey. There's some evidence chickens may have been brought across the Pacific by the Polynesians to South America. But it's disputed how old the chicken bones that are part of this debate are.

What's clear is that before Columbus arrived, there were almost no chickens in the Americas. So Native Americans had to make do with other birds, the turkey being the most prominent. It was widely domesticated in North America, both in Mexico and what is now the U.S., in the pre-Columbian era. But turkeys are quite different. They don't have the growth rate of chickens, and they've never really had the kind of ritual significance chickens had across the ancient world. They also didn't have the fighting gumption you find with chickens.

Do you keep chickens yourself?

I do not. I have friends who have chickens, but my lifestyle is such that, given my travel, I can't have a coop in my backyard, although people in my town are pretty pro-chicken. Nevertheless, I prefer to visit my chickens, rather than feed them every morning.

Seasonal Changes for your Flock

Seasonal Changes affect Poultry

As we move into the fall months, cool weather will soon arrive. There are special considerations for the poultry flock during these months of changing weather conditions.

We just went through a rainy summer with high humidity, but the cooler weather brings different conditions for our chickens.  Cold rain can bring more stress to your flock. Make sure your birds have a place to get away from the rain. Chicken don’t like the rain and will prefer to mostly remain under cover, especially with hard rains. Make sure that roosts are available for your birds, so they don’t have to sleep on the wet ground. Cold temperatures are usually not of concern for adult chickens in Florida but adding wet, cold and windy conditions can make their lives miserable. It takes temperatures well below freezing to impact their health.

In the fall, chickens will begin to change their eating habits. Because the weather is cooler, their feed consumption will increase. In order to stay warm, they need to burn more calories. Also, chickens that have been on the range or pasture during the spring and summer will find far less feed in that same pasture. The grass and weed seeds as well as the insects will be gone. As fall progresses, the pasture or range will green up as the temperature cools and rains irrigate them, but chickens receive nearly no nutrition from eating grass. It is the seeds and insects that they are after, and since they will be mostly gone, they will turn to the feeders for nourishment. In this time of dependence on prepared feeds, it is important to limit supplementation with scratch or table scraps to no more that about 15 to 20% of their total daily consumption.

When we have large amounts of rain from storms, chickens may encounter standing water. Drinking water from the ground can lead to the infection of pathogens and parasites. Intestinal round worms are a common problem in chickens drinking from standing water. Worm infected chickens will generally appear healthy but seem to always be hungry and eating but remain skinny for their breed. You may also observe worms in their droppings. Wormers are available that will generally take care of the problem. When using wormers, strictly follow the label directions for safe used of these compounds.

“Mud balls” on chicken feed can also become a problem when chickens are walking on wet flooring. Because of their scratching behavior, soil and manure can collect on the birds’ claws and the ends of their toes. If allowed to grow large, they inhibit walking and can result in broken toes. In severe cases, the ends of their toes will die and fall off. The mud balls can become nearly as hard as cement and difficult to remove. It is best to watch for the problem and remove the balls when they are small.

The primary impact of season change from summer into fall is a reduction in egg production. Chickens are stimulated to lay eggs by day length. Long days and increasing day lengths encourage egg production. As we move from summer into fall (in North Florida) , day length declines from about 14 hours per day in June, to a low of 10 hours per day in December. Declining and short day lengths will result in reduced egg production in most hens. Some hens may completely stop laying eggs. During this period, many will molt, usually starting in October, a process to lose their old worn out feathers and grow new ones. It’s time to put on some extra weight and reserve body fat and nutrients for the winter months. In this area chickens usually begin laying again in late January.

To reduce the effects of reduced day length on egg production, artificial lighting can “fool’ the chickens to remain in production. Lights in the chicken house that keep the day length at above about 14 hours per day will keep hens laying well through the fall in winter months. Only low wattage lights are needed, a single 25 to 40 watt bulb on a timer that turns the lights on before sunset and off at about 10 pm is sufficient.

Here is another article you may find of interest when planning for winter:

https://blog.mypetchicken.com/2012/11/16/cold-weather-chickens-8-things-not-to-do/

Are you thinking about Meat Chickens?







Most of us think of our chickens as egg producers and pets. But don't most of us eat chicken often? Do you ever think about how chickens have evolved? Most of the world has chicken several times a week in their meal plan. We don't normally sell meat chickens here at Woodville Ace but we have and can order them. A few years ago we raised some Cornish Rock on our farm. It was amazing to see how fast these chickens grew and how big they got. It was a messy process, they eat and poop, and eat and poop, and grow rapidly. We processed them at 12 weeks instead of the 8 weeks that is recommended, and they were so big we had to use 2 gallon ziplock bags to put them in the freezer. But 14 chickens kept us in chicken for months. I could use one chicken for several meals, they each weighed between 8 to 10 pounds. But if you are planning to try this next year on your farmstead be prepared for the work. I recommend a separate coop just for raising meat chickens. Keeping them clean and fed with a high protein feed is your top priority. When the day comes to slaughter your chickens, be well prepared for the process way ahead of time. We skinned ours instead of plucking the feathers, which made the process much faster. But in the end it was worth all the work. Just knowing you raised your own food and you knew what went into them, was a reward in it's self.

I found this article today about what has made our chickens so different through the years. And how we are feeding the world with the genetic breeding of our meat chickens.

http://firstwefeast.com/eat/2014/10/how-did-modern-chickens-get-so-damn-big

Chickens and The Solar Eclipe

I COULD NOT RESIST THIS!!!!


http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2017/08/the-effect-of-solar-eclipse-on-chickens.html

What is your Dream Coop?

We sell several ready made coops here at Woodville Ace that are easy to assemble and ready to go. But I am a DIY kinda person and have been thinking about my dream coop. I found this site that I want to share with our readers.

http://www.countryliving.com/diy-crafts/g2452/diy-chicken-coops