| | Chicken Keeping the Flyte so Fancy wayChicken keeping is as easy as you want to make it. They are outdoor birds, ancestorally jungle birds living in trees, and survive in all weathers very well, so we believe a simple common-sense approach is needed. We have kept many breeds over our 25 years of poultry keeping, including ex-battery, and they all have different traits but we have found that a realistic attitude is absolutely essential. Every experienced chicken keeper will have their own way of doing things and dispense their advice accordingly - just as we are doing here ....... We must stress this is really only a basic guide to keeping poultry and there are many, many books on the market with far more comprehensive guidance that we can give here. You will find 'Starting with Chickens' by Katie Thear an excellent book.
FSF Tip: Please check the deeds/covenants of your property to make sure you are allowed to keep poultry, in most cases you are. We also advise to just ask the neighbours if they mind as some do have strong objections to being next door to chickens.
Your hens have three basic needs:
1. Secure, clean housing
2. Space
3. Food and water
With that they will continue to produce eggs almost every day and provide hours of endless entertainment (and occasional frustration if you value your flower beds).
| HousingGood housing is absolutely essential to keeping your hens secure and healthy. The house you choose should be substantial enough to withstand all weathers and particularly protect them against predators. Preferably choose one that does not sit on the ground as this can not only lead to damp, cold conditions inside the house, which is not healthy for the hens, but is also a wonderful place for rats and mice to make their homes and live undisturbed.
The henhouse should be considered to be an investment that will protect your birds and make life easy for you to look after them. Convention says you should allow 1 sq ft of floor area per bird in a house, we usually allow more in our houses. It should have a large access door for you to be able to clean it. The Nest Boxes should be low down and in the darkest place of the house so that the hens can lay in privacy and undisturbed. Perches should be higher than the nestboxes, removable for cleaning, approx. 2 inches square and allowing at least 7 - 8in of perch space per bird. Good ventilation is also important to prevent respiratory diseases. Take a look at our Maggie's Henhouses for examples.
To keep the hens secure from foxes, badgers, mink or any other predator, a secure run area should be a consideration. This can be either a wired run attached to the house, a dedicated fenced run area with the house inside or an electric poultry net which will keep them secure and give them plenty of space. We can certainly recommend Electric Poultry Netting (large selection on this site under Poultry Anti-Fox Electric Kits) as a solution to security as we have used it successfully for many years. A large non-electrified fence needs to be dug in at the base and at least 6ft tall, Electric Poultry Netting is about 3ft 6in tall and is brilliant - we swear by it - no digging it in (a fox cannot dig under it without getting a shock) and it doesn't look like a prison camp, it can be moved when necessary and made into any shape you want.
You should consider, when choosing a site for the house, how to offer some natural protection for the hens from the sun, wind and rain. A good idea is to plant small trees in the pen to provide some shade (not bushes as they may be encouraged to lay under them), or place the house so they can shelter in the lee. For the very worst of winter weather it may be an idea to keep the hens inside with food and water.
Keeping the house clean need not be a chore with the right house. We recommend using newspaper or old feed sacks on the base of the house and then a light layer of wood shavings or straw (not hay as it will encourage mould spores and lead to disease). This will then be easy to scoop out and replace regularly. Weekly cleaning is preferable depending on the number of hens and the weather, and once a month a clean with disinfectant and a good scrape.
Nice thick layers of wood shavings (dust-extracted) are good for the nest boxes and should be kept clean for clean eggs. We always sprinkle Louse Powder into the nest box bedding to make sure there birds get a regular covering which helps to prevent lice.
We would always recommend timber housing and there are very good reasons for this. Timber will move and breathe with the seasons and therefore provide a healthy atmosphere for the birds with the correct ventilation. It will not be damp with condensation every time the temperature changes and will not suffocate them in summer or freeze them in winter.
With good hygiene practise there is no reason why timber houses should be more susceptible to mites and disease than any other type. There are plenty of purpose made products on the market for cleaning to make sure your house won't breed diseases e.g. Poultry Shield Red Mite Eradicator. Make sure you wash hands thoroughly or wear gloves when cleaning the house and handling the birds.
| Breeds to chooseThis is very much a personal choice and there are several considerations. Firstly do talk to a local breeder or two, they are the experts on the breeds and their temperaments, and can advise on suitability for you. Find local ones by word of mouth or Breeders Directories in magazines like 'Country Smallholding', 'Smallholder' or 'Practical Poultry'.
We would advise against buying hens from auctions, through newspaper ads or 'rescue' hens, you really don't know what you are getting or whether thay are vaccinated and could quite easily be introducing disease and lots of trouble to the henhouse. Purchasing from a breeder should mean they are vaccinated against coccidyosis (a type of intestinal worm), Newcastle Disease and Mareks Disease at least.
You need to decide whether your birds are going to be functional and just for eggs, or kept for the table, or whether they are going to be more like pets for yourself or the children. There is a huge selection of breeds to choose from and we have, over the years, kept many different types - some we would recommend and some we would not!
Good starter birds are often hybrids like Black Rocks and Bluebelles; or Pure Breeds like Light Sussex. Orpingtons are superb with children, Wyandottes are beautiful, Marans lay really dark brown eggs, Welsummers have a lovely temperament, and so on...... Hybrids will lay more eggs and cost less, Pure breeds are often harder to come by and are kept more for love and beauty than egg laying.
We once had a Yokohama Cockerel, a magnificent bird. Our daughter hatched him in the incubator and was very proud. However, as he became mature, he became more and more aggressive and when he started attacking the customers as they arrived I'm afraid he had to go, a sympathetic friend took him in. So breed selection takes a lot of consideration. A cockerel is not necessary with a flock unless you are going to breed from them. They are beautiful birds but they are noisy (and not just first thing in the morning).
Having decided on your birds, please make sure everything is in place before you collect them. We often get desperate calls because the birds have arrived, the house is still a week away and there is no food to give them. Although we can move mountains for you, magic is a little more difficult. Check on delivery times of the house before ordering the birds so that you don't end up with keeping the hens in the bathroom (as one customer did), or better still make sure the house and equipment is installed before ordering the hens. We can usually get our in-stock houses to most parts of the country within a few days and if not in stock then within two weeks.
New chickens should be placed inside the house and kept in until the next morning then released into a run so that they will be 'homed' to the house and therefore go back to perch at night. You may have to 'shoo' them out of the house at first but they will soon get the hang of it. Once 'homed' you can let them free-range and they will always come home at dusk. Young birds and rescue chickens may take some time to get used to perching and you can help them with this. Once they are inside the house at night, carefully lift the bird (one hand each side to hold their wings down) and place them gently on the perch. As they keep waking up on the perch in the morning they ought to get the hang of it eventually.
Note: You are only required to register your hens with DEFRA if you have 50+ birds (of any kind). For more details follow this link to the DEFRA website.
A word about ex-battery hens... if choosing to give these a good home after their ordeal then you need to be aware of the mental and other health problems they can arrive with. Please contact the Battery Hen Welfare Trust to make sure this is the right choice for you especially if starting with chickens. There is a link to their website from our Business Links Page. | Food and WaterChickens need to have access to a purpose-made feed like layers pellets all the time in a feeder (layers mash is another option but can be messy and dusty). Feeders and Drinkers do not need to be placed in the house unless the birds have to be confined for some reason. The birds will contaminate them and/or probably knock them over. They do not feed or drink once they have gone to bed.
Feeders come in many sizes and are usually either plastic or galvanised steel. Plastic feeders are much cheaper and quite easy to clean but will need protection from the rain so they need to be sited with some protection. Galvanised feeders usually have a rain cover, will last a lifetime, are much more sturdy and less likely to be knocked over. With either, they should be slightly raised off the ground to keep the food clean.
Select one suitable for the number of birds you have or may eventually have. One hen will eat 150g-180g of layers pellets per day (as a rough guide 3kg of pellets would last 5 hens for 3 days) and they don't tend to over eat. Don't be tempted to get a large feeder to last longer as the food will go stale and mouldy after a few days.
Point-of-lay birds (18-20 weeks old) should have been started on a mix of growers pellets and layers pellets before you get them, so you can continue with just layers pellets and they will be fine. Poultry pellets will contain all the proteins and vitamins that they need to produce nice yellow-yolked eggs and to keep them healthy.
As a treat give them some mixed corn, a small handful scattered in the afternoon and they will enjoy that enormously. We use a Smallholder Super Mixed Corn that contains corn, split peas plus oyster shell and grit, and find they love it. Free-Range birds should be able to get all the grit and calcium they need naturally but access to shell is always a good idea to build strong eggshells. They need grit to help break the feed up in their crops, it acts as their teeth.
If the hens are confined to a run then you should give them grit and oyster shell as well if not already in their feeds. It is also nice to give them some greens when confined such as cabbage or cauliflower leaves. There are also many supplements available to give them a boost when needed e.g. during the moult or in winter perhaps. Suggestions are Poultry Spice or Life Guard Tonic.
Fresh, clean water should always be accessible so select a drinker large enough to cope with a couple of days but do not leave it a week or so as the water will get contaminated or a have a build up of algae. Plastic Fountain drinkers are most popular and often have built in legs but can be a bit fiddley to fill and liable to algae build up. Galvanised drinkers will last forever, are heavier, are much easier to fill and will keep the water fresher.
Drinkers are best raised off the ground to keep the water clean. As a rough guide one hen will consume 250ml of water per day, perhaps more in hot weather. So a 4-litre drinker would last 6 hens about 2 days.
| Daily and Monthly RoutinesFirstly, open the pop-hole to let the chickens out as soon after dawn as you can (even if it means doing it in your dressing gown!), as they will be ready for a drink and some breakfast. If any of them are not full of life and leaping out of the house then check for ill health at the earliest opportunity. Check they have food and water, collect any eggs. If the nest nest boxes are dirty do a quick clean and refresh bedding.
In the afternoon scatter some corn and keep an eye on them to check for anything unusual such as bullying, feather pecking, itching or signs of ill health. Collect any eggs. At dusk go and close the pop-hole making sure they are all inside and safe.
Weekly and monthly cleaning
Clean out the bedding from under the perches where the droppings accumulate and put on the compost (don't let the birds have access to the compost though). Put fresh layer of wood shavings inside and completely refresh shaving in the nest boxes. Every month give the house a really good clean out, take out the perches and scrape clean, sweep out and scrape the inside of the house. Clean all parts with a disinfectant cleaner leave to dry and then replace. Dust the nest box bedding with Louse Powder and, if you want, scatter the inside of the house with either Diatom Parasite Control Powder or Stalosan Disinfectant Powder. All available in our Health & Hygiene Section section.
| Moulting and the SeasonsMid to late summer is the moulting season. This is a natural loss of feathers and new ones will replace them. Different breeds will vary as to how noticeable it is but there will be a reduction in egg laying during this time. During winter they will almost stop laying altogether and this should be looked upon as a rest period. However, if you need the eggs and are perhaps selling them, putting a light in the henhouse to simulate longer days can prolong the laying period.
As winter approaches check the house for movements in the timber that may lead to leaks. Fill any holes/splits with silicone and it may be advisable to give a timber roof a good coat of decking seal to help keep it watertight. During winter, especially if it is really cold, make sure you think about the number of hens in the house and how they can keep warm at night, they need each others body heat to keep warm whilst they are on the perches. Too few hens in a large house can freeze to death as, equally, too many hens in a small house can suffocate in summer. Make sure ventilation is open and clear in summer and adjusted accordingly in winter with plenty of bedding in the house.
Always check their water frequently in freezing temperatures and this may be a case for putting water and food inside the house during the day. Birds can suffer from frostbite so they must be encouraged to keep out of the coldest winds. Outside shelter would be a good idea as they tend not to think of going into the house to keep warm. Birds with large combs and wattles are particularly susceptible to frost bite so rub a little Vaseline on to protect them.
| Pests and ProblemsJust to mention a few common problems here, but you can have a lifetime of hen keeping and never come across most of them. Our suggestions and advice are only from experience and should not replace the advice of a vet who is qualified to deal with and treat poultry problems.
A few inexpensive products can be kept on hand as a Chicken First Aid kit. We suggest a veterinary wound powder and/or Iodine Spray, louse powder, petroleum jelly (Vaseline), Diatom Parasite Powder and Verm-X Poultry wormer. Take a look in our Health & Hygiene Products section for these items. Another consideration is the possibility that your chickens will attract vermin because of the food readily available in the chicken run so keep a watch for tell-tale signs and deal with them speedily, again many products are available to deal with this, see our Vermin & Pest Control pages.
A poorly looking hen should be separated from the flock immediately in case of infection but kept within sight of the main flock so that she can be returned and not attacked as a newcomer. If she does not make any improvement within 48 hours or if you suspect infection veterinary advice should be sought.
Any wounds should be cleaned and treated with veterinary wound powder or antiseptic spray; Gentian Violet or Iodine Spray are good old-fashioned products. Wounds should be treated immediately and you should watch to make sure the other hens do not attack a wounded bird; if they do she should be separated until recovered. Feather pecking by aggressive birds can occur in any flock and the victim should be treated with antiseptic and removed for a while. If removal is not an option then spray with iodine or gentian violet to deter the aggressor and treat the wounds. This should break the habit and allow recovery. Boredom is most often the cause of feather pecking so hang up some greens or a for them or a 'Pecka-Block' (available in our Feeds & Grit section). They may be pecking each other due to lack of proteins in their diet too (feathers are pure protein).
Lice are the most common problem you may come across. They are greyish and found in clusters at the base of the feathers or crawling on the hen. Most hens get these at some point in their lives and a simple dusting of louse powder or Diatom powder will help, and then repeat in seven days. A regular dusting, whether you think they have lice or not, will not hurt. Northern Fowl mite is brown to red and is a little more serious for the birds and will kill them if not treated immediately. It lives on the birds and should be treated with an anti-mite product such as Johnson's Anti-Mite Spray or a pyrethrum based powder.
Red Mite, however, can kill the birds if not treated and as our summers become hotter this is becoming more common. We experienced this once in our early years and lost several chickens before we realised what it was. These little devils live in the crevices of the house, not on the bird, and then come out to feed on then hens whilst they perch at night. Always keep an eye out for them. If the hens are suddenly very reluctant to go to bed at night and are stood outside the house in the dark, this may be a sign. If you find the house is infested treat it immediately with a product like Poultry Shield Red Mite Eradicator, this will kill the mite and their eggs. Clean the house out thoroughly; really drench the house with Poultry Shield especially in the perch sockets (their favourite place), in all the crevices and cracks between the timbers. Put fresh bedding in, sprinkle generously with Diatom powder or a louse powder, the hens can go back immediately but treat again in seven days. There are much stronger chemical solutions available e.g. Duramitex, but these must be used with great care and in desperation.
Scaly-leg is perhaps less common but is very irritating to the birds. Microscopic mites burrow under the scales of the legs and create white crust and raise the scales. Keeping them on fouled ground can sometimes cause this, they should be moved to fresh ground and clean the house thoroughly. If there are crusts on their legs, soak them in warm soapy water to dislodge them (don't pull them off), dry and coat with petroleum jelly (Vaseline), which should suffocate the mite and ease the itching. If this does not ease the problem within a few days a proprietary product should be sought from a vet or chemist.
Internal worms can often be a problem for Poultry especially if they don't have fresh ground regularly as the ground can become infected. Free ranging is better for the hens from this point of view but then they may pick up snails that can also host parasites. Worms can kill a bird if left untreated, especially Gapeworm. Tell-tale signs of internal parasites are very messy bottoms and pale combs and wattles, and with Gapeworm they will be continually stretching their necks and gasping (as if trying to take breath). There are a number of worming products on the market (and available in our Health & Hygiene Section), Verm-X and Diatom are two natural products which we would recommend regular doses of whether you think they have worms or not. If you suspect a bad infestation of worms though ask your vet for Flubenvet which is quick and very effective, with this there is withdrawal period for both table birds and for eggs.
Bacterial or viral infections are for the diagnosis of a vet and can be treated with antibiotics. If this is suspected then isolate the bird immediately and contact a vet with experience of poultry - not all town-based vets have experience in this field - contact the British Veterinary Poultry Association at www.bvpa.org.uk for your nearest specialist vet.
My goodness this is a long page! I could ramble on further, but there are lots of good poultry books to read. We recommend Starting with Chickens by Katie Thear, and we include this book in all our starter kits. Poultry keeping comes down to: give them a nice house, space, keep everything clean including the ground they are on, and give them good food and clean water you will then have happy hens.
Wishing you Happy Keeping
Anne |
  | |
|
