Baby Chicks, Valentines Day, Chicken Breeds, and Taming Your Flock

A Carrie Wood Graphic, blended with love and with gratitude to the artists/photographers at Pixabay.com

It's that month of tantalizing chocolates, wine and long-stemmed red roses, sparkling baubles, and a certain question being 'popped' (sometimes wished for - sometimes not).

But for some of us, (also known as the chicken 'afflicted'-or 'addicted'), it's also time to think about brooders, fluffy baby chicks like the one above and . . . a future filled with your very own 'farm fresh home-grown eggs' for breakfast! "YES"!

To ensure harmony in the home, we should never forget those highly anticipated symbols of romance. (That $25 or above purchase could save a bundle) 😉.

However, February is  also a great month to  take some time studying chicken breeds, and think about our purpose in getting baby chicks (eggs, meat, dual purpose, exhibition?).

There is a lot to learn in recognizing breeds and varieties of chickens . . . commit it to memory, though and it won't leave you. Once a breed is accepted by the American Poultry Association (or another country's equivalent) and published in the American Standard of Perfection   you can consider it to be rather permanent.

It's a rewarding mental exercise; at least that's the opinion of this book-worm.

Every breed is required to have:

• A specific type of comb (and wattles). Single, Rose, Strawberry, Pea, Cushion, V-comb, Buttercup, Silkie (Walnut)
• Skin color
• Earlobe color
• Number of toes (4 or 5)
• Leg color
• Body shape - "Shape makes the breed; color the variety" 
• Color/plumage pattern
• Beak color
• Eye color
• Angle of tail
• and, yes, even more . . .

Congratulations if you've already learned about the breeds and other chicken facts - you're well prepared to answer questions coming from new chicken hobbyists who naturally approach someone like you who is already a chicken keeper.

If the number of stores selling chickens, the growing number of new hatcheries, and the chicken coops we see popping up all over the place are any indication - there are no doubt many people who will soon look to you as a possible helpful resource on raising chickens.

It's a great feeling to be ready with accurate answers!

If you aren't feeling up-to-speed yet, why not study just one 'Class' of chickens at a time. Then, varieties of that class.

It is a lot to learn, but time goes fast when you're studying something you love! 

Where to start? Depending on where you live - the British standard, Australian, American Standard of Perfection. 

If you'd like to learn more about how to tame chickens, basics of exhibition, how to do a health check on your chickens, handling, etc. and get more enjoyment from the next chicken show you attend -  you might like this  newly updated book:

If you bought this e-book after it was published in 2012, you should be getting an email from Amazon letting you know that you can now download this update, at no charge.

This was the first book I'd ever written and in retrospect I realized it needed to be improved! Big time! Now, according to Amazon, this update is considered a "MAJOR quality improvement" . . . doesn't say much for the original, but I do hope you'll take the time to download this update.

Would love to hear your thoughts about it; just email scott@fortheloveofchickens.com. Or, leave a review, it will be much appreciated!

The paperback version, which should be published soon is 78 pages - and the original e-book was only 30-something. I believe you'll enjoy the content of this update - and you deserve it!

Because I don't appreciate chicken images in gray-scale, I chose white paper and full color for the paperback version - a bit more expensive to produce.

If you love chickens as much as I do, though, you'll probably appreciate the added quality.

If you didn't purchase the e-book, here's a link where you can check it out if you'd like:

amazon.com/Art-Taming-Chickens-Backyard-Flock-ebook/dp/B008OR9EEY/

The Ameraucana and the Araucana Breeds of Chickens

The other day, my neighbor's friend came by, and of course we began to talk about chickens. This lady is a retired English teacher . . . she pays close attention to words and how they're spelled. Right away, she was curious  about the Araucana and Ameraucana breeds, as they're spelled similarly.

There is a connection between these two chicken breeds, kind of an interesting history. The Araucana breed was raised by the Inca Indians years ago in chile and Peru. They don't have tails, but have ear tufts on the side of their faces. They were introduced in America in the 1920's.

The Ameraucana is an Americanized Araucana, the result of cross breeding (most likely with the Old English) They don't have ear tufts, but have beards under their chins. They also have tails.

The Araucanas are fairly rare, but there are breed specific clubs for them. Since the '70's, hatcheries have been offering Ameraucanas.

So, there you have it, just in case you, too, were curious about these two beautiful breeds.

Chickens Surviving the Winter Chill

Chickens are pretty well insulated, especially after growing their winter coat following their molt. They seem to love the frozen weather when I let them out for exercise during the day. It's been down to about 20 F so far, but no frozen combs to report. At night they snuggle together on the roost to stay cozy. I've been feeding them a little extra grain in the late afternoon . . . it keeps their little furnaces purring right along.

The layers have been providing an average of a dozen eggs a day, not as many as earlier in the year, but still plenty for my use and enough extra's to share.

In another month or so, the hatcheries will begin shipping baby chicks out to excited people everywhere. Making the decision about what to order is by far the biggest dilemma . . . after years of ordering I still change my mind a half dozen times. If you're planning to order baby chicks this Spring, try to let the usefullness of the breed dictate what you order. All the hatchery websites and catalogs give out a lot of facts about the breeds and it all boils down to whether you're raising chickens purely for eggs, for meat only, or as an exotic pet.

I guess the best solution is to look at the adult birds of each breed and pick the ones you like the most. After 20 years or so you'll have had an opportunity to experience raising many of the available breeds. I'm glad I'm not the only one who still looks at a hatchery catalog with the mind-set of a kid in a candy store. There's always next year for the breed you decided to pass on this time.

Have you figured out your choices for this Spring yet? If you've been bitten by this crazy addiction, bet you're at least thinking about it, if not, then you'll likely go through this entire year without experiencing "the best day ever, bar none".