Table of contents for January/February 2018 in Chickens

Q. I would like to add some more chickens to my flock in the spring, but I’m not sure I have enough room for more with my current setup. How much space do I need? A. It’s great that you’re considering your current situation before you add to your flock. Overcrowding can lead to pecking or aggression issues, not to mention create an unhealthy environment for your chickens. A general guideline is that you need 3 to 5 square feet of coop floor space for each chicken, but even more important is that you allow for at least 8 inches of roosting bar per bird for sleeping at night. You should also have one nesting box for every three to four hens. As for pen or run space, if you…

Chicken breeders usually fall into one of two categories: the serious/dedicated breeder, often with the goal of preserving rare breeds, or the backyard hobbyist, interested in the fun and experience of hatching chicks. Each approach has vastly different goals, so the means to each end have few similarities. The former requires diligent work, patience and good record keeping. The latter is often a hands-on learning experience, with a lot of fun and experimentation along the way. Each has merits, and the breeds we know and love today wouldn’t be what they are without a bit of both. Linebreeding The most common method of breeding chickens is called linebreeding. Linebreeders aim to improve stock and carefully maintain rare breeds. Linebreeding is, to put it directly, scientific inbreeding. Starting with a related…

Cracklings are a Southern appetizer that traditionally consists of pork skin that’s deep-fried until crispy and puffed. These cracklings are baked rather than fried, which reduces the greasiness that fried cracklings tend to have. It also ensures a nice and crispy crackling — as does scraping off as much of the excess fat from the underside of the skin as possible. This helps dry out the skin while it’s baking and makes a nice crunchy chip rather than a chewy one. The baked cracklings are tossed in a garlic and rosemary curry seasoning mixture that makes them even more savory and that much more of an addictive appetizer. But their enjoyment isn’t limited to snacking, they also make a great crunchy topping for sandwiches and wraps, and make for a…

I first met Hedy while visiting my mother in Colorado: The little spring chick huddled with other chicks in a cardboard box at the post office at 6 a.m. With a few other fluffy yellow birds bravely “cheep-cheep-cheeping” their way into that first week of their lives, the postmaster gave my mom the straight run of fancies she had purchased from a hatchery in Ohio. I couldn’t tell you which one was Hedy then, honestly. She probably had a tiny tuft of feathers atop her little head, like a good Polish should. All the chicks were soft, warm and, literally, stinking adorable, surviving the long trip from the Midwest to the Rocky Mountain State. Back at my mom’s home, we carefully placed the chicks in a large metal washtub filled…

Chickens are quirky social creatures, and compared with other farm animals, they are relatively easy to raise and don’t require large amounts of space. In addition, chickens provide fresh eggs, and their meat serves as an inexpensive source of high-quality protein. For all these reasons, it’s no wonder why backyard chickens are becoming increasingly popular again in the U.S. Whether you want to show chickens or raise them for eggs, meat or both (so-called “dual-purpose” chickens), there is a breed right for you. This column provides a brief overview of some common backyard poultry breeds and helps you identify what characteristics to consider when choosing your next backyard birds. Keep in mind that we generalize each breed here. There are, of course, outliers. For example, while you might have…

Sponsor/Entry Period: Enter between 12:00:01 a.m. Pacific Time (“PT”) on 1/1/2018 and 11:59:59 p.m. PT on 4/9/2018 (“Entry Period”). Sponsor: Lumina Media LLC, 5151 California Ave., Suite 100, Irvine, CA 92617. Eligibility: Open to legal residents of the 50 United States and D.C., 21 years or older. Employees of Sponsor are not eligible to enter. How to Enter: Email your photo(s) (“Theme”) to chickens@luminamedia.com, with the subject line “Best of Cluck” and include the category you are entering, your name, your mailing address, your phone number and any other information you’d like to share about the photo. You may enter all five categories, but you may enter only two digital photographs per category. If you are entering multiple categories, you must send each digital photograph separately, and each email must…

Messy roommates can be such a pain — especially when they leave wet droppings around to track onto your beautiful eggs. Let me explain: You see, my chickens and ducks had long cohabitated in a revamped dog run, not the best of living arrangements. For years, I dreamed of my handy husband and I building the chicken contingent its own dream coop, but every year, other do-it-yourself projects prevailed. It never happened. So last spring, with six new Barred Rock pullets growing at light speed in our mudroom, I scrapped our DIY plans and searched online. I soon found a selection of handsome, sturdy-looking coops built by a local craftsman in Orting, Wash. That afternoon, we went coop shopping; the next day, a large cedar coop arrived via pickup truck,…

Are you ready to expand your flock and considering hatching your own birds? Do you have a single-breed flock with a rooster, or are you curious to see what your crossbred chicks will look like? As long as you’re prepared to care for the resulting chicks, it can be an enjoyable experience. Also, realize that chickens hatch at a roughly 50/50 female-to-male rate, so have a plan for those unwanted cockerels, which will start crowing in four or five months. Here are some other tips to help you get started in one of two ways. Hatching in an Incubator • When hatching chicks in an incubator, you can determine the timetable and choose the time of year. Rather than relying on a broody hen, collect the fertilized eggs you wish…

Email the story of you and your chickens in 750 to 1,000 words to chickens@luminamedia.com (subject line: Chicken Chat). Be sure to include high-resolution images or photos of yourself, your chickens and/or your coop. The author of each issue’s published essay will receive a special farm sign and T-shirt from Stromberg’s Chickens and Game Birds Unlimited (800-720-1134; www.strombergschickens.com) , which offers a selection of birds, books, supplies and equipment for the breeding, rearing and management of poultry, ducks, guineas, waterfowl, game birds, peafowl, pheasants, quail and doves! NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER. Contest is open to legal residents of the 50 United States or District of Columbia, age 21 or older. Entries must be received between 12:00:01 a.m. PT on 11/28/2017 and 11:59:59 p.m. PT on 1/30/2018. See Official Rules…

Standing at the “snack bar” in a local urban feed store looking at an assortment of specialty grains might leave you scratching your head. Which are best for your hens? How much should you offer to your flock on any given day? And what mixture is nutritionally sound? Chickens scratch the ground every day searching for seeds, insects and other tasty treats. Offering them scratch grains, such as cracked, rolled or whole grains (corn, barley, oats or wheat), stimulates that behavior while providing them with added food resources. Scratches are a source of mental and physical stimulation — particularly during the winter months when weather conditions reduce the presence of natural treats such as insects, grass and seeds. Understanding the content of scratch mixes can help you determine what to…

1. Keep makeup handy in stain-resistant, chicken-print Large Cosmetic Bags, or bring charm to the kitchen with a Rooster and Hens Pot Holder Set. $16, per cosmetic bag, three print choices; $13, one pair of potholders. Fluffy Layers, www.fluffylayers.com 2. Squeeze the handle of this Pecking Roosters Classic Tin Toy and two roosters take turns pecking into the white bowl. $3.98. Tin Toy Arcade, www.tintoyarcade.com 3. This handmade, wearable Henny Penny and Tale of Chicken Little Story Book Pendant will remind you that the sky is not falling. $9.50 (without chain). The Pendant Emporium, www.etsy.com/shop/thependant emporium 4. Purina Layena Plus Omega-3 helps hens produce eggs with up to five times as much omega-3 as store-bought eggs. Prices vary. Purina Mills, www.purinamills.com 5. Update any room in your home with Lisle Grey Roosters and…