Month: June 2016

Recently, our family had taken a week off and traveled up to the mountains for a brief vacation.  The family departed on Sunday afternoon, and I joined them on Thursday evening later that week.  Besides work obligations for my “real job”, someone had to tend to the Sterling Flock!  However, when I departed on Thursday, we had made arrangements for our next-door neighbors to handle the daily morning and evening chicken chores, which they were all too happy to do!  In fact, their excitement was “over the top”!

When we arrived back on Sunday afternoon from the mountains, our chicken-sitting neighbors had some great stories but they were somewhat disappointed that the hens did not produce as many eggs while we were gone as they did when we’re home.  It had been extremely hot in Charlotte for the week, so that may have accounted for some drop in productivity.   Or it also could have been some stress in having temporary care-takers.  Who knows really??

I was walking around the yard later that same afternoon and came upon an area where one of our bantams had been laying in the pine straw beneath a large bush.  I was very surprised to see there were a dozen of the smaller eggs in a nice nesting area that the bantams had made.  Incredible!  But I was thinking …. “Are these 12 eggs all from one hen….or are they from both bantams?”  If they were from one, then that meant the eggs could have been there for 12 days….considering that the hens lay one egg a day.  Or if they were from both, then perhaps they had been there for 6 days. Continue reading “Should You Refrigerate Your Fresh Eggs??” →

Last Sunday, we nearly hit 100 degrees F here in Charlotte, NC!  And the humidity made it all the more unbearable!  Admittedly, with everything going on at our home on the weekends, i wasn’t paying too much attention to our flock which was still roaming around “free range” in the back yard.  I few times, however, I noticed that all five hens were laying down in the shade, so I figured they were keeping cool.  While this was partially true, the hens were in much worse shape than I realized, especially the two little Bantams! Luckily, I was able to make the hens more comfortable while it was still in the mid-90 degrees outside.  Do you know the signs that your flock might be overheating?
Continue reading “Summer Heat: Keeping Your Chickens from Getting Fried!” →

What would we do without the Internet?  I did a little reseach the last couple of days and found some interesting “myths versus facts” discussion as they relate to backyard chickens!  Enjoy this as you wrap up another busy week!
Continue reading “Fun Facts For a Friday!” →

As the old saying goes….”You can never be too safe”…..!  That’s certainly the motto I had in mind as I planned the safety of my chickens.  In fact, every person I met or read about who had raised chickens also shared stories of losing part of their flock to some sort of predators.  The most common were foxes, hawks, owls, and even the family dog!  So…if you don’t feel comfortable with the high probability that this could eventually happen to your flock, then you might consider another path.  However, if you plan accordingly, you can take several steps to possibly avoid the risks to your flock.

There are two primary times when your flock might be in danger of predators.  First, and most commonly, during the evening hours; after the sun goes down at night and before the sun comes back up the next morning.  And the second time is during the daylight hours.  For my flock, I continually monitor the presence of evening predators such as neighborhood foxes, coyotes, stray cats, raccoons, rodents, and snakes.  Daylight predators might include hawks, owls, family pets, humans (mostly kids playing in the backyard), and other hens within the same flock.

To protect my flock, I considered what I call the three protection zones. Continue reading “Protecting Your Flock” →

For about a year, I toyed with the idea of adding egg-laying hens to our backyard.  But I knew there would be lots of work to do ahead of time before I even picked out any feathered birds!  Here are a few steps I went through as I began planning on this poultry project!

1. Does your state, city, or local municipality allow backyard flocks?  Urban chicken farming has become a popular hobby over the past several years.  But not every municipality allows it.  And even if your local laws allow for it, your homeowners association might not have rules in the covenants guidelines for such things.  Do your research ahead of time before taking any steps that could be very expensive if you wind up having to scrap the effort.  In my case, the City of Charlotte /  Mecklenburg Country has guidelines posted under the department of animal care & control.  There’s an annual fee of $40 in Charlotte and rules for setting up your chickens’ coop, how close to any adjacent neighbors’ property lines, and even how many birds you can have per acre of land.  Beyond all the “official” stuff, I’d also recommend spending time with your neighbors, telling them about your plans, see what questions they have, and get them “on-board” if you want to make this project a success.  And who knows, if you haven’t met your neighbors, this might be a great way to break the ice!  Or…maybe not!

Continue reading “How I Got Started Raising Backyard Chickens” →