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Silkie Chickens: the Bird Kingdom’s Gentle Giants
Silkie chickens are by far the most unusual looking birds on this planet! Sometimes called the wooly hen, the silk fowl, the Silkie Bantam, and even the rabbit chicken, this breed possesses an appearance and unexpected friendliness which can bring a smile to even the sourest of faces. Are you ready to learn why? I […]
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What Are Straight Run Chickens?
When you are planning to start your flock of chickens, there are a couple of ways that you can go about it. Some folks will buy a batch of fertilized eggs and then hatch their chicks in an incubator. Others will buy already hatched chickens that are around 3 months old. The second option ensures […]
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Marek’s Disease: Prevent Suffering & Save Your Flock
Marek’s disease is a highly contagious poultry disease that affects chickens worldwide. Quickly identifying and isolating infected chickens is paramount as the disease spreads rapidly and can devastate your entire flock. To make matters worse, there’s a lot of misinformation available. Even though it’s a widespread disease, fortunately, most chicken owners will go their entire […]
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What Animal Bites the Heads off Chickens?
It’s unnervingly common to find headless chickens in the pen. Common culprits for this include raccoons, weasels and owls. Some of the other predators to watch out for when raising chickens include foxes, coyotes, bobcats, feral cats, hawks and dogs. Chickens, as large-bodied and slow-moving birds, are a natural prey animal for many predators. The […]
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Where Do Chickens Originate?
The first chickens were domesticated nearly in Southeast Asia around 7000 BCE. Chickens were likely tamed in both China and India before either region had much contact. We know for sure that chickens were kept in China by 5000 BCE. To put this figure into perspective, it’s estimated that the first dogs were domesticated 15,000 […]
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Where to Buy Chickens?
For most people, the easiest way to buy chickens is to visit the local feed store. Feed stores usually start carrying baby chicks in the early spring. They’re especially easy to come by around Easter. You may also be able to buy chicks throughout the summer at some feed stores. If you don’t have a […]
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7 Easy Tips for How to Care for Chickens
Raising chickens is pretty simple, but caring for them to ensure they stay happy and healthy is a bit more complicated. Fortunately, chickens are fairly low-maintenance pets that will pay for their upkeep in egg production if you raise them correctly. Like all living things, chickens need food, water, shelter and enrichment. Here are a […]
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How Many Chickens Are in the World?
It’s estimated that there are more than 50 billion chickens in the world. To put this into perspective, that’s nearly seven chickens for every one person on the planet. Chickens are extremely plentiful because they are small, easy to raise, and a highly popular food source both in terms of meat and egg production. The […]
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Incubation Calculation: How Long Do Chickens Sit on Eggs?
It takes 21 days for chicken eggs to hatch, and a brooding hen will sit on the eggs for that entire period. During that time the hen will not lay any more eggs and may become aggressive or defensive of her eggs. When a hen becomes broody, she doesn’t want to do anything but sit […]