Raising Chickens - One Step Towards Green Living

If you want to get back to a more sustainable way of living, then one step you can take towards this, is to raise a few chickens in your backyard. Chickens are easy to keep, and will provide you with so many benefits, to achieving the green life. The first, and most important benefit, is the great tasting eggs that you will get. They will eat bugs and insects, and clear any weeds you might have. The chicken poop can also be composted, to use on your garden.

What Breed to Choose.

The first step is to decide what breed of chickens you'd like. There are many different breeds to choose from. The best way to start is by visiting poultry shows, where you'll get a chance to have a good look at the different breeds. Buy poultry magazines and local newspapers, to get an idea of what's available in your area. My personal favourites are Rhode Island Red, Silkies, Sussex and Black Rock. These breeds are all excellent choices for the beginner keeper.

Housing.

The next step is to think about housing the birds. You will need to consider how much space you have available in your garden. It's a good idea to buy a chicken coop with a run. This will give your birds some security from predators, such as foxes and rats. You can still allow your birds to free range during the day, if your garden is secure. You'll need to allow about 2sq ft per bird, or more if you have room. There are many websites where you can buy chicken coops, or if you like DIY, you could try making one. When you buy a coop always make sure it has plenty of ventilation, as chickens can suffer from respiratory diseases.

Basic Poultry Items You'll Need.

The basic items you will need to get you started are:

* Water and feeding containers.

* Bedding - straw and hay.

* Poultry food.

These are all the items you will need to get started. Poultry feed is easily available from a good animal or horse feed supplier. You should be able to buy the other items too, or they can be bought online.

Making Your New Chickens Comfortable.

When your new chickens first arrive, it's a good idea to keep them in the coop to begin with. They need to adjust to their surroundings and settle in. After a few days, you can let them into the run. Keep an eye on them to make sure they're all feeding properly, and provide plenty of fresh water.

Put hay in the nest boxes for them to lay their eggs, and straw on the floor of the coop, to help absorb the bird droppings. It won't be long before they're enjoying their new home.

Feeding.

Layers pellets or mash is a popular choice of feed for chickens. If possible buy a good quality feed with around 17% protein, this will provide your chickens with a balanced diet. Each bird will need about 120g ration per day. Feed them twice a day, giving the pellet ration in the morning, and an afternoon or evening feed of cereals. Corn is useful as an evening feed in the winter, because it takes longer to digest, so helping to maintain body heat.

Chickens can also be fed most kitchen scraps, which will help to cut down on food waste. They will eat greens and vegetable peelings, but cook potato peelings first. Pasta, stale bread or cooked rice are all fine. Avoid feeding onions or moldy food.

Deep Litter Method.

A good way of making use of the chicken poop, is to compost it, using the deep litter method.

* You can start this method at any time. Give your chicken coop a good clean out, then put a layer of pine shavings on the floor.

* Each week add another layer of pine shavings, and stir the litter up. Or throw some scratch down, and the chickens will do it for you.

* When you have about 12 inchs of litter, the coop can be cleared out, and used as compost on your garden. Any litter that hasn't finished composting, can be added to your compost bin.

* This method works better when you have an earth floor inside the coop, as this creates the right conditions to compost the droppings. If you have a wooden floor, you can still use this method, but the litter will need composting in a bin before use.

Added Benefits.

The benefits of this method are:

No smell inside the coop.

The coop only needs cleaning once or twice a year.

The litter creates warmth for the birds during the winter.

Thanks To : Cereal Dispenser