Aug 8, 2018
Heat Tips and Getting Started with Chickens We are sharing tips on staying cool in a heat wave without air conditioning. Then, we dive into today's main topic: Getting started with keeping chickens. Is it better to start with already laying adult hens? Or day-old baby chicks. What about incubating eggs?
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SLP 146 Start with Baby Chicks or Big Hens?
We are starting the show with Listener Tips
The questions: How to stay comfortable in a Heatwave without Airconditioning?
Lorien Silverleaf Evaporative cooling; wet linen scarf.
Jacqueline Kim 1. A fan. 2. Cold showers to cool off. Cold showers take two minutes or so but make such a big difference. You have to jump into it. It is shocking at first (prepare to yelp), but delicious after. 3. Don't cook meals requiring more than one stove top fire at a time (so nothing that requires the oven coming on). We have been eating all manners of salads, gazpachos, and drinking a lot of ice cold infusions (of cut cucumber or oranges or mint). Sangrias too.
Britt Cool Yep, fans. Sit right in front of them
Lorien put a scarf on the fan!! It cools the air even more.
Sally Hovey Wet clothes and a fan
Karl Aldinger If you can spare some water, misting jets on fans drop temps in our greenhouse, for example.
Trevor Presley Outdoor shower
Darlene Sweetwood Swimming pool!
Emi Lio Staying in the shade
Tiny Farmer SD Plant a shade tree! it's at least 10 degrees cooler under our Chinese elm tree.
Starting with Chickens- Babies or Adult
Hens?
This episode is inspired by Nate who I met on the social media platform called steemit. You can find him here: https://steemit.com/@nateonsteemit
We have big elm tree in our chicken yard. We cut in winter in a process called pollarding and let it grow in summer to provide shade for the chickens.
Getting chickens - babies or
adults?
I am not expert - but I have taken courses from the University of Edinburgh
https://www.coursera.org/learn/chickens
It is part of their MOOC. Massive open online courses
A new one opens August 20th, 2018 and I highly recommend it!
Meat and egg chicks
Heritage chicken - dual breeds
Courses by Patricia Foreman- Author of city chicks
Chicken and You courses
Backyard Chicken Keeper Certification Course
I will post a video of my chicken set up - don't expect perfection
Beware of experts that are new to the subject - a tip by Joel Salatin who was on our podcast.
Adult or babies?
It all depends
Adult chickens
Benefits:
Possible problems:
Possible free ways to get:
Baby Chicks
Advantages:
Choices:
From hatchery - direct, but will be shipped - stress (3 days without food)
From a Feed store - more exposure to possible diseases, more stress - shipping, lots of chicks, then transport home.
Disadvantages:
Hatching your own:
Watching a baby chick hatch is an amazing experience and a great teaching moment for kids.
You will get at least half of the hatch as little boys. They are cute in the beginning but turn into loud and obnoxious teenagers before you know it.
You need a plan what to do with them.
Set up for babies:
Learn chicken language
Best: Mommy gets broody and does all the work :)
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