I was raised on a California coastal farm that was an actual commercial chicken farm. My grandfather housed about 20,000 laying hens and sold eggs to an early egg
wholesaler. By the time I reached my teen years many decades ago, I had raised lots of baby chicks, gathered thousands of eggs and thought I knew all there was to know about chickens. Turns out, and the truth is, I’m still learning about chickens, eggs, and other poultry.
For this article, I’ve decided to take on some of the facts I’ve accumulated and will try to put them forward. Before I do so, I must give a bit of a disclaimer. As most will agree when talking species, there are always exceptions to the rule and some disagreements may result. Anyway, here goes!
JUST THE FACTS
Just to get things started, we should start with some basic terminology. You can fact-check this if you want, but this is outside the realm of argument. Baby chickens are called chicks. They grow into either cockerels or pullets. Cockerels turn into roosters at maturity, and pullets become hens.
However, exactly when a pullet becomes a hen could be up for debate. A “started” pullet means they no longer need a brooder light for warmth but have not laid their first egg. In some parts of the country, pullets remain pullets until they lay their first egg, but others say a pullet is a pullet for a full year.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der March - April 2024-Ausgabe von Hobby Farms.
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Spot & Treat
Parasites happen, but proper management keeps things under control.
Parasite PATROL
Keep your worm treatments effective with these three valuable tools.
HEALTHY GOAT, Happy FARMER
Goats may be hearty, but they still need their keeper's care in order to live long and be healthy.
Notes ON NUTRITION
Dairy and meat goats have specific feed needs, and they're not the same.
milking how to
Goat milk is liquid gold, but you have to get milking right to get it.
BREEDING BASICS
The traditional goat breeding season in the U.S. is between late August and the early part of January, according to Angela McKenzie-Jakes, extension animal science specialist at Florida A&M University.
GIVE ME Shelter
When Kathryn Spann started raising dairy goats in 2008, she thought wooden sheds built on skids would be the ideal housing for her herd. The shelters could be attached to a tractor and moved, ensuring the herd had a safe space to escape the elements and allowing Spann to practice pasture rotation without building individual shelters in each pasture.
Natural FIBERS
When visitors drive up to our Northern California foothill farm, they immediately notice the fluffy, long-horned beasties dotted all over our pastures. If they have never met us before, these visitors will always tell us how they love seeing our beautiful \"sheep\" and ask what we do with their wool.
Choosing a DAIRY GOAT
A number of considerations will determine your ideal dairy goat breed.
CHOOSING A Meat Goat
Once you've mastered the basics, keeping goats for meat is pretty easy.