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Are you considering starting the journey of raising your own chickens? It’s definitely something on many people’s minds with the recent egg shortage. And if you are, I’m SO EXCITED for you. Raising chickens is an incredibly rewarding and enjoyable journey that I will bring you so much genuine happiness. And my heart absolutely sings when I think of how every person that cares for their own chickens creates one less (or more!) person that purchases from a factory egg farm. But, as excited as I am for you, I do want you to consider (and absolutely be prepared for) these 2 things:
First – Expect the Uneggspected!
Chickens are living animals, not machines. Which means life will always surprise you. With our first flock, we lost a chick in the first 48 hours, found out one was a cross-beak (and had to learn what that was) in the third week, and realized we had an unexpected rooster (despite purchasing a female) at week 5. All of these things came with either grief, surprise, a steep learning curve, and/or a need to change our original plans. While it’s impossible to learn about ALL the things that can happen as part of this journey, you can absolutely do your best to be prepared and create your support network. My Pet Chicken is a wonderful resource for getting started with your chicken care. I purchased my flock from them and their customer service representatives were so helpful every step of the way. Aside from general supply stores, any hatchery you purchase from should be a trusted advisor for you. I also highly recommend the BackYard Chickens forum for advice and support. It is a WEALTH of knowledge with experienced and supportive chicken keepers.
Second – An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure… Prioritizing Their Health + Nutrition Protects Yours
While Chickens are incredibly resilient creatures, they are also at risk for a number of parasites and illnesses. Just like us, the #1 thing you can do is fortify their immune systems with strong gut health and well-rounded nutrition. So often I see a sick bird in the forums that is suspected to have a disease, and it turns out that it was just a basic nutritional deficiency. Or it has a legitimate illness that was caused by an imbalance in their nutrition. Issues like these are so easy to avoid with quality feed. So while I absolutely adore feeding an array of fresh fruits and veggies to my flock, I firmly believe their nutritional foundation starts and ends with their feed. Which means, just like for us and our beloved pets, please purchase the best quality feed you can that fits within your budget. Ideally, their feed only has the quality ingredients they need and no fillers.
I remember panicking a few days before our chicks arrived because I had purchased a random bag of feed at a feed store and then, once I started looking at the ingredients, like corn and soy, and knew I needed to do better. Thankfully I found Mile Four. They are a small family owned company that eliminates any stress I have about the quality of feed as they provide organic, non-gmo products my chickens absolutely love made without corn, soy or other cheap fillers. And they now offer a chick sampler pack where you can try all 3 forms (mash, whole grain, or pellets) for each phase of their life to see what works best for you. And DO NOT forget to start offering chick grit for them to eat as it’s essential in digestion, especially when they start eating treats and other foods beyond their feed.
I personally prefer their mash as the ingredients are in their original state and perfect for fermenting their food. If the idea of fermenting chicken feed is new or scary to you, Mile Four has a wonderful and easy tutorial to help you create food that improves their digestion, nutrient absorption, and overall health while strengthening their immune systems and gut health. This leads to larger and tastier eggs with thicker shells and reduces overall feed quantities (and costs)! If you hav ANY questions about chicken nutrition and feeding, Mile Four is the most incredible resource. They have numerous guides you can download (samples pictured below) and they are very responsive if you reach out with questions. I cannot say it enough – trusted partners and advisors as a backyard flock keeper are beyond invaluable.
I hope deep diving into these two topics is helpful to you and also lets you avoid unnecessary heartache when starting your first backyard flock. Please comment or email me if you have any questions… I’m absolutely here to spread the pet chicken love and help ensure we are all successful!
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