The Ultimate Method for Starting a Laying Flock in Your Hen Houses

Backyard chicken raising can be uncomplicated

, enjoyable, and lucrative. It can also be gratifying knowing you are producing delectable and nourishing eggs for the entire family. Previous to getting your birds you must buy or make your own chicken tractors, also accepted as chicken arks, or chicken coops. You will also need to obtain nests, feeders, water fountains, and several other materials. Then after you have your transportable chicken ark or hen house and the other essential materials, it's time to buy your birds. But with the many varied approaches for starting a small flock of chickens, what approach is better?

You can set up a small flock of laying pullets by hatching eggs or getting live pullets. Eggs can be hatched with a brooding hen or an incubator. If you are a novice at backyard chicken raising you will almost certainly want to buy live pullets as an alternative to hatching fertile eggs. Using a brooding hen or an incubator can be an enjoyable approach, but there are a good amount of things that are likely to go wrong for the rookie. It's normally best to get a little experience under your belt before trying to hatch eggs.

For the backyard chicken raising beginner you can select from 3 types of live pullets. Your first option is to acquire day-old birds. Second, you have the choice to acquire started hens that are just a little less than five months old. And third, you have the option to buy pullets that have already laid eggs one season and are ready to begin their second season of laying. These are called second-year birds. It is imperative to realize the advantages and disadvantages to each of these methods so that you will be able to make the best decision for your circumstances.

If you want to start with day-old birds you will have to acquire a brooder for keeping them warm and comfortable for their first several weeks until they are large enough to live out-of-doors in a chicken tractor or hen house. This means you must buy a chicken brooder, causing your operating expense to increase. Furthermore, it means you will be required to provide special care and attention to your young birds if you want them to survive to maturity.

If you come to a decision to go with second-year hens you might want to mull over your resolution. At the outset, it seems to make good sense that purchasing pullets that have already laid eggs for one year would be a good idea, but there are too many negatives for this to be an ideal alternative. These pullets can cost more and have a few other disadvantages. Hens will lay the most eggs of the highest quality their first year. After that, the quality and amount of eggs laid will drop each and every year. Getting second-year pullets means you will not get top quality or optimum numbers of eggs from your chickens. Furthermore, moving these pullets to a new place can cause stress. This can make them molt which will delay their egg laying, defeating the purpose for purchasing older pullets.

The ideal method for the backyard chicken raising novice is generally to obtain started hens. They will initially be more expensive than day-old chicks, but you will normally be able to make up the difference because feeding them for the first several months is unnecessary. This will save you a lot of money on feed. Furthermore, you will not have the additional expense of a chicken brooder and will not have to expend as much time or effort caring for the hens because they won't have to spend any time in a chicken brooder, but can be placed at once into your chicken tractor or hen house. Buying started hens is the easiest option for the backyard chicken raising amateur to get started in their new pastime.

The Ultimate Method for Starting a Laying Flock in Your Hen Houses

By: Joshua Harding

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