Backyard Poultry -

How Long do Chicks Need a Heat Lamp?

January 16, 2020 · Marissa Ames · Flock Files

Because they don’t have feathers to self-regulate temperature, newly hatched chicks depend on mothers to keep them warm. Darting beneath wings when they’re cold, and coming out to eat and drink, babies thrive on the mother-to-chick relationship. Brooder chicks must have appropriate heat sources, and humans must closely monitor them with thermometers and good judgment.

Need an Egg Incubation Timeline? Try This Hatching Calculator

January 15, 2020 · Backyard Poultry Contributor · Poultry 101

Use this handy calculator to determine the incubation period: chicken eggs vs duck eggs, goose eggs, turkey, quail, peafowl, guinea fowl, pheasant, and emu. Then set your eggs and watch them develop!

Backyard Poultry February/March 2020

December 24, 2019 · Marissa Ames · Magazine Previews

Backyard Poultry February/March 2020 • 15/1 is in-home January 16th but available online NOW! Subscribe for stories on fowl cholera, all about hatching eggs, imprinting behavior, hip hybrids, PLUS a breed profile of the Bresse-Gauloise chicken!

Download our Free Poultry Guides

October 2, 2019 · Steph Merkle · Chickens 101

Need some support with your flock? Take a look in one of our helpful poultry guides!

3 Tips to Help Hens Lay Eggs That Are Fresh & Healthy

January 17, 2020 · Sponsored Content · Chickens 101

Raising backyard chickens should be fun. You provide your hens a chicken coop, care and quality feeds. They provide you nutritious eggs and undeniable companionship.

Egg Candling Chart

January 16, 2020 · Backyard Poultry Contributor · Flock Files

A chicken egg takes 21 days to hatch. By candling the eggs, you can determine stage of development or if the egg has failed to develop and died within the shell.

Selling Eggs as a Business on the Homestead

January 16, 2020 · Amy Fewell · Eggs & Meat

There are chickens in the backyard, eggs all over the kitchen, and you might be thinking “maybe it’s time to start selling eggs.”

The Economics of Egg Farming

January 15, 2020 · Backyard Poultry Contributor · Chickens 101

When I started egg farming, I kept track of my costs. The numbers surprised me. Turning a profit leaves a lot of factors to consider.

Olivia and Elizabeth

January 14, 2020 · Backyard Poultry Contributor · Poultry 101

Sixteen-year-old Olivia Morello was nervous about leaving her beloved ducks outside. When she returned home, she saw something wrong with Elizabeth.

Saxony Duck Breed Profile

January 13, 2020 · Lisa Steele · Poultry 101

The most often-recognized backyard duck breed is probably the snow-white Pekin duck, closely followed by the domestic mallard, which is mottled brown with blue wing tips. However, domestic ducks come in many other wonderful breeds that should be considered if you are looking for something a bit different.

Developing Moonbeam Chickens

January 12, 2020 · Rebecca Sanderson · Chickens 101

For a year and a half, Danielle has been working to develop a new breed of chickens, and she is almost there. These chickens have black skin and beaks with stark white feathers. She calls them Moonbeam chickens.