About the Author

Lacey Hughett

Lacey is an artist, author, mom, and homesteader based out of Reno, Nevada. She focuses on sustainability, heritage breed preservation, and ethical animal raising. She has been raising poultry since she was six years old. She be found on Instagram and Facebook at Hughett Heritage Farms.
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Articles by Lacey Hughett

The CDC Says It’s Okay to Buy Costumes for Chickens
October 14, 2022 · · Chickens 101

Are costumes for chickens safe for your health and theirs?

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All Cooped Up: Fowl Cholera

Fowl cholera is a highly contagious bacterial infection that affects multiple species of wild and domestic birds. Onset is sudden, with a high mortality and morbidity rate. Fowl cholera is found worldwide.

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The Secret Life of Poultry: Kauai’s Feral Chickens
December 14, 2021 · · Chickens 101

When I was a child, I learned about the famous feral chickens living in Hawai’i and even back then they caught my interest.

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The Secret Life of Poultry: Where is Scruffy?
December 10, 2021 · · Chickens 101

Scruffy was special. Melanie noticed that he really enjoyed car rides and ended up taking him on one of her frequent road trips on a whim. Soon Scruffy was traveling everywhere with Melanie.

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All Cooped Up: Fowlpox
November 22, 2021 · · Feed & Health

Fowlpox is an old viral poultry disease that frequently affects backyard flocks. It is found worldwide and was first described as early as the 17th century. It is most commonly seen in chickens and turkeys, but almost every bird species can become infected including wild birds and indoor birds like canaries.

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All Cooped Up: Erysipelas
November 18, 2021 · · Feed & Health

Erysipelas is found worldwide and most commonly affects turkeys. Fighting, picking, and artificial insemination in birds like broad-breasted turkeys are risk factors for contracting erysipelas because they all have the potential to create lacerations.

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All Cooped Up: Marek’s Disease
October 15, 2021 · · Feed & Health

Marek’s Disease Virus (MDV) is one of the best-known poultry diseases. It causes tumors and immunosuppression in mainly chickens, but is occasionally seen turkeys and quail.

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The Secret Life of Poultry: Squirt the Pigeon Parent
October 1, 2021 · · Members Only, Poultry 101

Learn how Squirt became the best pigeon parent for a chicken egg even after barely surviving his own infancy.

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All Cooped Up: Infectious Bursal Disease
September 26, 2021 · · Feed & Health

Infectious bursal disease (IBD) is an interesting viral disease that is seen in young chickens and turkeys. It attacks the bursa of Fabricius, an immune organ found in birds that aids in B-cell maturation.

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All Cooped Up: Omphalitis, or “Mushy Chick Disease”
September 3, 2021 · · Feed & Health

Omphalitis is a fairly common infection, also known as mushy chick disease or yolk sac infection, and it occurs in the first few days of a bird’s life. It is seen most commonly in artificially hatched eggs and is associated with contaminated eggs or incubators.

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