Brown Egg Science

It all started when Mary noticed that brown eggshells are not brown on the inside. I looked into this and found brown eggshell color is a polygenic trait (Many genes have been proposed to account for the wide range of brown eggshell colors). The brown pigment is primarily on the outside of the shell and you can even scrub it off with warm soapy water and a kitchen scrub pad. Eggshells are not brown through and through. This is only surface pigmentation.

Where the brown genes are on the chromosomes and how many there are, is not known. There is a sex-linked gene that inhibits the expression of the brown eggshell genes (it may be that Leghorns have this gene. Leghorns seem to have an ability to suppress brown eggshell color when you breed them to a brown layer.)

We have read conflicting reports on egg coloring and age. Some indicate egg color lightens with hen age. Other reports indicate eggshell darkening with age. It may well be that both are correct depending upon the hen and its particular genetics.

Care of Baby Chicks

When we first started with chicks we did a lot of reading to try and get some of the basics down. This list is a good starter.

FOOD

Use a high protein chick starter feed for the first 8 weeks. We made sure ours was not medicated feed since we dont want to be eating antibiotics with our scrambled eggs. Put the feed in troughs low enough so the chicks can find and reach the feed easily. Never let the chicks run out of feed. After 8 weeks you can use grower feed.

WATER

Provide chicks a gallon waterer for each 50 chicks. Chicks are thirsty when they arrive in the mail. A taste of water right away helps them to seek more water right away. Most baby chick loss is caused bacause the chick doesnt start to eat or drink. Never let chicks run out of water.

HEAT

A drop light with a 75-100 W bulb will work - hang as many as you need no closer than 18 inches from the floor. If too warm raise the light higher. The temperature should be 90-95 degrees for the first week. Reduce the temperature 5 degrees per week until you reach 70 degrees (which may or may not happen in this part of Texas). They shouldnt need much heat after that. Large heat lamps might be a good idea if you encounter very cold conditions. By the way, they recommend a night light for chicks too.

SPACE

Try to provide 0.5 square feet per chick at the start. A draft shield can create a perimter to contain the chicks. 50 chicks require a circle about 5-6 feet across. 100 chicks will need an 8 foot circle.

DRAFT SHIELD

Corrugated cardboard 12 inches high encircling the chicks helps reduce drafts. Be sure the circle is big enough to allow chicks to get away from the heat lamp if they are over heating. With wide temperature swings you have to watch the chicks a bit closer.

LITTER

Sawdust or wood shavings make good litter. Sand, straw and dirt will work but not as well as others. Put the litter all over the floor at least 1-2 inches thick.

REAR END PASTE

Sometimes stress in shipping cause the manure to stick to chick rear ends. Remove this daily by pulling off or washing off with warm water. Chicks thankfully will outgrow this. If birds are droopy use a sulfa drug in the drinking water.

DUCKS AND GEESE SHOULD BE RAISE SEPARATE FROM CHICKS AND TURKEYS

NEVER MIX QUAIL OR OTHER GAME BIRDS WITH CHICKS

DUCKS

Baby ducks will drown in water if left unattended. To be on the safe side do not turn out ducklings into ponds until fully feathered.

Training Wheels

A friend asked why ceramic eggs are deployed in nesting boxes. to answer this one first has to realize the fact that hens peck at everything - especially new things. We want to make sure their first peck on an "egg" is not fruitful. If hens find the contents as tasty as we do, we will have a problem on our hands.

I guess the easiest way to explain it might be to say ceramic eggs are sort of like training wheels.

Flip Flops

Mary took great care to make sure her toes were painted. She doesn't usually go for the gaudy or flashy nail colors - I am sure it was a subdued tone. She tries to look nice and take care of herself.

She didn't think anything of walking across the pasture this morning to feed the chickens in her flip flops until she opened the chicken coop's old red door. She is always greeted by pullets eager to express their fondness with a peck and some poop.

This time she was not disappointed in their rush of affection. Those shiny colored nails dangling there on her toes through the flip flops was an overwhelming hit with those birds. The pullets rushed her with bruising speed and laid some rather painful pecks on her feet and legs.

Thankfully she survived to tell the tale and all is forgiven.

But probably not forgotten.

PS
Mary wanted me to add that shorts and chickens don't mix either.

First Egg

Most folks never realize the first eggs laid by pullets are small. It stands to reason, but it is an obscure fact - great to share at parties if they are really dull. Matilda #78 is probably responsible for the smaller egg on the right. The larger "egg" on the left is ceramic.

Our pullets are 4 months old now - we suspect that within 3 -4 weeks most will be laying.

Mary where did you send the kids' shoes for bronzing?

Egg Freshness Test

This chart from Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens is great for determining egg freshness - regardless of source. The older the egg, the greater the air cell which will increase egg buoyancy.Have you ever wondered if significant difference exists between eggs of free ranging hens vs supermarket eggs? While I don't presently have hard data to argue either point, I can attest to the superior texture and taste of free range eggs. Freshness while significant, is but one factor affecting egg quality.

#78 comes of age

#78 aka Matilda, a Black Australorp pullet is the first of all pullets to have matured to the point of exhibiting mating behavior. Her comb and wattle are a bit more pronounced and reddened than her sisters at 3 months 21 days of age.

Earlier this week while feeding we noticed Matilda falling into a nesting position when touched. Today I picked Matilda up when she fell into this nesting position. After placing her back onto the ground she violently shook every feather on her body - from head to tail. This photo was taken about 10 days earlier.

These postures are a bit misguided towards me - but instinctive nonetheless. It is fair to note the presence of these behaviors in maturing pullets do not demand the presence of a rooster.

We don't have a rooster but egg production does not hinge on the presence of a male. In fact eggs are produced at the same rate with our without a rooster. The only difference is that with a rooster a certain percentage of eggs would be fertile.

Whoever said chickens are not smart?

Chickens appear to be very teachable and likely would make faithful pets (We have enough pets at Lazy Day Farm and were hoping for some egg production). We will see how things progress. The birds are about 14 weeks old - not quite ready for laying yet, although we have one Australorpe hen that might be maturing a bit faster than others.

They seem to be observant and more than active. It's difficult to get a photograph since their heads are in constant motion.... but i noticed these Black Australorpes found my shoe laces interesting. Both shoes were untied in no time.

Small Scale Poultry Housing - Small Flock Factsheet, Number 10

by Phillip J. Clauer, Poultry Extension Specialist Animal & Poultry Sciences Department, Virginia Tech

Small scale poultry coops seem to be built in almost every possible shape and size. Those building a new coop often ask for plans for the perfect chicken coop. However, few plans for small poultry houses are available. Many existing buildings can easily be adapted to accommodate poultry. Poultry housing can be as crude or elaborate as you wish to build as long as you provide the following:
1. Protection:
A good poultry house protects the birds from the elements (weather), predators, injury and theft.

Poultry require a dry, draft-free house. This can be accomplished by building a relatively draft free house with windows and/or doors which can be opened for ventilation when necessary. Build the coop on high, well-drained areas. This prevents prolonged dampness and water saturation of the floor of the coop and outside runs. Face the front of the coop, the windows and outside run to the south which allows the sun to warm and dry the coop and soil. Allowing an adequate level of space per bird also helps keep the humidity level in the coop to a minimum.
Keeping poultry totally confined to together with fence and covered runs are your best protection from predators. If you are building a new facility, consider laying a concrete floor, and start the wall with one or two concrete blocks. This prevents rodents, snakes, and predators from digging under the walls and the floors. Windows and doors must be securely covered with heavy-gauge mesh wire or screening when opened.

With outside runs, bury the wire along the pen border at least 12" deep, and toe the fence outward about 6 inches. This stops most predators from digging under the fence. Animals always dig at the base of a fence. By toeing the fence outward and burying it, the predator digs down right into more fencing. Some people run electric fencing around the outside of their pens 4" off the ground about one foot from the main fence to discourage predators. If your outside runs are not predator-proof, you need to lock up your poultry before dark.

To prevent problems with hawks and owls, cover your outside runs with mesh wire or netting. A good ground cover of millet, broomcorn, sorghum or other tall leafy vegetation also provides cover for the birds to hide under. Many times a 3-4 ft. grid over the pen constructed of boiling twine will give excellent protection from flying predators.

To protect the birds from theft, lock your building and pens securely whenever you are not home. Have your neighbors watch for visitors while you are away. Some people actually have burglar alarms in their bird coops. A protective dog kept near your coop usually works well to discourage predators and unwanted visitors.

Build your poultry house to prevent possible injury to your birds. Remove any loose or ragged wire, nails, or other sharp-edged objects from the coop. Eliminate all areas other than perches where the birds could perch more than 4 feet above the floor. Remove perching areas such as window sills, nest box tops, or electric cords whenever possible. These extra measures could eliminate any injury to you or your birds and may prevent damage to the coop, as well.

2. Adequate Space:
Birds need adequate space for movement and exercise as well as areas to nest and roost. Space requirements vary with the type of bird you raise.

Pigeons require a minimum of 4 square feet per breeding pair. One-eighth inch perch and two 9 inch x 9 inch nests per breeding pair are recommended.

Perches: With chickens, always provide 6 to 10 inches of perch space per bird. Perches are not usually used with meat chickens and waterfowl.
Nests: Always provide at least one nest for every 4-5 females in the flock.

3. Easy Access to Feed and Water:
Feeders and waters should be placed conveniently throughout the pen for birds' access. Place the bottom of the waterers and top lip of the feeders at the birds' back height. This will keep the feed and water clean and prevent wastage.
Small birds like pigeons, bantams and quail, only require 1 linear inch/bird of feeder and water space and large birds require 2-3 linear inches/bird.
When possible, place the waterer in the outside runs, especially for waterfowl. This helps to keep the humidity level lower inside the coop.

4. Source of Light:
If you wish to produce eggs from your flock year-round, you must have a source for electric light. One electric light every 40 feet at ceiling height is appropriate. Most small poultry houses do very well with one light above the feeding and watering area.

Windows placed on the southside of the coop will also be a good source of light and warmth in winter and a good source of ventilation in summer.

5. Ventilation:
Ample air movement without a draft is essential. Fresh air brings in oxygen while excess moisture, ammonia or carbon dioxide are removed the stale air moves out of the house. Dampness and ammonia build-up are a sign that there is not enough ventilation. For small coops windows or vents on one side of the house usually provide plenty of ventilation. Well-ventilated houses must also have plenty of insulation and a good vapor barrier. Failure to insulate or ventilate properly causes moisture to accumulate on the walls and ceiling in cool weather. Poultry can handle cold very well if they are dry. However, cool and humid conditions can create many health problems. Locate openings on the side away from prevailing winds. The south or east side is usually best.

6. Appearance:
The appearance of any poultry house or outside run that is visible to the neighborhood should never detract from the over-all appearance of the surroundings. Exteriors of structures should be kept painted and well-maintained. Weeds and trash should be removed from around all facilities. Proper landscaping can provide screening and also help muffle sounds from the birds. Unsightly structures are not good for the image of bird raising and may lead to new laws restricting the raising of birds in your area.

7. Use Common Sense:
When building a poultry house, use common sense in designing the structure. Build the roof high enough and situate such permanent structures as nests, roosts, and feeders for easy access and to make it easier to clean all areas of the house. Install doors so that they open inward. Using sliding windows so that the birds cannot roost on them rather than windows which swing in or out. Use building materials which will be easy to clean and disinfect. Slightly sloping the floor toward the door can help prevent puddling in the building and will make the building easier to spray out and dry between uses.

Pastured Poultry: The Polyface Farm Model

The terrain here is not flat or even making the chicken tractor concept described in this article, less viable since birds would be exposed to the threat of greater predation - than in an old fashioned coop. However the information in this article is foundational reading for anyone entering into poultry production.

By Joel Salatin
The Pasture Poultry model that we have developed at Polyface Farm offers ecological and nutritional advantages over commercial and "organic." The fundamentals of this system are (1) portable buildings and yards; (2) fresh forage; (3) birds moved to fresh pasture paddocks daily, or almost daily.The old free-range models utilized stationary buildings with adjacent pastures, sometimes rotated in a wheel-and-spoke design. While better than cages, this system has several disadvantages. Poultry manure is extremely high in nitrogen and quickly saturates such heavily used areas with nitrogen and pathogens, creating a bitter-tasting forage that is unpalatable to the flock. And their scratching, fluffing and dustbathing destroys much of the sod, leaving the soil exposed and raw.

To combat these weaknesses, pastured poultry producers use light range shelters that can be moved by hand or tractor each day, so that the flock also moves to fresh ground. This keeps the birds away from yesterday's vegetation regrowth and stimulates forage ingestion by the poultry. This system works for both egg layers and meat birds. The critical element in nutritionally superior poultry is the amount of forage the birds ingest. Their sensitivity to pathogens, overly nitrogenous forage and stale paddocks already creamed of their tastiest forage is much higher than the human eye can see. What may look like perfectly good grass can be totally repugnant to the birds. Furthermore, a favorite forage is clover, which cannot grow in overly nitrogenous conditions created by routinely used poultry yards.

The green material of fresh forage provides B vitamins as well as carotenes, some of which the chicken turns into vitamin A. Omega-3 fatty acids in the forage end up in the fat. Exposure to sunlight ensures that the fat will also contain vitamin D. The more yellow the fat, the more nutritious. The same is true for egg production, with the yolk carrying the signature dark orange color characteristic of high forage intake.Producers around the country have created ingenious portable poultry structures--we call ours the "Egg Mobile."

Chicken houses on wheels and skids now dot the countryside as a method of production that finally meets the full social, nutritional and physiological needs of poultry. These birds actually live on the ground, catching bugs and scratching in the soil. Every day is a new discovery of salad on a fresh paddock so the birds do not get bored and begin eating one another, as they do in typical confinement factory houses. On our farm, the chickens follow the cattle, which are also moved daily to new pasture. This supplies the chickens with plenty of fresh insect life, living in and under the cow patties.

Pastured poultry has two points of vulnerability: predators and weather. Every producer has experienced losses from these and combats them in various ways. Some producers have guard animals who live with or near the flock. Dogs can be bonded to the birds and protect them from foxes and coyotes. Some folks use geese to dissuade aerial predators. Tight shelters help.

Fortunately, high tech infrastructure coupled with good management can yield production and mortality figures equal to or better than the average in the conventional poultry industry (where many chickens die from disease). The main reason this type of poultry and eggs are more expensive than the supermarket counterpart is because it requires a much higher level of management skill. This skill doesn't come cheap. Outfoxing the foxes and outwitting the hawks take commitment and ingenuity far beyond simply adjusting the medicator controls in an industrial chicken house.

Lightweight hoop houses on skids and polyethylene netting containing electrified stainless steel wire threading keeps chickens in and varmints out. Farmscale landscaping to protect riparian areas and forested zones, coupled with perennial prairie polycultures, encourages small mammal proliferation to feed predators in a balanced ecosystem. Success requires superb ingenuity and managements skills. It also takes skill to protect chickens from the elements-- not every day is 70 degrees with an azure sky and wispy breeze.

The shelters must be designed to shut tight for cold days, and have plenty of ventilation for hot days. During flooding, we put out hay bales for the chickens to perch on. In winter, our layers go in hoop houses with thick composting mulch underfoot. We do not raise meat birds during the winter months, but depend on modern technology (our freezers) to have a supply of birds throughout the winter.

Pastured poultry producers routinely try to create healthy whole farm ecosystems in order to maintain balance. Part of the balance is limiting poultry numbers to what the farm's soils can metabolize-- there should be no more than 500 birds per acre per year, or a limit of 10,000 birds per year on a 20-acre farm. One manure application from 500 broilers per acre will saturate the soil's nitrogen capacity.

Interestingly, that is exactly the area required to grow the grain to feed the birds. Modern chickens need more than just pasture. We feed our birds a "free choice" mixture of non-GMO local corn, oats and roasted soybeans, along with a mineral supplement and kelp. Our layers in hoop houses also get dried alfalfa during the winter. The modern double breasted broiler has a high protein requirement, which is why we must add soybeans to the ration.

This year, for the first time, we raised 400 Barred Rock cockerels, an Old World bird we have dubbed the "Marco Pollo." The bird is a great forager and requires less protein in the feed. Sales have been brisk. The meat is tougher than the modern bird but has a wonderful flavor that appeals to aficionados. The fat is a beautiful color and the quality of the livers is the best I have seen. Interestingly, the single biggest impediment to adaptation of this model on a wider scale, giving consumers easier access to these superior birds, is neither predators nor weather extremes, but government food safety and inspection regulations.

A federal law PL90-492 allows producer/growers to dress up to 20,000 birds annually without government inspectors on site, as long as the birds are "unadulterated" and "sanitary." These two subjective terms have been widely construed by bureaucrats. Some states do not allow any open-air processing and some states do not allow even one bird to be processed without massive facilities. So far, not one case of food-borne pathogens has been reported among the thousands of pastured poultry producers, many of whom have voluntarily had their birds analyzed.

Routinely, these home-dressed birds, which have not been treated with chlorine to disinfect them, show numbers far below industry comparisons. At Polyface, we even tested our manure and found that it contained no salmonella. Pastured poultry farms exhibit trademark lush pastures and healthy chickens with deep-colored egg yolks and fat. As with any movement, some practitioners are excellent and others are charlatans. Knowing your product by putting as much attention on food sourcing as you do on planning your next vacation is the way to insure accountability.

The pastured poultry model can provide true ecological enhancement and nutritional superiority for you and your loved ones. Enjoy pastured poultry and eggs at your next opportunity-- it will be memorable. Modern conventional chicken production takes places in windowless buildings that house tens of thousands of birds, stacked in cages three high. Feed is taken to the birds on conveyor belts and the eggs brough back the same way. The birds are debeaked so that they do not cannibalize each other. Every few days a human being walks through to remove dead birds.

SIDEBAR ARTICLES Avian FluAvian flu is a huge problem in confinement chicken operations. Recently an outbreak among Shenandoah Valley chicken producers resulted in the slaughter of 4.8 million birds--enough to fill 1000 tractor trailers! The industry is asking for your tax dollars to indemnify them for this loss--they want the consumer to pay the price for cheap food. The cause of the outbreak is obvious--too many birds packed in quarters that are too small. But the industry is laying the blame elsewhere. They say that the avian flu epidemic is caused by free-range operations, where chickens are exposed to wild birds which also somehow then spread the disease to chickens in confinement.

The avian flu outbreak is a warning that the confinement chicken model is ultimately unsustainable. The future is in small operations like those of Joel Salatin and Steve Warshawer, producing a nutritionally superior, healthy bird that brings good profits to the farmer. Organic Standards for ChickensThe new USDA organic standards for chickens apply to anyone who labels poultry as organic and whose annual revenue from all types of organic products exceeds $5,000. Certification under the standards involves four elements of production: the origin of the animals, and the health care management, feed ration and living conditions they receive throughout their lives.

The USDA standard allows chickens that have been managed organically beginning no later than the second day of life to be used in organic production. This means that a producer may purchase day-old chicks from a non-organically managed hatchery and eventually sell the meat and eggs as organically produced. Regarding health care management, the USDA requires that a producer establish preventive health care practices by maintaining breeds that are suited to the ecological conditions of the operation and accommodating the animals' natural behavioral preferences to minimize stress. Prophylactic treatment with vaccines is allowed as it the use of all natural medications and specific synthetic medications that are included on the National List.

The determination of whether a medicine is natural or synthetic and, if synthetic, whether it should be allowed, is the responsibility of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). The USDA standard states that physically altering an animal's anatomy is allowed if it is done to promote the animal's welfare and in a manner that minimizes pain and stress. There has been no guidance from USDA on whether the partial or complete removal or poultry beaks satisfies these criteria. The feed ration component of the USDA standard requires that any agricultural product, such as soybeans in the feed ration, must be organically produced-- although some large "organic" producers are actually now requesting a "waiver" to the requirement that the feed by entirely organic.

Feeding mammalian or poultry slaughter by-products or animal manure to organically managed poultry is prohibited. However, the standard categorically allows nonagricultural, natural feed ingredients (like oyster shells) as well as synthetic feed ingredients added to the National List. Most importantly, the NOSB has recommended the allowance of synthetic methionine. Methionine is needed because the standards do not allow for animal by-products in the feed. The organic standards have turned the chicken, which is a natural omnivore that needs animal products in its diet, into an herbivore.

The provisions for poultry living conditions under the USDA standards are extremely ambiguous. Producers are required to provide poultry with living conditions which accommodate the health and natural behavior of animals, including access to the outdoors, shade, shelter, exercise areas, fresh air and direct sunlight. However, the USDA has provided no guidance on what specific types of living conditions are allowed or prohibited. The animals are allowed "free-range" but mostly remain in barns. Many large-scale organic producers are resisting the requirement that animals under their care must have a chance to go outdoors, citing their concerns about avian influenza.

The USDA standard includes an ongoing allowance for temporarily prohibiting animals' access to the outdoors due to their age, safety or weather conditions that could lead to environmental damages. When consumers pay extra for "organic" chicken and eggs, they believe that they are getting a product that is substantially different from conventional chicken and eggs. The conventional practice has five objectionable tenets: beak trimming, prophylactic antibiotics, pesticide-laced feed, synthetic methionine and continuous confinement. The organic standards allow beak trimming, synthetic methionine and something close to continuous confinement (although conditions are certainly better than the conventional model).

The requirement for all organic feed may soon bite the dust. What's needed is a third, much stricter "pasture-raised" label that stipulates that pasture provide a substantial portion of the feed. Until that happens, consumers must get to know their producer and ask the right questions in order to be sure they are getting healthy chicken and eggs.

About the Author
Joel Salatin is a third generation clean food farmer who has refined techniques for production of pastured animals that improve the quality of the land, provide healthy food for consumers and bring a fair return for farmers He is the author of four books on innovative farming and has been interviewed for numerous radio and television programs. His Shenandoah Valley farm was featured in National Geographic and Smithsonian Magazine. His books , including You Can Farm, Salad Bar Beef, Pastured Poultry Profits and Family Friendly Farming, can be obtained from AcresUSA at (800) 355-5313.