I have kept poultry for most of my life, living on farms and breeding and showing chickens for my own enjoyment. My favourite chickens are Buff Orpingtons, and a line drawing of my favourite pair are shown above. I don't aspire to know all about Poultry Keeping, but these notes may help beginners starting out in this exciting hobby. I would suggest reading as much on the subject as possible, and to get the advice of your local vet. If something is worth doing, it is worth doing well, and if you take on the hobby, you are responsible for the welfare of these excellent and profitable creatures.

Choosing your own poultry

Always buy from a reliable source. Never buy from a market where birds may be of uncertain parentage. Although birds may look good, if their parents are not prolific layers then these birds will not be either. You may be able to buy them 50 pence cheaper, but after all that is not the price of half a dozen eggs that your good stock will lay within a week

Don't forget that good stock is the key to success!
If you intend to rear your own pullets take into account:
Heating costs, Food Costs (chick crumbs are rather expensive)
Losses you may get, The inconvenience and the time you have to wait for eggs - approximately 22-24 weeks.
The term "point of lay" means 18-19 weeks of age, a few weeks before your birds will come into lay at about 22-24 weeks. This time lapse is important as it will give the birds time to settle down, get used to you, their house and new life.

Before you start producing eggs you need:-
Housing!!!

There are a few types, some of which are produced by us!!

Free Range Ark Easy to move onto fresh ground giving the birds access to pen, orchard or garden.

Ark and Run This will contain the poultry so they will not get into your vegetable patch or flower garden and scratch up the seedlings. The hens lay well in these units and they need to be moved regularly as required.

Free Range Units  The density of Free Range Houses is always under review, please follow this link for the up to date information

We suggest you look at the DEFRA website as a starting point

 www.defra.gov.uk

Deep Litter Houses These are floor or perchery units containing the birds which ideally have access to outdoor runs if they are to be called true free range. Ideal for keeping broilers/ducks but we really like to see hens outside. Artificial lighting, automatic feeders etc are all part of these systems.

Feeders.
These are more important than you realise - on very small scale - micro farming! you have to realise that your food is not cheap and you certainly don't want your birds wasting it by scratching it out of any old containers, the food getting spoiled or being eaten by wild birds. Buy or make the best that you can and we can advise you if you want!

Drinkers.
Most essential is a good supply of fresh drinking water, not just a muddy pot or pool, worst of all no water at all!. Again we can help select and advise.

Care of your poultry.

Now that you have got your birds home - what do you do with them!!. Hopefully you have had the foresight to order/make your housing before the mad impulse buying of chickens. If not, Chickens in the bathroom or outhouse is not the best way to introduce your family to the delights of growing your own eggs.
Shut the hens in the house you intend for them and leave them inside for a day or two - with lots of feed and water of course! - This way the birds will get used to the house that is intended for them and you will not be out after dark trying to catch them!. When you then let them out, make a small run or wire netting to enclose them again for a day or two. Of course, the Ark and Run unit avoids all of this, just place the hens in the house and enjoy watching them and collecting the eggs!

Feeding. The hens probably will have been reared on a mash or pellet feed. Introduce them to layers mash or pellets straight away. Give them this food ad lib as long as they are not wasting it. Corn can be fed in the evenings and household scraps mixed in with the feed. Always soak bread before you feed it to the birds as dry bread will swell in their crops. Once your birds are laying well, do not disturb them unduly by changing feed or routines.

Grit and Oyster Shell. This is important for both the production of eggs and the digestion of food. If the birds are free range then they will pick up a lot of grit naturally from the soil. If they are in deep litter, a mixed grit hopper is essential with the grit supplied ad-lib. Birds do not eat large quantities of grit but a constant supply is essential.

Broody Birds If a hen goes broody you could either use her as an incubator, or foster mother. Rearing chicks is exciting especially for children - more about that another time! - If you want to stop the broody hen being broody then isolate the hen and feed only a little feed and water for a day or two - This should do the trick and she should be back laying again! - Electric Incubators here

Moulting If you want your birds to lay through the winter, an early moult can be induced by altering the birds routine and restricting feed and water. After they have stopped laying, and regained their plumage they should start laying again through the winter months. Ad lib feed is essential when they restart laying because of the colder temperatures. Winter months also mean shorter days, so you can supplement their light intake with an electric light for 3/4 hours during the early hours of morning until dawn. there are tables which you can obtain from old books to give you the exact timings. This can be worthwhile for a continuous supply of eggs. We sell a 12v electronic light system for the purpose.

For children and adults alike, Poultry keeping is a most rewarding hobby. There is nothing like the delight of finding the very first egg!! - Poultry keeping is an enjoyable and profitable venture for not many hobbies can offer such satisfying and tasty rewards as collecting fresh eggs!!

Please have a look at a turn of the century Poultry Keepers Diary we have found, it contains a great deal of useful information, most of it still very relevant today

Have a look at our own Light Sussex Hens here

Melanie Lane