A "Straight Run" refers to poultry that has just been hatched and no one has determined what sex they are. Therefore, they are a mix of hens and roosters. When you buy a "Straight Run" you will not know how many hens or roosters you will receive.

Persons responsible for determining the sex of poultry are called “sexors”. When poultry is sexed they will be more expensive because the hatchery had to pay someone to determine if the chick was a hen or rooster.

You should not mix birds of different ages. Often times the older ones will pick on the younger ones. They will also pick on smaller birds. Additionally, you should take care when introducing a mature newcomer with other chickens as a new pecking order must be established. This generally results in fighting and the new bird being picked on. If your birds are a docile breed you can sometimes add a new bird during the night time hours.

We have purchased mixed lots of birds in the past because it seems colorful and wonderful to have a variety of birds. Unfortunately, we have noticed that as the birds get older some breeds will pick on birds that are of different breeds, colors, or sizes. We now try to separate the birds by their breed when they are approaching maturity or when we see pecking going on.

There are many reasons why chickens peck each other. The reasons range from their being too hot, too crowded, too short of feeder or waterer space, stagnant air and trying to establish the leader of the flock. To stop them you must first solve the problems listed above. Usually the issue lies in the fact that they are over crowded and/or lacking appropiate space for feeding or watering. If that doesn’t work try adding grass, hay, or lettuce in the pen. Sometimes darkening the hen house will work. If all else fails, you can try some products on the market like “Poly Peepers” (they are like flexible blinders) or antipick lotions or sprays. We do not recommend debeaking, it is cruel because it essentially cripples your bird’s ability to take in proper nutrition. If one of your birds are pecked until bleeding occurs, remove it from the pen. The others will begin pecking at it and eating the flesh.

It is a natural process that you should expect. Essentially this is when your chickens will lose all or most of their feathers. Accept the fact that your birds will look “ratty”. Usually about 18 months of age and it will last two to four months. It usually happens in late summer or early fall. Also, they will stop producing eggs.

Heritage Hens will lay productively 2-3 years. Your guideline to the laying capacity of any mature bird is that a 2 year-old hen will lay 65% of her first-year production. This continues to decline as she gets older. While hens can live up to ten years and technically should be laying 20% of her first-year production the reality is that this rarely happens. Much depends on the breed, environment, and quality of feed that has been supplied through the years. 

Just before you cook the egg, submerge it in warm water. If it floats, throw it away as it has passed the point that it should be eaten. The best fresh egg will lay on it's side. If it stands on it’s end it is still fresh and good to eat, it is just not as fresh as it would be if it laid on it's side. If you keep your eggs refridgerated in a 40-degree (or slightly cooler) temperature your eggs should last about six weeks. For cooking purposed try to let them come to room temperature for your reciepe. At this point you are wondering how the eggs you buy in the store are handled. In commercial operations they wash the eggs and then put a coating of mineral on it to prolong the shelf life. This is not as good as leaving the bloom on as it shortens the length of time you can store a fresh egg. SPECIAL NOTE:  Many websites will tell to you use cold water when cleaning an egg. I would advise against this as the cold water will cause the porous egg to suck in the bacteria whereas warm water causes the inside of the egg to expand and press against the shell which will block the bacteria from entering. 

Bloom is a coating that the hen leaves on the egg when she lays it. Another name is “cuticle.” More specifically, the bloom is a protein (a mucous secretion) that covers the egg when it is laid. Its purpose is to block bacteria and keep the egg fresh. This is important because it keeps the inside of the egg full of nutritious goodness.  For humans this means that the egg keeps longer and for a baby chick it means that the chick itself is protected from the bacteria as it sits in the nesting box for three weeks and it supplies the chick with fat, protein and vitamins. 

I will begin by telling you that if you keep your nesting boxes clean and pick up your eggs daily, they should not be dirty. They might have a spot or two to be cleaned off. Spot cleaning the egg with very fine sandpaper would be the only thing required. If they need a little more than that, I will take a paper towel with warm water and spot clean. The best way is to spot clean an egg so that you do not remove the bloom. Remember the bloom is protecting the egg. However, if they require more cleaning you could rinse them off with warm water, immediately dry them and put them in the refrigerator or use them right away. You should also note that you should not use cold water as this will cause the porous egg to suck in the bacteria whereas warm water causes the inside of the egg to expand and press against the shell which will block the bacteria from entering. After you do this you should inspect the egg for cracks and if they have some – throw them away as the bacteria has entered the egg.

Someone recently told me that they believed that the chicken "poop" on their farm fresh eggs was keeping their eggs fresh. I assured them that chicken manure can be a health hazard. Salmonella and Campylobacter are carried by healthy chickens. These diseases are usually not communicated by the live chicken to people. They can, however, be communicated to people through direct exposure to chicken manure, or by eating under cooked chicken and eggs.

Chickens lay best etween 45 and 80 degrees farienheight. And yes, this means an heat lamp in the winter and expect production to be lacking during a very hot summer.

A chicken with red ear lobes lays brown eggs and a chicken with white ear lobes lay white eggs. 

All breeds have different laying abilities. Production birds will begin laying at 4 and a half months. Heritage birds will begin laying around 6 months. Generally speaking, most hens will start laying between 5-7 months of age. They will lay their best at 1 to 2 years of age. All pullets (female chickens under 1 year of age) lay small eggs at first and after a while will lay larger eggs. Younger hens will lay 1 egg every 3-4 days. A hen 30 weeks old can lay 2 eggs every 3 days. Production birds have been known to lay an egg a day, but their production drastically reduces after a year.

When a rooster is castrated it is called a capon.