Backyard Chickens with pics

reply to post by fiftyfifty


I think you're correct. The yolk is the 'food' the baby chick lives on until it hatches, I believe.

Originally posted by fiftyfifty
reply to post by jamesthegreat

 

Sorry to break it to you (pun not intended) but the yolk is not the chicken. When you crack open a fertilised egg, you may find the developing embryo attached to the yolk. The white is the protective fluid as far as I am aware, much like the amniotic fluid in the womb of a mammal.

You may want to brush up on your 'chook' knowledge.

edit on 26-11-2012 by fiftyfifty because: (no reason given)

Well I stand corrected. My apologies

reply to post by jamesthegreat


No worries, not everyone is an egg geek haha

Originally posted by MountainEnigma
What is the recommendation about keeping chickens through the winter? Will they survive in their hen house or would it be necessary to somehow heat the hen house? And your reasoning for not having roosters in the backyard?

We've had some cold nights but they survived so far, I just make sure there is a lot of hay in the house. They recommend a water heater but I don't have one. Roosters crow, so they are louder, they also will produce more chicks which may not be desireable, and don't lay eggs. I heard roosters are used more for slaughter but we aren't planning to do that.

reply to post by filosophia


I just wanted to say thanks for this thread. I was brought up in a rural area outside of Tulsa, OK. Spent many a peaceful and introspective hour gathering eggs and just observing the chickens. My workday stress is melting away already....

Very informative facts on eggs, thank you OP

I had a further question after reading, that the yolk is not the embryo either, but rather the embryo forms around the yolk. I was wondering what happens to the yolk ??

So I came across this site that sais the yolk gets absorbed - does that mean it gets absorbed like food, like the egg white? Or absorbed like transformed into the body that develops? It is still a mystery to me.

This picture is so awesome, it is a bit graphic, I hope you all find it beautiful too



I have an other question

I can understand how you can protect the animals from coyotes and from wild birds, but how do you protect them from snakes ??

reply to post by applecore


I don't know much about the science of the egg, I think some posters are more knowledgeable than me, maybe ask fiftyfifty. But from what I gather I think the yolk is the food, so the chick grows around the yolk and gets nutrients from the yolk. From what I remember, the white is the protein, the yolk is the fat, so the chick forms from the protein and uses the yolk for food. Don't quote me on that one as I am just using a best guess.

I've never seen a snake around, although a hawk did land on my fence and it was quite impressive looking. I heard the snakes smell the eggs, so if you remove the eggs quick they might not come(?). I also doubled the chickenwire so a snake probably can't fit through, and the other sides are fence so I don't see them getting through. I hope! But so far they've been safe.

reply to post by filosophia


Thanks for the reply, filosophia, but I thought the snakes can get through even little gaps in the wire. And they climb up solid walls like iron.

Also I thought they are after the chooks also, not only the eggs (the bigger snakes anyway). But I agree, collecting the eggs quickly would help a bit.

I heard of a method, where you can build like another fenced ‘ring’ around the chook barn where an appropriate dog patrols and deters and catches the snakes. I find that a bit cruel on a dog, but of course there would be alternatives with two dogs doing the job, or alternating them.

You are lucky you have no snakes around. There are plenty here.

reply to post by MountainEnigma


You can go to grit.com and learn much about farm style living

it is a great resource to have

If you dont feed them laying mash I would recommend feeding them their egg shells. Ground up the shells in their food, this is needed for the calcium which makes healthy eggs.

My buddies dad made a chicken coop similar to the OPs, he ended up attaching a rabbit coop to it. we found out the hard way that chickens are easier to take care of compared to rabbits, man those guys multiply lol


Posted Via ATS Mobile: m.abovetopsecret.com

Its to bad you can't have a Rooster with your flock,
I could tell you stories all night about Roosters.
It is not a Democracy,
It is a Republic,
a flock of rules.

But last time I talked about my Rooster
in a chicken thread, my posts were removed,
and I got banned for 2 days.

I love my Rooster,
he keeps me on my toes,
even when I describe his rules
on the internet.

reply to post by Rudy2shoes


I would have a rooster if I had a bigger farm, the roosters look more impressive with all their feathers, it's quite a beautiful bird. But while on a small lot I don't think so.

reply to post by applecore


I'm in Ohio, so I guess snakes aren't much of a problem. I'd imagine in the south they would be a lot more of a threat. I guess you could use fine mesh wire to keep out big snakes, and smaller ones would not be a problem, the chickens would probably just chase them.

My favourite pets...Here in Scotland even in city areas you can keep up to 45 chickens before you have to apply for a license. We have seven at the moment and have been keeping chickens that free-range in our back garden for three years. The only problem we have is with urban foxes and the whole flock was killed last November. I would recommend, if your area allows it, keeping chickens for their eggs, for the lessons they learn the young ones about the food chain, and for the amusement they offer with their silly behaviours.

As an add on, remember eggs are a great bartering tool and keep neighbours sweet as a gift. We get on average 16 dozen eggs a month and some are sold to pay for their upkeep, feed and even to pay for their new palace type coop.

Some districts in Australia, in the residential areas you can't have a cock but you are allowed a hen.

My next door neighbor has chickens, not that noisy glad he got rid of the cock.

The only time we have a problem with snakes
is when a hen goes broody,
and sits on a pile of eggs,
and the rooster is not paying attention to her,
and protecting the roaming hens.
Then the snakes come in and steal
one egg at a time, as she sits and refuses to move.
Whenever a snake shows up and no one is broody
all hell breaks loose as the rooster and the hens,
look at it as a threat, and maybe dinner.

Nice chickens and eggs. did a great job on their living area too.

If something happens how do people expect to get food for the chickens though, that has always been something I wondered about. If you grow corn to make food for the winter it is all right but chickens eat quite a bit. Maybe having a rotating pantry for the chicks is good too, having four sacs of food or more for a dozen chickens may not be bad for stock. I see most people buying a months worth of feed with no stock, that could leave supplies low.

Originally posted by rickymouse
Nice chickens and eggs. did a great job on their living area too.

If something happens how do people expect to get food for the chickens though, that has always been something I wondered about. If you grow corn to make food for the winter it is all right but chickens eat quite a bit. Maybe having a rotating pantry for the chicks is good too, having four sacs of food or more for a dozen chickens may not be bad for stock. I see most people buying a months worth of feed with no stock, that could leave supplies low.

I see water or theft a bigger threat,
a temporary coral would allow them to find food.
First time I met the bogeyman, I was 5 stealing eggs from the neighbor,
when I ran into a homeless man looking for dinner.

you can barely plant a tomato in a suburb without some bitter angry nosy "neighbour", usually married to an equally obnoxious soccermom, tells his wife to call the city to complain because he doesn't have the balls to confront a stranger.

it usually ends with someone arrested. and the "neighbour" with a look of satisfaction that he screwed someone over for no good reason.

so raising chickens is out of the question for most people.

ah, life in n.america.

Originally posted by rickymouse
Nice chickens and eggs. did a great job on their living area too.

If something happens how do people expect to get food for the chickens though, that has always been something I wondered about. If you grow corn to make food for the winter it is all right but chickens eat quite a bit. Maybe having a rotating pantry for the chicks is good too, having four sacs of food or more for a dozen chickens may not be bad for stock. I see most people buying a months worth of feed with no stock, that could leave supplies low.

Chickens eat weeds, grass, worms, sand, plants, even their own eggs! Ever seen a skinny chicken? Especially a hen? Chickens have no problem finding food, just preventing themselves from getting eaten. That would be their biggest concern. But seriously they eat grass seed and whole blades of grass. I just pull handfuls of stuff from the yard and give it to them. I buy chicken feed but if ever some disaster occurs I would just feed them leftover table scraps, grass, or whatever. And if they die, well, chicken dinner.