Good Health - Unhealthy Fats

Avoid saturated and TRANS fats found in foods like pastries, whipped toppings and pre-packaged foods. Eggs are low in saturated fats and have zero trans fat.

To make your egg meals even healthier, cook them without any extra added fat (poach them or boil them, or fry in non-stick skillet). Try using low fat or skim milk in scrambled eggs. Serve your eggs with tomatoes or other fruits and vegetables.

An Egg A Day Is OK!

Research shows the cholesterol in eggs does not have a negative effect on blood cholesterol levels in healthy people. Lots of studies have shown there is no link between eggs and heart disease. So keep a chicken farmer happy and eat an egg today.

Sheep are Strange

This morning I went out to feed the donkey and the sheep. Normally the sheep run from me and are very stand-offish even though I've had them for two years. They often don't recognize me, that's how stupid sheep are.

This morning they came trotting over to me as soon as I opened the gate. They pushed past me and ran out on the lawn. They just wandered around the lawn eating grass as if there was none in their field (but of course there is lots!) Mind you the grass on the lawn is much nicer than what is in their pen so maybe they just wanted a treat.

After I finished my chores I took some food and showed it to them and they followed me into their pen. Weird.

Baby Chicks Ordered

I ordered 10 baby chicks -- non sexed Barred plymouth Rocks. I will get roosters and laying hens mixed but that's okay as I can eat the roosters. Barred Plymouth Rokcs are brown egg layers. They were almost extinct but have made a comeback beocause of their good meat qualities and good brown egg production.

Both males and females are grey barred in colour with the female a bit darker. Females weigh about 4 lbs at 19 weeks and 5 or 6 lbs at the end of lay. Malse are about 1 or 2 llbs heavier than females.

My wife calls them Zebra Chickens. The chicks will arrive about May 9th. so I have to get their first home ready with heat lamps, etc.

Just got my new Freys Hatchery catalog

I just picked up my 2007 Freys Hatchery catalog at the Co-Op today. I always get kind of excited when it arrives. I will be placing a small order tomorrow. I think I will get about 6 new hens this year. Freys is located in St. Jacobs Ontario. They have a website at Freys

Part 3 of, Egg Eating Chickins

Culling.

The most simple method of dealing with a egg eating hen is to cull her. In other words put her in the stew pot. I personally do not like to do this as I am a bit of a soft touch and my chickens are more like pets, but it can become necessary with a really bad bird.

Egg Eating part 2

Part 2

Another method of prevention is role away nest boxes. This is simply any kind of nest box that automatically removes the egg after the chicken has laid it. This sounds complicated but in reality it is simply a nest box with a slanted floor so the egg rolls away to a place where the chickens cant get at it. You can purchase commercially manufactured boxes or with a little thought you can build your own.

It is also possible to discourage egg eating by putting fake eggs in the nest boxes. This serves 2 functions. 1, it teaches the birds the spot you would like them to lay. 2, It teaches them that eggs are not edible. For fake eggs you can use anything that looks egg like, but you should try to use something light in weight. You want something light so it will not break the real eggs in the nest. I have found ping pong balls work not to bad for this.

To Be Continued.

Chickens Eating Eggs Part 1

Sometimes chickens will develop the nasty habit of eating eggs. This is a hard habit to break them of once it starts but it must be dealt with or the behaviour will spread to other birds in the flock.

The first step in dealing with this problem is prevention. You must make sure you feed your chickens lots of good food. This works in two ways. 1. Well fed chickens are less likely to eat their own eggs as they simply are not hungry. 2. Well fed chickens lay eggs with stronger shells. This makes accidental breakage in the nest less frequent. Accidental breakage is often how the habit starts. Harder eggs also makes it harder for the chicken to break the egg with its beak.

More Tomorrow

First Robin Of The Year

I took this picture back about a week ago. It was the first Robin that I have seen this year. It is always a nice sign of Spring when the Robins come back. I feel kind of bad for the poor thing now as it has been snowing for three days now and they will be finding it hard to find food.

Still Snowing

The snow came down all night.

Nasty Weather Today

Winter is back for a day or 2. Snow, Rain, Sleet. It is a mess.

Mammoth Jack Donkey

 My Grandson bravely pats Burr, our Mammoth Jack Donkey

Keets In the Wild Don't Survive Easily

 A bird in the hand... Baby Keets only a few days old. One of our Guinea hens laid her eggs outside and sat on them til they hatched. Luckily we found her walking them up the driveway a day or so later. We were able to fight her off and gather up more than 30 keets! Keets die very easily, they get wet and don't survive being outside. So we gathered them up and brought them into the jacuzzi (no water of course!) complete with heat lamps.