Apple Cider Vinegar and Chickens - Don't forget the Mother!

Nearly 20 years keeping and raising chickens, we have learned a lot and are still learning. We discovered apple cider vinegar a few years back when we drastically increased hatching chicks for our newest venture in chick sales. When you are hatching thousands of chicks, you tend to run into various health issues. When you keep a large number of chicks in a brooder, the cleanliness of that brooder is essential to the chick’s health. The dust created by a large number of chicks eating, drinking and pooping will challenge a chick’s immune system.

Besides the importance of keeping their environment clean, you have to help them combat anything that may tax their immune systems. We have found that a few drops of apple cider vinegar with the ‘mother’ in their waterer will help a newly hatched chick start their lives off right by helping them boost their immune system and to flush away any toxins that may be introduced to their systems through their environment. Putting apple cider vinegar in your chicks or chickens waterers will also keep the bacteria down on the waterer itself

Apple cider vinegar does come with and without the ‘mother’. The mother refers to strands of protein, enzymes and good bacteria that is present in unfiltered or unpasteurized apple cider vinegar. This is the most important aspect and most beneficial part of the apple cider vinegar for chicken health. These raw enzymes and bacteria help the stomach process foods more efficiently and fight off bad bacteria that might slow down the digestion process or allow toxins to weaken a bird.

Chicks and chickens are very susceptible to getting respiratory problems from their environment, other chickens and even wild birds. Apple cider vinegar will fight many of the germs that cause these respiratory issues. The normal mixture with water is 1 Tablespoon per gallon. Don’t worry about ‘overdosing’ them since this is an all-natural product. You will know if you put too much because the chickens won’t want to drink it. Moderation with anything is always best. With the small ‘mason jar’ type waterers I will put a couple drops from the bottle after shaking it up good.

You can make your own Apple Cider Vinegar with the Mother using cut up apples and a few other ingredients.  Here is a link to an excellent step by step recipe from Lisa Steele of Fresh Eggs Daily.

http://www.fresheggsdaily.com/2012/09/diy-make-your-own-apple-cider-vinegar.html

 

Thank you,

The Hatching House

www.TheHatchingHouse.com

What is a Chicken Micro-Hatchery??

Not unlike Micro-Breweries, a Micro-Hatchery is a much smaller version of a chicken hatchery.

The chicken hatcheries use to be your only choice for chicks for many years. Some common drawbacks to the large hatcheries is you have to order a minimum of 2 dozen chicks and the large hatcheries focus more on quantity and not so much quality. Your local feed stores are another common source, but they usually order their chicks through one of the big hatcheries too.

For the more focused chicken enthusiast, a local breeder or purchasing at poultry shows was where you could get a better quality chicken of a particular breed.

At Ole Yankee Farm, we have raised all different animals for the past 20 years. Horses, goats, alpacas and yes, chickens. In fact, chickens have always been present on our farm. Our first chickens were hatched from eggs using a borrowed Styrofoam incubator. From there, the obsession grew. We discovered the hundreds of amazing different breeds of chickens and we loved seeing them pecking around the yard. We also loved the fresh eggs too!

From hobbyists to breeders, we focused on a few specific breeds and continued hatching more and more chicks. We started selling our chicks on Craigslist and to our friends. Another local farm that we did chicken business with suggested we organize and offer our birds nationwide. We did just that.

From breeders to a “Micro-Hatchery”. We named our new chicken business “The Hatching House” and launched our website on January 1^st, 2015. We obtained our NPIP certification along with our state licenses and we were up and running. We also encouraged surrounding farms in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts to acquire their NPIP and state certifications. We then purchase the eggs from these farms in order to offer more breeds on our website. We also offer alternative outlets for the many male chicks that are hatched. The large hatcheries unfortunately will grind up their male chicks. We see this as a waste of life. One way is we offer our “Fry Pan Specials” which are at discounted prices on male chicks for the “Homesteader” to raise for meat.

When establishing our base flock, we are very selective on picking hens and roosters that will truly represent the breed to the Standards of Perfection. We then, through selective breeding, will continue to improve our breeds. This is where we focus on the quality of a bird as opposed to just quantity. As a Micro-Hatchery, we do not just pump out chicks. Our eggs are set based on the orders we receive through our website. Once we have reached our capacity for a particular month, we will then close that month out so we can focus on filling our orders and communicating with our customers.

We are constantly looking for more interesting and exotic birds to offer up to our customers. Along with our amazing selection of English Orpingtons, we have the all-black Ayam Cemani, the rare Russian Pavlovaskya and the Swedish Orusts, just to name a few. We will also continue to show our birds specifically looking for feedback from the judges in order to fine tune our breeds.

Our Micro-Hatchery is constantly evolving and growing, but we will always keep our focus on our quality of birds and our customer service.

Thank you,

The Hatching House

Chicken Pick of the Week - Swedish Orust

A unique chicken with an interesting history. The Swedish Orust originally lived off of the rocky coast of Western Sweden, where they adapted and learned to feed off of fish and insects in the shallow pools. A landrace chicken, meaning that instead of selective breeding by people, these chickens developed naturally through adapting to their environment.


The Orust range from small to medium sized and the hens lay up to a medium sized egg. Swedish fisherman benefitted from their eggs for decades. In 2013 there were reportedly less than 500 Orusts in the world with their numbers slowly increasing due to local breeders.


Because of their adaption to fishing, they are tenacious free rangers. This writer finds them very friendly and curious. We kept a few younger Orusts in our barn and whenever we would walk in they would swarm around our feet pecking at any little speck, be it a freckle or lint.

Their black and white mottled feather pattern extends to their legs and feet. Another interesting feature, when a Orust rooster is riled up, maybe by the presence of a predator, their waddles will turn from red to purple as a possible visual warning to the hens who maybe cannot hear his alarm crow over the crashing waves.


If there was any question if Dinosaurs evolved into birds, the Swedish Orust would be a logical argument with their adaption to the rocky Swedish coast and the rooster's changing the color of their waddles when there is possible danger nearby.

The Hatching House is proud to offer the unique Swedish Orust. Being a very new breed to our farm they will be available in the Summer.


Please check out our website at www.TheHatchingHouse.com.


Thank you!

Chicken Pick of the Week - Silver Sebright Bantam

Developed in the early 1800's by Sir John Saunders Sebright of Worcestershire, England as an ornamental breed. The only chicken named after an individual instead of the area or location they were developed.




The Sebright Bantam is a true bantam since there are no larger or standard sized versions. The distinct black edging to their feathers makes their base color pop. The males are "hen feathered" having no pointed feathers in their hackles, saddle or tails. The only distinction between the males and females are the male's rose combs and waddles.




The Sebright Bantams are talkative and friendly and weigh between 22-26oz. The hens lay 50-80 small white eggs. There tends to be a lot of competition when showing the Sebrights and are normally shown by experienced breeders. The Sebright Bantams have two colors, Silver and Golden.

Even with the tough competition, this would be a fun project bird to develop and breed to the Standard of Perfection. Getting the black edging perfectly defined and making the male's rose comb as correct as possible are the challenges.




With their striking appearances and fun personalities, the Sebright Bantam would make a great addition to any chicken enthusiast's flock!




The Hatching House is proud to offer the Silver Sebright Bantam. If you are interested in purchasing the Silver Sebright Bantam or any of our great breeds, check out our website at www.TheHatchingHouse.com.




Thank you!

Chicken Pick of the Week - Silver Partridge Orpington

The English Orpington is a breed that was created around 1869 by William Cook of Orpington, Kent, a suburban town located in Southern England. The Black Orpington was the first Orpington developed by Cook in 1886.

The Orpington is considered one of the best dual-purpose chickens. They lay eggs year round and are a great meaty table bird.

Throughout the late 1800’s and into the early 1900’s, William Cook and his family continued to develop the different colors of Orpingtons – white, buff, diamond jubilee, spangled, cuckoo and the blue. Cooks legacy continues to this day with more and more colors being developed by various breeders based on Cook’s original creation.

The Hatching House is proud to offer several colors of the English Orpington. Our birds are English born or of direct decent of English birds and follow the standards by The Poultry Club of Great Britain. The English Orpingtons are a heavy and broad-bodied bird with a low stance. They are abundantly feathered which gives them a larger appearance than their American cousins. The down from the body covers most of the legs, which is another English feature.

Our Chicken Pick of the Week is the Silver Partridge Orpington, which is a new color to the United States. With it’s light and dark silver partridge feathers and majestic look, this bird will add some class to the enthusiast’s collection.

If you are interested in purchasing the Silver Partridge Orpington or any of our variety of chickens, please go to our website www.TheHatchingHouse.com.

 

Thank you!

Chicken Pick of the Week - Old English Game Bantam

A bird that was originally bred for fighting, the OEGB is a small, but hearty bird. They are very proud and talkative. Their descendants were brought over to England by the Romans in the 1^st century A.D. where they were predominantly used for “cock fighting” until the sport was banned in England in the mid 1800’s. The breed was brought over to the U.S. in the 1800’s in order to preserve the breed. The OEGB’s of today are pretty much identical to their predecessors from 2000+ years ago, except for their smaller size. It is rumored that former U.S. Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln kept OEGB's and even may have fought them in the White House. The OEGB's were breed to be a smaller version of the original birds. This smaller size made it easier for one to conceal in their coats in order to avoid the police if they were to practice illegal fighting. 

The OEGB are now kept as pets and are especially popular for showing. They come in a variety of colors. They weigh 1.5 to 2lbs and the hens lay a small off-white egg. They are very friendly and personable. They are also very good flyers which makes them adept at getting away from predators.

The Hatching House is proud to offer the Silver Duckwing Old English Game Bantam. If you are interested in ordering the Silver Duckwing OEGB then go to our website at www.TheHatchingHouse.com.

Chicken Pick of the Week - German Vorwerks

The German Vorwerk is easily recognizable by it's black head, hackles, tail and buff body. It originated in Hamburg Germany in the early 1900's by Oskar Vorwerk. The Vorwerk was developed to be an all around utility bird for both egg laying and a traditional table bird.

The Vorwerk is a great choice for new chicken owners due to it's cooperative nature, a good starter bird for showing and considered and easy keeper as chickens go.




The Vorwerk hens weigh around 5.5lbs and lay around 160 to 190 cream colored eggs per year.


The Hatching House are proud to offer a pure German Vorwerk, not to be confuse with the similar looking Golden Lakenvelder. We offer both Black and Blue Vorwerks.


If you are interested in ordering the German Vorwerk, go to our website www.TheHatchingHouse.com.

Chicken Pick of the Week - Russian Pavlovskya

The Russian Pavlovskya is one of Russia’s oldest chicken breeds dating back centuries. Thought to be extinct by the late 1800’s, they were raised by residents of the town of Pavlovo, Russia, located about 200 miles East of Moscow.

The Pavlovskya is believed to be the foundation breed for some of the more familiar Polish breeds. The Pavlovskya was brought back from near extinction in the early 1990’s when only one viable Rooster was located. Through selective breeding they were able to re-establish the breed. In 2012 and 2014 Greenfire Farms was able to import the breed to the U.S.

The Pavlovskyas are well adapted to cold climates due to it’s Russian heritage. It has five toes, feathered legs, a crest and a beard. They are a sweet natured and social bird. Considered large fowl, they are not heavy egg layers, laying 2-3 eggs per week. The eggs are white and range in size from medium to large.

The Hatching House is offering the Pavlovskya in a limited supply due to their egg laying limits. Our Rooster “Levi” is direct from Greenfire Farm.

If you are interested in purchasing the Russian Pavlovskya go to our website www.TheHatchingHouse.com/pavlovskja

Chicken Pick of the Week - Cream Crested Legbar

Developed in Britain in the 1930's the Cream Crested Legbar is a medium-sized bird that lays blue eggs. A great breed for hatcheries since they are also "auto-sexing", meaning that the female chicks are easily distinguished from the male chicks by their feather color.

A popular breed in the United Kingdom, they have only been in the U.S. for less than 10 years. They were originally imported from the UK by Greenfire Farms located in Florida.




Less broody than other breeds, the Cream Legbars are active foragers and excellent layers. They average around 260 eggs per year. The Cream "Crested" Legbars stand apart from other Legbar breeds because of the crest the Hen's sport. The feather color of the hens are cream, gray with some possible chestnut coloring and faintly barred throughout. Some salmon color on the front of the neck can also be present.




These beautiful birds would be a great addition to anyone's backyard collection and add some color to your eggs. The Cream Crested Legbars offered by The Hatching House are descendants of the Rees line.




To order the Cream Crested Legbar, go to http://thehatchinghouse.co/products/creme-legbar

The following link is from the recently formed Cream Legbar Club's draft of the SOP on this breed.
http://www.creamlegbarclub.com/29-draft-standard-of-perfection-revision-2