BENEFITS THAT WE OBTAIN WHEN GROWING CHICKENS AT HOME
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There are several points that must be taken into account before starting to raise chickens. No need to hurry, you have to evaluate why and how.
Newborn chickens are fragile creatures, but with enough care, you can help them reach maturity, whether you're interested in having a few as pets, use their meat for consumption or keep chickens to take advantage of their eggs. Actually, only the first one is of high risk for the survival of the chicks. Once they learn to eat on their own, they will no longer need constant vigilance and as long as you keep the place where they live in optimal conditions they will surely have good health.
Start by preparing the place where you will live, before buying them (or if you have a hen that is brooding for the first time, before they hatch.
As it is your first time raising chickens, we recommend you do not try to improvise an outdoor place, but use a shed or your garage. The reason is that the chicks will need a constant temperature from the moment they arrive, as close as possible to 30 ° C
You will have to seal the doors and the windows of the space that you prepare as room for the chicks. This will prevent air currents from entering that alter the temperature that is so crucial for them.
As there will not be many opportunities for ventilation during the first week, it is important that you thoroughly disinfect the floor and walls. The presence of fungi and bacteria could end the life of your chickens in this stage of extreme fragility.
Once the place is disinfected, cover the floor with a layer of wood shavings, sawdust or rice husk. It must be between 8 and 12 cm high to help it conserve the natural heat of the chicks.
As for the extension of the place, if you want to maintain the best living conditions for your chickens, try to have one square meter reserved for every five chicks. Professional breeders can keep up to 12 chickens per square meter in good condition, but in your case, to avoid infections and lose control in the hygiene of the place, five is the figure recommended at the beginning.
If the place where you live is cold, a 60 to 120 watt lamp may be necessary to raise the temperature to the required 30 ° C. Remember to place it in a place out of reach of the chickens so they do not spend too much time in a very hot place.
Instead, your feeder should be a little longer so that the food is distributed in a row where many chicks fit without piling up to get their food. The first few days, a commercial feed mix for baby chickens may be the best solution (formulas include vitamins and probiotic agents to strengthen your immune system).
From the second week you can alternate the food with ground corn grain (shortly after oats, and finally wheat). A varied diet helps your nutrition.
From the fifth week, a little bit of chopped vegetables, bread crumbs and small insects will complement their diet so that they have more proteins and fats together with carbohydrates.
After the first week you can remove the rags and papers with which you have sealed the doors and windows. A little fresh air will help the chickens make their transition to the outside world.
The first 15 days you should also notice that the chickens do not have excrement stuck in their tail. This will prevent them from defecating and they may die from a collapse of their digestive tract.
For the second week you must have built a small fold or transportable pen: a bottomless mesh box and a small access door is ideal. Place on a part of the mesh a piece of cloth to generate shade.
Open the door of the garage or the shed where you have the chickens for an hour of the day so that they can go directly to their chicken coop, and begin to explore life under the sun. As the days go by you can allow them to leave for longer.
If the room you live in does not directly connect to a patio or garden, you can transport them carefully to the henhouse by letting them climb into a box lined with sawdust (on several trips, if necessary).
The part covered with a cloth is for them to choose between sun and shade as their bodies need at that moment.
As the time passes, the chickens will need more food. Let them eat because by then they will already know how to interpret the signal of their digestive system.
If you have more than 6 weeks you have done a good job, are already on track to live their usual life expectancy, which averages from 5 to 7 years.
The chicken vendors, however, will ask for your young at an age that seems a bit cruel, ranging from 7 to 14 weeks. Well, it's sad, but if you raised them to sell them you have to do it when the time comes.
If you want to keep the females, from 5 months your chickens can start to eat ground eggshell with other foods to favor the firmness of their eggs (some start to lay eggs from that age, others will take a few more months, maybe until the next spring)
BENEFITS OF CREATING CHICKENS AT HOME
You do not need much to know how to care for chickens or chickens. You feed them, clean the excrement, pick up the eggs and go. Do not disturb, do not break your furniture and you should not bathe them.
ARE FOOD SOURCES
If you are of the idea of raising your own chickens to eat them, that's fine, otherwise, you can also have them just for the eggs. Both possibilities are valid when deciding to raise chickens. Each hen lays approximately one egg per day.
YOUR EGGS ARE MORE NUTRITIVE
Several studies have shown that eggs from backyard chicken coops are more nutritious and healthier than those purchased. They contain a higher concentration of vitamins A and E, Omega 3 and less cholesterol and saturated fats.
THEY ARE GOOD FOR YOUR PLANTS
The manure of your chickens and chickens is an excellent fertilizer for the soil of your garden. In addition, they will eat all the insects and weeds that they find. Are fabulous!
RAISING THEM IS ECONOMIC
You do not need a lot of money to raise chickens, only a certain initial investment (which is not large) to buy chickens and build a chicken coop. The food is not that expensive nor do they need so much per month.
THEY ARE GOOD FOR CHILDREN, ELDERS AND NOVATOS
Poultry can become an ideal agricultural project for any type of person. Children will be taught about responsibility, the elderly can develop an activity according to their limitations and novices can feel the gratification of a job well done with this simple activity.
THEY'RE ENTERTAINING
THEY ARE GOOD MASCOTS
You do not have to be Joey or Friends Chandler to have a pet chicken. Everyone can! It can even be a good option to other traditional pets for your children.
SOURCE:
https://www.vix.com/es/imj/hogar/148154/beneficios-de-criar-pollos-en-casa
http://propollos5c.blogspot.com/2015/02/como-criar-pollos-en-tu-casa.html
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