Baby Chicks 101

Well, its that time of year again!  Tax season!   Ha ha, just kidding.... well it IS, but I leave that stuff to the hubster!  What I'm excited about is the pitter patter of little feet.   Little baby chick feet that is.   Or even ducky feet, or gosling feet. (I'll get into those on another post.)

Have you been thinking about adding fresh eggs to your diet?   There is no more "enriching" way to do it than having your own backyard chickens.   Does the thought seem overwhelming?   Then quit thinking so much... (he he he).  I am not one of those "plan out every last detail" kind of girls.  

(Check out the "Chickens" tab above ↑  and read the story of my first baby chicks here, and then you'll really believe me.) 

Some of our baby chicks hiding behind the waterer.

Most local feed stores start getting in baby chicks about now through April. And my theory is the sooner you get some, the sooner they will grow up and the sooner you'll have eggs.  People worry about raising babies in the Winter, but really thats the best time. You have to have them under a heat lamp for the first few weeks anyway, so it doesn't really matter the outside temps. 

So what kind should you get?   Well... what are your goals?   Are you only interested in keeping birds for the eggs, or do you think you'll enjoy discovering the different breeds and colors, and want some variety to your flock.   Personally, I think keeping chickens is more fun if you have a good variety of birds both for color, and production quality.

Black Star or Black Sex links as they are commonly referred to, are one of my favorites for egg production.
They lay a Jumbo brown egg EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR if conditions are good in the coop. Plus their feed to egg ration is one of the lowest.   Meaning they don't eat as much as other birds, but still produce big beautiful eggs.   Below, one of my Black stars with a few of her babies.   I have at least one or two who go broody (sit on their eggs) every year.

Other good layers with similar qualities include:  Red Star, Rhode Island Red, Black Australorp, White Leghorn, etc.  

I also have a thing for Colored eggs, my favorite being green.   So adding some Easter Eggers, or Americanas as they are often called, is a great idea.  PLUS they lay very dependably as well.     I also like the French Black Copper Marans with the feathered legs for a nice Chocolate colored egg. (Do not buy these from hatcheries or you'll be disappointed in egg color.  Get them from a local breeder.)

About a 3-4 days worth of eggs when we were in full production a few summers ago.   Notice all the color variations?   Green, white, brown, and Chocolate.

The "light sussex" breed is one of my favorites to look at, and they are what is called a good quality, dual purpose bird.   They lay a nice pinkish egg every day, AND have white skin so they make a good table bird as well.  Below are a few examples, left is my favorite rooster ever, a light sussex we affectionately named "foghorn leghorn"... what a specimen!   And on the right a beautiful Lavendar Coronation Sussex, who hatched these adorable babies and raised them for 3 months!  Isn't she beautiful?

 




OK - LETS GET STARTED!
The first question is, where are you planning to keep them until you get a coop built? Or do you already have a coop?  You may think you can keep these critters in a box in the kitchen for now... (and lots of people do) but here are 2 things to think about.

1.) You'll have to clean their box daily if you don't want to be turned off by the smell at dinner time. 
2.) Make sure you have a screen or something on top, they can jump out even at a young age. 

I actually created a little invention for easy care of baby chicks, and I'm sure YOU are totally creative/handy enough to make one yourselves.... here's the basic idea: 

I got a Plastic Container/Box that is pretty big. Like the storage containers at Walmart. You want it at least 12" deep, and get the biggest one you can find, seriously, trust me on this. They outgrow the box so fast. And if you don't want to spend money, just use a Big Cardboard box for now, but if you think you'll EVER do this again, its worth getting the plastic one. Then get a whole 10' or 12' piece of 1/2" PVC and build a frame that fits PERFECTLY into the bottom of the box. You want the four sides, and then you want two supports down the middle, longways, to set the food and water containers on. Then you cover this frame with a piece of 1/2" mesh. Metal or plastic is fine, I prefer the black plastic mesh (in the fencing area of Home Depot) I just used wire ties to attach it.  Also, creating a mesh frame for the top is a good idea, or use an old screen you have lying around.  I know this sounds like a whole lot of work, but let me tell you the benefits of having this. 

 1.) It gives the chicks a sure foundation to grab with their feet.... preventing all the leg problems that can happen with babies. 
 2.) Its a piece of cake to clean. I line the bottom with Newspaper, lay the frame over, and the poop falls through the mesh.  When you need to clean it, you just pull out the frame dump out the box and contents in the trash, (after of course moving the babies to a cardboard box temporarily) and then hose it out if necessary.  Let it dry, or dry it out with a few paper towels and replace the newspaper and frame.
3.) It just makes having chicks more doable in my opinion.

This has been the best setup we've had for small amounts of baby chicks - up to 10 I would say.

If you are going to start out bigger from the get go, I would recommend building a brooder out of wood right from the start.  Its going to function very similarly in that it needs a mesh bottom, and usually I do a mesh front too so the little ones can see the babies well.  Then the other 3 sides out of pressboard (too keep it light weight)  And a hinged top, light weight as well.    The only other thing I do, is run some 2x4's accross the legs under neath, on the inside of the legs, about 2 inches or so under the bottom mesh,  and then I can slide a peice of plywood or pressboard, lined w/ newspaper to catch the poo, and help keep the heat in.

Baby chicks are usually fully feathered by the time they are 4-5 weeks old. If you lift their wings and they have feathers everywhere on their body, they are good, and should be able to regulate their own temperatures at that point as long as they have a place to keep dry.  Of course you wouldn't want to put them out in freezing temperatures, cold turkey... but you can safely introduce them to the cold over the course of a week or two.


WHAT SHOULD I FEED the BABIES?:

It is pretty standard these days to start chicks on chick feed that is laced with Antibiotics.   They claim it keeps them healthy as they are growing, but I personally don't recommend using medicated feed, as I am in favor of natural and where possible, organic feeds.  You'll have to look a little harder to find non-medicated feed, but just ask your local feed store clerks, and get to know them, they can be a great help.   I know the guys in my IFA and Cal Ranch stores by name, and they know me and are happy to help when I come in.   I also go directly to a mill when I have  lot of chickens I'm raising and buy the feed in bulk.

Another option is sprouting wheat, oats and other grains and feeding your birds what is called "fodder."   Do a google search on this for now, and I will do another article on it in the future.   Its a great way to feed your birds healthy nutritious food, and give them a great start.  You can use it as a supplement to regular feed, or in place of it altogether.

WHAT ELSE?:
Other than food, of course your birds will need a clean source of water.   And they are messy critters so you'll likely have to clean and change the water daily.

Also a heat lamp will be helpful in keeping them at an approximate temperature of 85-90 degrees.

Of course you'll need to purchase an inexpensive waterer and feeder from a feed store, or you could order online.   I believe these are all FREE SHIPPING:

A Good Basic Feeder for 8-10 Chicks (Add a Mason Jar)

  A good versatile convertible feeder/waterer order 2 for  a set.

 1 Gallon waterer for larger brooder  12-30 birds.

Larger Feeder for 12+ Birds

My cute niece, gently holding a baby chick.

And this is harsh, but beware of kids....they will love those babies to death if you're not careful. Teach them right away how to hold a baby chick... you wrap one hand gently over the wings and body, then they can't flap the wings. And then pick up the bird and set it on your other hand... keeping the one hand over the top. Show them how hard to squeeze by squeezing their arm with your hand. Tight enough to keep the birds from flapping wings, but not too hard to squish them, right? Its important to keep the wings contained. If they can't move their wings they can't get away. If one of the kids is holding them and they jump out of their hands, they can break their legs, or get hurt. 

Most importantly, HAVE FUN with your adventure!!

Feel free to ask any questions in the comments below, and we can start a discussion.   I have been raising chickens on and off for over 12 years now, so hopefully I can help with any concerns you may have.  

Preparing for an Earthquake w/ the Earthquake Lady!

 According to a KSL news cast on April 17, 2012:


"The infamous Wasatch Fault Line is 240 miles long, extending from Malad City, Idaho south to Fayette, Utah.  The Brigham City, Weber, Salt Lake, Provo and Nephi segments of that fault run through the most populated areas of our state.

At least 23 magnitude seven quakes have hit these segments over the past 6500 years - an average of a big shakeup every 300 years.

"I don't want to say we're overdue, but based on this paleo-seismic evidence and the geologic evidence from trenching the fault, it would not be unexpected for one to happen soon," Koper said.
Tomorrow, five, fifty, a hundred years from now? The experts don't know but say it will happen."

These so called "rumors" of Utah being long overdue for a quake are really more than rumors.  There is much scientific evidence pointing to the likely hood that "the big one" is coming.

This past Thursday, I attended a local presentation about earthquake preparedness.   The presenter was Maralin Hoff, otherwise known as the "Earthquake Lady."  Below are my notes from the meeting as well as photos of her display.   I am also including links to all of the handouts that were given, as they are available on the Utah state website.

Click on Photo to see details

The first thing she discussed was our immediate responses to an earthquake when we feel one starting.  Most of us know to "Take Cover" but it is also important to stay put.   An earthquake can cause an upset stomach, dizziness, nausea, etc.   So you shouldn't try to move about during one, other than to get to a safe area.

Click on Photo to see details

Safe areas include the inside solid walls if you are in a church or commercial type building.  The center wall in home nearest the hall is usually the safest area.  Stay away from window walls or outside walls.

Train your brain to know and get to these safe areas.  Door frames are generally recognized as safe as well as Bathrooms (commercial bldgs.), closets, or hallway.

It is a good idea to go through each room at home with your family and at work with your employees and/or co-workers and talk about which areas are safe.

We have lots of options for protecting ourselves.  But the most important thing is to drop, cover, and hold,  protecting our heads is #1.  If you are under a parking garage go to the nearest pillar.  Pillars are the safe part of the structure.   Maralin jokes that we should hug it and pray-- alot.

Be aware of glass-display cases, etc. in public places.  Picture windows in stores and malls, anywhere that glass can explode from you want to be away.   If you can't get away, at least turn your back to the glass so if it shatters your face and organs are protected.

If you are in a basement go to center of it.  Furthest away from outside windows.  Stairs are weak and could collapse.  As part of preparing your home for an earthquake, you should secure stairs with "L" brackets from the hardware store.   Check basement windows to make sure they will open in an emergency.  They used to tell us to get under the beds but now they say don't get under the beds-that's a no-no now.   Because if you are under the bed and something falls next to it, you could be pinned from getting out.  Stay away from fireplaces and chandeliers.  Securing water heaters with heavy metal straps should be #1 on our homework list in order to prevent gas leaks and fires during earthquakes.    Bookcases should also be secured to walls with brackets.

If you are outside stay outside find an open area out from under power lines, away from trees and buildings.  If you're at the store squat down and put your head under the basket. Or turn the basket sideways and crawl in.  If you have a baby or young child put them in first and then stick your head in.
Stores like Bed Bath Beyond, Costco etc are stocked to Ceiling.  Wouldn't want to be in that store when the earth starts moving.   

If you are driving you may not know you're in an earthquake right away. Things will happen in slow motion.  You should pull off to the side of road and stay in your car.  Check for wires up above and make sure you are not underneath a possible falling power line.

Freeways will become parking lots.  Authorities have asked that you  do not abandon your vehicle on a main Road, especially on the freeway.   Be patient  UDOT will get the cars moving.  You may have to wait for hours but eventually they will want you to be there to move your car.

Click on Photo to see details

It's always important to have an emergency kit in your car.  Some of the most important items include flashlight(s)-crank style or battery operated.  An umbrella, shovel (snow shovel in utah).  Blankets-emergency, wool, flannel, mylar.  And most importantly, water.  You should always keep comfortable walking shoes in the vehicle as well.  Whistles are an imperative item.   If you are always carrying one, you can more easily alert rescue crews to your location.   Ladies- keep a whistle in your purse.  Men in your briefcase or wallet.  Keep whistles everywhere.   They can even be tied to zipper pulls on school backpacks.  You can wrap things in mylar to stabilize temperatures such as the water in your cars.   

Click on Photo to see details

When creating emergency kits, its a good idea to get together with friends and neighbors and try to order things in groups.   Don't order pricey pre-made kits when you can get items affordably--dollar stores have lots of great items.   If you need medications - take them with you everywhere.  

Include the basics in your kit and then add your personal items.  Ie:  Sanitary items for women and girls, etc.  Cell phones don't usually work during an emergency.  However  texting may work.

Do not store emergency kits in the basement.  They should be on the main level or in the garage easy to grab and go.   Kids can have kits in bedrooms under beds w/ handle sticking out .

Keep track of kit expirations on a Calendar  ie: batteries, food, etc,  so that you remember to regularly update consumable items.

Kids Kits should grow with them.  Be sure to update toys and reading items to reflect their current interests.  

I'm sure there are many more tips and ideas included on the website in the following handouts:


Your Guide to Personal and Family Preparedness
Emergency Plan
72 Hour Kit Checklist
Car Survival Kit
Childrens Activity Book
Disaster Preparedness for Seniors
FEMA Guide for Citizens Preparedness

Emergency Porta-Potty Kit
Animal 72 hour kit
Animal First Aid Kit

For more information, links and flyers please visit:
http://beready.utah.gov

What do I do without electricity?

   About 9:30 on Sunday morning the lights flickered, dimmed, and went out completely.   The AC came to a screeching halt, and the entire house went silent as all of the noise from running fans stopped abruptly.  "You've got to be kidding me," I thought.   Exactly one week to the day since the boil order was lifted on our water supply.  Seems we have been blessed with all sorts of opportunities recently to test our preparedness skills. We began to think about how this would affect us.  I claimed the first shower, just in case the hot water went cold before the the tanks could heat again, and then I remembered we have gas water heaters.  :-) We wondered if church would be cancelled if there was no power in the building, and hubby started dragging out the solar panels we haven't had a chance to set up yet.  {Notice the shade tree directly over them... ha ha.}  

     Truthfully that kind of made me laugh because we didn't even know yet if this would be a long term outage.   And there's wouldn't be enough power coming from those to run a freezer, which was my biggest immediate concern.  Freezers will continue to keep your food frozen for quite a long time if you don't open the doors.   But in a long term outage, most food would begin to thaw within 12-18 hours.  Requiring cooking up of any meats, and other foods.   Canning of vegetables, and tossing out ice cream and popsicles.     We have tons of Goat milk in our freezer that wouldn't be good for anything but Cheese or soap.   And truthfully, I'm not prepared for the amount of work it would take to salvage/process all of this.

     We have had a heat wave lately as well, and it was already over 80 outside at 9am so I knew the house was going to heat up pretty quickly.   The Solar panels might power a few fans, but ultimately, we'd have to start living in the basement to keep cool.   I had noodles boiling on the {gas} stove in preparation for dinner, which was actually a good thing, because I had contemplated using my electric pressure cooker that morning, and decided against it.   But all of this ads heat to the room quite easily.

   I also rather enjoyed the fact that within minutes, people were posting on Facebook about the outage from their smart phones with internet contracts.   The whole neighborhood was out of power and we still have Facebook.   Kind of oxymoronic in a cool sort of way.   And I don't discount the usefulness of Facebook in times of emergency either.   It was how the city kept in contact with us about the water issues as well, and how I found out the boil order was lifted.  Its sort of our latest source for local news and information.   And tidbits spread like wildfire, so its really an effective means of checking on everyone and spreading the updates.

    I know you are used to very informative updates from me, but this one is just intended to make you think.   What would YOU do if you had a long term power outage?   Are you prepared to carry on?   Would you be able to cook, eat, keep warm/cool?   Are there things in your house that could/should be changed replaced to accomodate such a situation?  Ie:  having a gas rather than electric stove, water heater, etc. etc.

     I'll ad more to this topic as time goes on.   We can discuss alternate power options, energy efficiency ideas and more.  In the meantime, I'm super grateful that my power was only off for 2 hours and 3 minutes.  :-)   Have a great week!

     

Preparing a 72 hour kit - Do you have one?

Many preppers begin the journey by focusing on food storage.  While this is a worthwhile pursuit, I would say its almost MORE important to have a well-stocked 72 hour kit FIRST.  When emergencies or even regional disasters strike many people are unable to get to their food storage and other preparations as quickly as they would like to either due to building collapses (earthquakes), or in the case of an evacuation for fire or flood.  For these reasons, it is necessary to have a 72 hour kit within easy access that you can grab on your way out.  This food and other necessities will sustain you during the most stressful time of an incident, which is thought to be during the first 72 hours.

There are many different kinds of kits you can make, and also several available for purchase in emergency supply stores, warehouse stores, and even online.  The 2 I choose to have are as follows:  1) A large Emergency Kit with enough supplies for the whole family, tucked into a rolling garbage can for portability.    2) Several small individual kits in backpacks kept in garage or cars.

What items should I have in my 72 hour kit? Below is a list I've compiled of many different things.  You may consider some of these things optional, I am just including a comprehensive list of ideas for things you may possibly need.

9 meals for each person.  Ideas include:
Soups, canned or dehydrated
Instant Oatmeal packets
Applesauce/Fruit Cups
Canned pastas in sauce
Hot Cocoa Mixes
Granola Bars
Protein bars
Cereals/Crackers
Trail Mix
Dried Fruits
Candy/Gum
Canned Tuna, Beans
Beef Jerky
Water for 3 days

Dishes/ Untensils, and Napkins
Can Opener if your food requires it
Pocket Knife
Rope
Duct Tape
First Aid Kit
Emergency Radio
Medications, inhalers, etc.
Portable Stove & Fuel
Fire starter (Matches or Flint and Steel, lighter)
Flashlight & Extra Batteries
Change of Clothing
Blankets/Sleeping Bags
Tarp or Tube Tent
Sanitary Supplies for Women
Toiletries, soap, shampoo, razor, brush etc.
Roll of Toilet paper (Can be flattened and put in a zip loc)
Extra diapers for Infants
Formula for Infants
Toothbrushes/Toothpaste
Notebook & Pen
Coloring book & Crayons for young children
Personal Documents - Copies of Drivers license, Marriage & Birth Certificates, Insurance Policies, etc.
Cash and Emergency Credit Card
Recent Family photo
Emergency Rain Poncho

For more ideas, see:
FEMA Disaster Supplies List
2 Person 72 Hour Kit in Backpack
Augason Farms 11 Day Grab and Go Emergency Food Supply

Just so you can see, the outside of my can was pretty dirty from hanging around the yard for several years.   But everything inside was clean and dry because I vacuum sealed most things, and Packed clothing and blankets in "Space Bags."