My Chirpy Chicken Coop

      Fresh Egg Anatomy May 30, 2021 (Hamilton's fresh egg cracked open into a bowl!) In my last post, I reviewed the basic anatomy of an egg. We all know that an egg is comprised of a shell, and then inside there's the yolk and the white. But an egg is actually oh-so-much-more than that! The anatomy of a fresh egg is pretty fascinating. Do you know that an egg has every nutrient needed to for life except  Vitamin C? Do you know that the white takes up about two-thirds of the volume of the contents of the eggshell and the yolk takes up the remaining one-third? And the yolk contains about half of the protein in an egg, the majority of nutrients, but also most of the fat. Do you know what the thin twisted strands are that you sometimes find in an egg? Or why the "white" is  sometimes clear and sometimes cloudy? Or how about the blood spot you sometimes find on the yolk? Albumen (Egg White) An egg white contains protein, as well as niacin, riboflavin, magnesium, p...

      Egg Anatomy May 23, 2021   (An egg laid by Angelica!) Most of you probably eat eggs regularly. They are nutritious and an inexpensive, versatile protein source. You probably crack the shell and let the insides plop into your fry pan or mixing bowl without a second thought. But did you ever wonder what exactly is inside that eggshell? Or sometimes see red spots or squiggly white strands inside and wonder what they are? Well, wonder no more.  An egg is comprised of several components including: the bloom, the shell, the membrane, the white, and the yolk. It's pretty amazing that a chicken manages to lay an egg roughly every 26 hours and within each egg is a self-contained beginning of new life, if the egg is fertile (more on that later), that contains every nutrient necessary for life except Vitamin C. Commercially sold eggs are candled before heading to grocery stores, they're generally not all that fresh, and they aren't fertilized, so you might never see ...

      All About Eggs May 16, 2021 (A carton of 24 of our hens' fresh eggs!) In this post, I'm going to share everything you ever would want or need to know about eggs. Myths such as believing that a blood spot on the yolk of an egg indicates fertility, that chickens need a rooster present in order to lay eggs, or that feeding a chicken garlic will make hers egg taste like garlic will be busted. Read on for more facts and fiction about eggs! The color of an eggshell is dictated by a hen's breed and genes (not by the color of her earlobes!). A hen lays the same color egg her whole life.  The color of the yolk is dictated by a hen's diet. Foods containing xanthophyll such as corn, marigolds and alfalfa help make egg yolks a vibrant orange color. The white of a fresh egg will be thick and gloopy.  As the egg ages, the white will start to get runny and thin. The number on a carton of eggs indicates the date the egg was packaged (i.e. 306 stamped on the carton means t...

     Common Herbs & Their Health Benefits May 9, 2021 (A pic of our herbal thyme shrub!) Culinary herbs are easy to grow and have amazing health benefits for both you and your chickens. Herbs and edible flowers look pretty and smell nice. They can help keep bugs and rodents out of your coop, aid in poultry overall health and well-being, providing essential vitamins and minerals, and also work to support the respiratory, digestive and circulatory systems. All of the culinary herbs are perfectly safe to use around the chickens, so there's no worry about any being toxic or harmful to them. (CAUTION: I would add a note of caution when using essential oils because they are extremely concentrated and can actually be harmful if you don't use them correctly.)  Stick with fresh herbs as much as possible, used dried when you don't have fresh, and toss a variety of herbs into your coop and nesting boxes any time you trim your herb plants. Here is a quick reference of some o...

     The Health Benefits Of Herbs For Chickens May 2, 2021 (An overhead pic of our herb garden!) Almost every culinary herb (plus spices and many common flowers such as roses, nasturtium, bee balm, etc.) has amazing health benefits for both humans and animals. You can grow a wide assortment of herbs to use in cooking and also in conjunction with raising your chickens. Many are perennials, such as lavender, mint, thyme and pineapple sage, or reseed themselves like dill, parsley and cilantro, so you can just add a few more annuals, such as basil, marjoram and sage each spring to achieve a varied selection of herbs. You can put fresh herbs in the nesting boxes to calm laying hens, repel insects and rodents and add an aromatic scent to the chicken coop. You can brew herbal tea for our chicks and ducklings to give them a good start in life and also for our laying hens - warm in the winter, iced in the summer. You can put fresh herbs in chick brooders for the newly hatched litt...