Chicken Basics
Are you ready to get started with chickens?
You've thought about getting chickens, but ...
you're just not sure if they will take too much time or be too expensive or be too challenging to care for.
- Where is the best place to buy chicks?
- How many chickens do I need to produce all of our eggs?
- Confused about what type of coop you need?
- Afraid predators will kill your chickens?
- Do chickens need vaccines?
- What do chickens do in winter?
- Not sure what to feed your chicks?
- Worried that keeping chickens will cost a small fortune?
- How long do chickens lay eggs?
The good news is that with the right information, chickens are easy to care for. If you can take care of a pet cat, you can take care of chickens.
There's a reason people call chickens the gateway livestock!
But a lot of people make it harder than it should be. You can avoid expensive mistakes like ... over-building your coop and winding up with sick chickens or wasting money on supplements that chickens don't need.
What will you learn in this course?
- Pros and cons of breeds
- Where to buy chicks
- Getting started with day-old chicks
- Building or buying a coop
- Fencing and chicken runs
- Keeping chickens safe
- Chicken health
- How to handle eggs
- Raising chickens for meat
- Selling eggs and meat
Course Curriculum
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StartWhere to brood chicks
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StartPutting Cornish Cross Chicks in a Horse Water Trough (1:47)
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StartSheep and Goat Water Trough (Tank)
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StartPutting Heritage Chicks in a Trough Brooder (1:55)
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StartHover Brooder
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StartMoving Cornish Cross Chicks to the Hover Brooder at 1 Week (1:48)
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StartCardboard Box
Your Instructor
In 2002, Deborah and her family moved to 32 acres on a creek in the middle of nowhere to grow their own food organically. With the help of goats, sheep, pigs, and poultry, they produce 100% of their meat, eggs, and dairy products, as well as a large percentage of their vegetables, fruit, and herbs. They sold chickens and turkeys for more than 10 years, and are currently a licensed egg producer in Illinois and sell eggs to a grocery store and through a CSA.
Deborah is the author of six books, including Homegrown and Handmade, Ecothrifty, and Raising Goats Naturally, as well as her latest book, Goats Giving Birth. She also teaches sustainable agriculture courses online for the University of Massachusetts - Amherst. She has been teaching Raising Dairy Goats Sustainably since 2013 and Pastured Poultry since 2015.
In 2022, Deborah got certified as a FAMACHA instructor so that she and her students could feel confident that she was providing the most up-to-date information on parasite research and management.