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Here at mycountrystore.co.uk we have put together a small beginners guide to keeping chickens….
Is it easy looking after chickens?
Keeping chickens is extremely easy and requires a small amount of knowledge on how to keep them happy and healthy. You can pick up many tips and tricks online including beginners guide videos on YouTube. We think having a Caring For Your Chickens Guide to hand is also extremely useful, fold back important pages for quick access and having the ability to look up answers to the questions you may have without having to fire up the PC.
What do I need to keep chickens?
The current rules to keeping chickens as set out by the UK government are:
What food should I feed my chickens?
There are all sorts of chicken food available to buy, our top selling chicken feed is Heygates Country Layers Pellets which is fortified with all the vitamins and minerals needed for a happy and healthy chicken, also added calcium to keep eggs strong, accompany this with our Heygates Mixed Corn for there daily treat (not to be fed together)
There are also treats you can buy for chickens including hanging poultry peckers, and various others such as, popcorn, mega pecker blocks, & nutri peck blocks. Alongside this, being natural foragers, they will look for anything else from the ground keeping a balanced and full nutritional diet.
Can I feed my chickens kitchen scraps?
Believe or not, you cannot feed your chickens kitchen scraps unless your household is completely Vegan. This is to do with giving your chickens contaminated food which may include other animals and refers back to the BSE crises we had in the 1980s (mad cows disease).
If you grow your own vegetables in the garden, if you pick these vegetable and cut or peel them before taking them into the kitchen, this is allowed but once they have gone into the kitchen they cannot be then given to chickens as scraps.
Do I need specialist feeders?
Not really you can use anything bowl/trough however the best way to keep feed is a chicken feeder & drinker, this ensures that feed is kept dry and also waste is kept to minimum thus discouraging vermin, we have hooded feeders and treadle feeders available in online and in-store.
How big should My Chicken Coop be?
Providing there’s enough space for your chickens to perch and lay eggs, chickens coops don’t need to be enormous, purchase a chicken coop which suits and fits the size of your garden. Remember chickens will be mostly outdoors whilst the sun is up, and will only retreat to the coop when the sun goes down or to lay an egg.
Do I need any specialist worming medicines or supplements?
It is good practice to keep your chickens worming up to date, alongside other preventative treatments for all other ailments. Red Mite/Louse, scaly leg, amongst many others. Poultry Wormers are to be prescribed by Michael our qualified RAMA (Registered Animal Medicines Advisor) who will be happy to help.
How many chickens can I keep in my garden or field?
The most you can keep is 50 birds, once you get over 50 birds you must register with DEFRA (which is free of charge). The reason for this is if there are any notifiable avian outbreaks everybody can be contacted quickly with all the appropriate advice needed.
If you have any more questions about chickens or would like advice on worming your chickens or any other issues, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01432 345321, we have a specialist on site who would be more than happy to chat with you.
Michael is our on site farming and poultry specialist.
Can advise and dispense on all VPS medicines covering companion, equine, farming & poultry.
He also keeps over 70 chickens!
