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Why Raise Chickens?
Why Raise Chickens?
The STEM Environmental Education Center staff have been raising chickens for a few years now and we can't imagine living without them! You can get started raising chickens by ordering fertile chicken eggs, an incubator, brooding lamp, chick feeder, and chick waterer from the district's Living Materials Center. One you hatch some eggs with your class you will be hooked! Ms. Schramm kept her first flock in the courtyard of her school and later in her backyard, and now she cares for over a dozen birds here at the center. We have a variety of different breeds from Orpingtons to Wyandottes to Frizzles and a bunch of barnyard mixes in between. Raising chickens can be very fun and rewarding especially with kids. Chicks grow and change so quickly that it's fun for kids to observe and learn about them. Chickens can also be pretty tolerant of being petted and handled when they are raised around kids, with supervision of course. If you're curious about starting your own flock the information below is for you!
Incubating Eggs
Incubating Eggs
If you want to hatch your own chicks you are going to need a quality incubator. You can order fertile chicken eggs, an incubator, brooding lamp, chick feeder, and chick waterer from the district's Living Materials Center. Good incubators create ideal conditions for successful hatching and use aspects of the natural hatching process. For example, the eggs needs to be rotated multiple times a day in order to properly develop. If the eggs were being warmed by the mother they would be jostled about whenever she got up to go eat or readjust herself on the nest. Most incubators have an egg turner feature to turn the eggs for you to mimic this action. The temperature in the incubator should be set at 100-101 °F with humidity set at 35-40%. Check the incubator at least once a day to make sure the temperature and humidity have not changed. You will need to add water every so often because it will evaporate. Three days before the eggs hatch, the egg turner should be removed and the eggs should lay on the wire rack. Most eggs will hatch on day 21 of incubation, but it is not uncommon to have a chick hatch a day or two later. Chicks can stay in the incubator up to 48 hours after they hatch, but we recommend moving them once they are all dried off and fluffy.
Caring For Chicks
Caring For Chicks
Once your chicks are ready to come out of the incubator you will move them to their brooder. The brooder should be set up beforehand so it is ready for your newly hatched chicks. You can create a brooder out of anything so long as the chicks are secure and safe, have access to a heat source, and enough room to move away from the heat source. Teachers have used kiddie pools with brooder kits they purchased online, rubbermaid tubs, and wooden or cardboard boxes. We recommend using a heat lamp with a red bulb to heat your chicks. The lamp should be set to one side of the brooder so if the chicks are too hot they can move away. You can use thermometers to make sure that your brooder is warm enough but with time you will learn to read your chicks. If they are huddled under the lamp they are cold; if they are spreading out on the other side of the box they are too hot. It's pretty simple so long as you are spending time observing their behavior. Chicks are hilarious to watch and are especially cute the first few days. They are usually so exhausted after their great escape from the egg that they will fall asleep eating, playing or just standing up. This brings up a very important point. Offer your chicks water in a VERY shallow dish the first few days. It is not uncommon for chicks to drown in even the tiniest of dishes. Once they are past the the first few sleepy days they are fine drinking from a waterer. You can purchase chick starter feed online or at your local feed store. Many people have strong opinions about buying medicated vs. unmedicated feed but we usually end up giving our chicks a mix of both and they turn out just fine.
Additional Resources
Additional Resources
Storing Fertile Chicken Eggs: 5 Steps to a Successful Hatch
Texas A&M Agrilife Extension - Tips for a Successful Hatch
Texas A&M Agrilife Extension - Hatching Eggs in the Classroom: A Teacher's Guide
How Chickens Develop Inside an Egg
Tractor Supply: Guide to Raising Chickens
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