Nesting Box Bedding

We initially started out with straw in our nesting boxes.  It was a typical bedding material for nesting boxes I was told.  The hens weren't picky about it either.  The problem is...we don't have a place to go with all of the straw and poop.  We have composting bins but we have so many chickens (and each one poops A LOT) that each time we clean out the coop and boxes, our compost bin is almost full.

So, we decided to brainstorm for other ideas that would make good bedding but deteriorate faster when composting.  We have a paper shredder so we thought we would try recycling that paper as a bedding since it would be easier to compost. 

The hens made a nice nest in it and the first day we found 4 eggs in it so I would say that they liked it. 

PROS:
Soft material for nest
Conforms well to how the hens wants it
Free (recycled)
Composts quicker than straw and takes up less room in the compost bin
Pretty easy to scoop out wet or poopy paper

CONS:
Takes quite a bit of paper for one box as it does pat down quickly. 
Stays really wet if I don't change it quick enough
Sometimes sticks to eggs (not a huge deal and I can just pull them right off)

Overall, it seems like this is a good switch but we will have to reevaluate it as we go on a little longer.

Teeny Weeny Egg!

We received a fun surprise when we went to collect our eggs. One of our pullets or possibly a hen coming out of a molt gave us this....

How cute is that???  The picture isn't the greatest, but the egg on the left is a Black Sex Link normal size egg or a "large" egg by grocery store standards.  The tiny egg measured almost 1 1/4 inches long.  It had the dark speckles on the one end just like the Black Sex Link but considering we found them on the same day and we only have 1 Black Sex Link, we are not sure who layed it. 

I did a little research on the internet and most people stated that they get one periodically but there usually is no yolk in it.  There was a website that had some pretty amazing eggs on it with pictures.  I encourage you to check it out because some of them are almost unbelievable.  http://poultryhelp.com/oddeggs.html 

I cracked ours and there was indeed a yolk; however, it was not formed well.  It was not the nice tight yolk but instead one that looked like it had been pricked and leaking out of the membrane.  I regret not taking a picture of the insides but now I know better for the next time our ladies leave a present like this for us!

7 Mixed Breed Chicks for sale

We have 7 chicks that are about 1 1/2 weeks old.  They are mix breeds so I cannot guarantee the breed mix except for the one Turken (aka Naked Neck) which is obvious.  All chicks are healthy and happy. They all come from great egg layers (all of our hens lay almost 1 egg a day).

Each chick is $4
They are unsexed

Here they are in the brooder box.

This is the one Turken mix that we have left.

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Introducing...us!

Hello and welcome to Chicken Crazy in Oregon!

We are what some would classify as an "urban homestead" if one would consider Brownsville to be urban.  LOL

Our family of five is working towards becoming more and more self-sustaining all the time so last year we decided to get few chickens so that we could enjoy some fresh eggs and then also have the chicken poo for compost and eventually our garden.  This is where the craziness all began...

We had so much fun with the three chicks (Rhode Island Red, Barred Rock, Buff Orpington) that each of the kids picked out and then one turned out to be a rooster.  How disappointing!   So, we thought we need to replace that one rooster and get another chick about the same age.  Well, by that time in the summer nobody seemed to be selling chicks.  We found one man selling a pullet so we bought it and then another lady contacted me saying she had chicks. Yeah!  We then purchased 3 chicks from her and low and behold a few months later, 2 turned out to be roosters!  Geez....

By this time, we were loving the chickens, their individual personalities and of course the eggs we were getting every day.  So, we added 2 more hens from a friend, 6 more chicks from another friend and a month later purchased some more hens and chicks.  At this point, we wondering how crazy we were and how much crazier this chicken thing was going to get!

A friend inspired us to incubate and hatch out chicks and that has been a truly amazing experience.  Watching them work their way out of the egg and wobble around for a few hours is fascinating every time.  We STILL get excited for each chick when hatching and the whole family goes to watch it come out into the world.

So, that is where we currently are on our crazy journey.

In the hen house we have the following hens:
Rhode Island Red
Buff Orpington
Black Sex Link
Turkens
Black Copper Marans
Blue Copper Marans

 Turkin and Perry

Black Sex Link hen and Perry eating cabbage

Buff Orpington hen

Blue Copper Marans and Black Copper Marans hens

Our rooster Perry is a Birchen Marans

We have the following "teenagers" in another coop:
1 Black Orpington
1 Splash Orpington
3 Blue Orpingtons

In the "chick" coop (4 weeks old) we have:
1 Black Copper Marans
1 Birchen Marans

I know the one in this picture has really odd coloring, but I'm really curious to see how it turns out.  I'll have to put an updated picture up in a few weeks.

In the "nursery" we have:
1 Turken mix
3 Easter Eggers
5 Birchen Marans
6 Mixed Breeds