by Melissa Caughey of Tilly’s Nest
Did you know…
that toenails and beaks each have a blood supply and will bleed when injured or cut too short?
that some chicken breeds have 5 toenails on each foot?
chickens were first domesticated in India?
there are more chickens in the world than any other bird?
fear of chickens is called Alektorophobia?
that using a kitty litter scoop helps to clean out the nesting boxes in a jiffy?
that chickens are omnivores?
that chickens have their own language that has been studied by scientists?
chickens can breed with turkeys?
chickens recognize each other by the shape of their combs?
chickens can live to 20 years of age?
that the dance roosters perform for hens is called “tidbitting”?
according to scientists, a rooster’s larger wattle is thought to attract the hens?
Do you have any other facts you have learned along that way? If so, feel free to share them in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you!
Photo Credits: Tilly’s Nest
28 Comments
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This post is related with what I’m concerned with and it’s fantastically made.
I need advice. I have had chickens most of my life but this is my first attempt at having a hen sit on eggs. Well today one of them hatched! Very exciting!! I have her nest in a plastic milk crate and separated from the rest of the flock. She has access to food and water. My question is, the chick would not be able to get out of the crate. Should I revise the setup so that it can get to the food and water? The hen is still sitting on about 10 eggs along with the chick.
Thanks for any help!
Jeannette O.
jlo58@live.com
Eggs laid on Good Friday do not rot. They need no refrigeration and will eventually dry out. I have been keeping eggs from Good Friday for almost 25 years, and have never had one rot. Would not want to try that with an egg laid any other day! I just make sure the nest boxes are empty by midnight and gather what’s laid that day. Keep them in egg cartons above fridge. They also claim if you have a Good Friday egg in your house it won’t be struck by lightning. Living in the mid west with lots of T-Storms, have had trees struck and electric fences taken out, but never hit the house…so perhaps that is true too??
I love the way my girls come when called, even if they are almost 1/4 of a mile away (which they shouldn’t be, ‘cos that’s the neighbor’s – naughty girls!)It is so funny to see all 5 of them running at top speed, legs akimbo, like mini ostrich, sometimes flapping to keep up with the faster ones. I also love how they will cuddle, or squat to be petted. As soon as they spot me at the door or window, they come running, and what a range of language they have! I’m lucky not to have had a mean one yet, even when broody, just the chuck chuck chuck when shoved off the nest. My girls accompany me and my dog Lilly when we walk around the yard – quite a sight to see.
I am envisioning the whole scene! I LOVE it!
chickens have an alpha male and female. just like a pack of dogs. the others look to the top dog for instructions on what is going on in the flock. like the top male and female will issue a warning sound if a hawk gets too close. if there is no male the female will take on the position of the male in all sense of the job. they will even crow. generally females do not crow in the presence of a male or group of males.
Oh yes! The hierarchy is quite incredible. I love to watch the flock.
Fun fact I just learned today: Egg cartons were invented in 1911 by Canadian Joseph Coyle in order to settle a dispute between a farmer and a buyer who was complaining about his broken eggs.
Great one! Thank you for sharing. I just learned something new 🙂
I really enjoy reading all the fun stuff that get published by this mag.
Our 7 Girls are doing rally good in our back yard coop and pin.
David and Susan
Brandon fl
We’ve found out that they LOVE tuna
Cool! I did not know that.
i read about the squirt gun here and have been using it with my aggressive rooster….works like a charm, and he isn’t being hurt by it (except his pride….).
i read in a chicken column somewhere that chickens are anatomically unable to eat grass. this fellow was quite adamant. wellllll mine run out of the coop and start eating grass every day like mini cows!!
and people get freaked out when i tell them i’m giving my chicks hard boiled eggs, shell and all, chopped into small pieces. it’s really good for them and they love it.
I used a squirt bottle to train my parrot so it was a natural step to use in on the hens. I love to squirt the rooster. He can’t figure out where it’s coming from and runs around charging the girls. I guess he thinks they are doing it.
We read about one lady who used a squirt gun to stop chickens from pecking on the new ones or each other. We were given two girl, Laverne and Shirley by our daughter. They lay wonderful big brown eggs. Then we caught a pullet who is now with them. It was Shirley who didn’t want her with them. Laverne and Shirley have been together since hatched. We got a squirt bottle and keep it out by their pen. The three are doing pretty good and know that when I pick up the bottle that they had better behave. So far so good. Looking forward to seeing “Gracie” grow and produce more eggs. Love the comments and yes the squirt bottle does work. Thanks .
Hooray! What a clever piece of advice.
Chickens are a great help when planting your garden. They’re more than happy to taste test every plant!!!!!
Wonderful! Yes, they are amazing in the gardens. My girls love to help dig in the soil. Sometimes in places where I don’t want them to go :0
Fact (verified by me) that if chickens were the size of horses, they’d be at the top of the food chain.
All eggs start out blue prior to being laid
These are great! I am SO glad they are not at the top of the food chain. I think they would behave like dinosaurs!
Who knew before you got chickens that they would be great cuddlers lol
Yes! I completely agree!
Been using a litter scoop ever since we got the girls. It works great!
Love to hear that you also find it helpful. It think it is so great to have a place to share our tips with one another.
I also have been using a kitty litter scoop since I started with chickens. One thing I use it for is to lift mean hens up off eggs to collect. I have to broody hens that are meaner than a rattle snake :). Of course I also use it for a pooper scooper
Very interesting! Thanks for sharing. A friend shared with me that there are three times more chickens than people in the world!!!!
Wow! That is so cool! Thanks for sharing!