Like most everyone else that has fresh eggs, I struggle with peeling after hard boiling them. I have tried all the traditional and unique approaches. Add baking soda to the water, or some say baking powder—boiling and ice bathing. How about a genuine egg cooker? Have one of those too, not impressed! I’ve attempted steaming […]

Veteran chicken keeper Carrie Miller has some recommendations for 2020 chicken items, based on her experiences. Every year new and improved chicken items come out on the market to help make chicken keeping easier. While some items get better and better each year other items were great from the start and need little to no […]

We recently received a copy of Literary Chickens by Beth Moon and wanted to share a few excerpts with our chicken community. This table read includes several iconic quotes paired with Beth’s beautifully photographed chickens. These striking portraits illustrate a sophistication in poultry that often goes unnoticed. Dr. Jane Goodall gave the book her endorsement and […]

Over the past couple of years I’ve grown to love a few products that help simplify and improve how I care for my flock.  From ducks to turkeys to chickens, I found what works best and a few others that weren’t worth the money spent. Hopefully through our trial and error here on 25 Acres, […]

It’s amazing the bond that can form between humans and animals. The book Rocky Hen, A Life Story by Rosalie Rowe and Nancy Ruiz Depuy beautifully illustrates that relationship. It’s especially refreshing to see a special bond with an animal that is not the traditional dog or cat. Chickens are not your typical pet, though […]

By Jennifer Sartell (This post is not sponsored. The product interested me so I decided to share it with our readers.) A local reader recently got a hold of me and asked if I was interested in taking a rooster off her hands. She lives in a downtown village setting and the law for her […]

Most chicken keepers are pretty passionate about their flock. At the mere mention of chickens you can bet to rile a heartfelt conversation detailing the things they love best about their collection of birds. By the end of the conversation, they’ll probably be trying to convince you to get your own flock. Chicken keepers like […]

Spring has sprung. Birds are singing, froggies are calling, woodpeckers are drumming, and the earth is fairly bursting sending forth tiny green shoots. More daylight means more eggs in my henhouse, too. I head out to the coop in the morning, smell the fresh spring air, and GAA-ACK… …my boots hit mud. It’s spring, but […]

Winter is here. The days are getting shorter and as a result, the chickens need to be secured in their coop earlier and earlier to be safe from nocturnal predators. Chickens are all but blind at night so their ability to escape danger once the sun goes down is pretty much non-existent. One of the […]

Are you thinking (dreaming) of having your own flock of chickens? Do you know someone who has been poring over hatchery catalogs; spending long minutes following chicken websites; sending you all sort of ideas for chicken coops; talking about Orpingtons, Wyandottes, Sex-Link, and Sussex? My friend Jenny has developed the perfect gift, for you or […]