Category Backyard Chickens

Six quick questions to find your chicken keeper type, plus the breeds and tools that fit how you keep a flock.

Ten quick questions on eggs, feed and flock life. Get the answer and the reason after each one, then share your score.

Pick a style and a starting letter and hatch a fresh batch of chicken names: punny, old lady, cute, food, nature, pop culture, rooster and pairs.

Enter your flock and your feed price to see your monthly feed bill, how long a bag lasts and what your eggs really cost per dozen.

Quick answer: in winter, feed chickens the same complete layer feed (about 16% protein) they eat the rest of the year, keep it available all day, and expect them to eat up to 25% more. Add a small handful of…

Quick answer: the best cold hardy chicken breeds are heavy, densely feathered birds with small combs, such as the Chantecler, Buckeye, Wyandotte, Brahma and Dominique, followed closely by Orpingtons, Australorps, Plymouth Rocks and Rhode Island Reds. If you want eggs…

Quick answer: healthy, fully feathered adult chickens can tolerate temperatures well below freezing, and many hardy breeds handle 0°F and colder, as long as they are dry and out of the wind. The real danger is not the number on…

Quick answer: frostbite in chickens shows up as pale, then gray or black patches on the tips of the comb, wattles or toes. Treat it by moving the bird somewhere dry and sheltered, warming the area slowly (lukewarm water for…

Quick answer: the deep litter method means you leave the coop bedding in place and keep adding fresh carbon material, such as pine shavings, on top instead of cleaning it all out. Start with 4 to 6 inches, stir it…

Quick answer: the most reliable way to keep chickens’ water from freezing is a thermostatic heated base or heated waterer plugged into an outdoor-rated, GFCI-protected outlet. Without electricity, swap two rubber waterers morning and afternoon, and use tricks like a…