Chicken/Turkeys/Geese and Duck

Is Chicken a Healthy Choice?

glendaSeptember 16, 2019

Pasture Raised Chicken is the healthy choice!

Here are the facts:

Pasture raised meat is a great source of Omega 3 fatty acids, carotenoids, vitamin E, vitamin A, and folic acid
Pasture raised chicken has 50% more vitamin A and 100% more omega – 3’s than confinement raised birds
Compared with commercial birds, pasture raised chicken has 21% less total fat, 30% less saturated fat, and 28% fewer calories.
Under USDA guidelines breast meat from pasture raised chicken is so lean it earns the designation, “fat free.”

The National Pork Board conducted a study of the Top 3 Family dinner occasions:

Feeding a Family in a Hurry
Quick, Healthy Meals
Familiar Family Dinners

Here are the protein choices for Feeding a Family in a Hurry (12.6% of meals):

Ground beef 22%
Pepperoni (likely on pizza) 15%
chicken breast 10%

Here are the protein choices for Quick, Healthy Meals (12.4% of meals):

25% Boneless chicken breasts
8% Rotisserie chicken
7% ground turkey and salmon

Here are the protein choices for Familiar Family Dinners (10.7% of meals):

25% ground beef
17% Boneless chicken breast
5% pork chops

You'll notice that chicken is on ALL of these lists. It's not surprising. Chicken Producers have done an incredible job of promoting confinement chicken as healthy protein. Pasture raised chicken is healthier.

Is factory farmed chicken healthy?

Here's a link for the movie, SUPER SIZE ME 2 - Holy Chicken

release date September 13, 2019

Pasture Raised Chicken is the healthy choice!

Best Brooder for Starting Chicks

glendaApril 10, 2019July 22, 2019

Making a Protein Tub Brooder for Starting Chicks

*This article appeared in Tractor Supply Company's, Out Here Magazine*

Murphy's Law of Farming states that, 'The minute your chicks arrive in the spring so will a cold front'. Making a protein tub brooder keeps chicks warm and healthy. A protein tub brooder is a more efficient solution than hanging brooder lights, and a protein tub brooder keeps the heat where it should be; surrounding the chicks. They also create a draft free area with plenty of ventilation.

For years we started chicks under hanging heat lamps. The electric bill reflected the inefficiency.

It's important to have more than one protein tub brooder in case the light in one of them burns out there's another warm area for the chicks.

Each protein tub comfortably houses 10 chicks.

If you're starting turkeys read this to prevent early poult flip over

Supplies:

2 recycled protein tubs or Two muck buckets
2 Brooder Light fixture with wire lamp guard
Lightweight chain
2 *100-watt incandescent bulb or low-wattage heat lamp ( 1 for each bucket)
Pine shavings

* Rough Service incandescent bulbs NOT LED or compact fluorescent

Tools:

Black permanent marker
sharp knife, jig saw, or drill with 4” hole saw

Instructions:

Wash the protein tub or protein tub.
Flip the protein tub over and trace the outline of the brooder light in the center of the bucket's bottom.
Use a sharp knife or jig saw to cut along the outline. Cut the opening slightly smaller than the outline so the brooder light sits securely on top of the bucket.
Next use a jig saw or drill fitted with a 4” hole saw to cut 3 openings, evenly spaced, around the outer edge (which will become the chick's access to the brooder). Cut the holes an inch above lip of the protein tub. It's important to cut more than one entrance to prevent crowding at the opening. Multiple entrances improve ventilation.

Flip the protein tub over. Hang the brooder lamp from a lightweight chain. The chain is for safety, it prevents the lamp from falling inside the brooder. The brooder lamp should fit snugly on top of the protein tub with the lamp and wire guard sitting inside.
Use a 100 watt incandescent bulb or a low-wattage heat lamp in the fixture. Do not use a compact fluorescent or LED light - they do not generate heat. NEVER use a high wattage heat lamp and Never use a heat lamp with straw!

Spread pine shavings throughout the brooder area, both inside and outside the protein tub, to a thickness of 3 inches. Nestle the buckets into the shavings so the chicks can easily enter and exit the protein tub brooder.

Place feed and water outside the protein tub brooder. The chicks will eat and drink freely and go inside the bucket when they need to warm up.

Before your chicks arrive turn on the lights so that it's a comfortable temperature; 95 degrees the first week, reduced by five degrees each week following. Reducing the temperature is as easy as changing the bulb; a 100 watt bulb (or low-wattage heat lamp depending on the temperature) the first week or two. Change to a 75 watt bulb as the outside temperature warms up. Use brooder lamps until the chicks feather out and the outside temperature is comfortable.

Conclusion

Making a protein tub brooder is an efficient way to keep your chicks warm and healthy. This type of brooder is economical and easy to make. A protein tub brooder will last for years.

On our organic farm getting the chicks off to a healthy start is the key to their successful transition into the pasture. We've experienced fewer losses with better growth rates after making this brooder a part of our poultry plan.

This is the Best Brooder for Starting Chicks!

the bet brooder for starting chicks

Need other great ideas for raising healthy hens?

Check out The Healthy Chicken Handbook

Let Your Heart Be Full of Thanksgiving

glendaNovember 20, 2018November 20, 2018

Happy Thanksgiving!

We want to take a moment to let you know how thankful we are for having you as a customer.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Warmest wishes from Forest Hill Farm

A "Corny" Celebration

In New England in 1623, a famine devastated the newly settled Pilgrims. Corn, their primary crop, became so terribly scarce that they rationed it kernel by kernel. Each person was given five kernels a day. That's all! When the famine was finally over, receiving the five kernels of corn became a symbolic ritual. On Thanksgiving Day, people each received five kernels of corn on their plate as a reminder of those hard times - and of their gratitude to God for their many blessings.

The word "thank" comes from an Old English word that means to think. Perhaps we could use this definition to add new meaning to this holiday - this "Thinks-giving."

Thinking people are thankful people. When you sit down to your Thanksgiving dinner, give each person five kernels of corn. Ask individuals to think about each kernel and the blessings it represents:

First kernel- the beauty and bounty of nature God provides.

Second Kernel- our rich heritage of courageous men and women who helped establish this land of freedom.

Third kernel- the work each of us has - in school, at church or on the job - and the privilege of doing it to the best of our abilities.

Fourth kernel- our loved ones, friends, classmates, teammates.

Fifth kernel- God's power and presence throughout our past, present and future.

Make your Thanksgiving celebration a "corny" occasion this year for the whole family. It's a good way to think about how fortunate we really are.

From the Norway Lutheran Church 150th anniversary cookbook, Saint Olaf, Iowa

Turkey Brining Recipe

2 gallons water
1 can apple juice concentrate, thawed
1 cup sea salt
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 TBS peppercorns
1 cup brown sugar
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
3 oranges, cut in quarters

Mix all the ingredients together. Place thawed turkey In a food grade bucket or brining bag. Pour in brine. Refrigerate for 24 – 48 hours. Rinse turkey and pat dry. Bake or smoke turkey according to your favorite recipe.

Let Your Heart Be Full of Thanksgiving!

Welcome a stranger,
Seek out a forgotten friend
Keep a promise
Laugh
Listen
Brighten the heart of a child
Encourage the young
Express your gratitude
Be gentle
Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth
Speak your love
Speak it once again…
And
Let your heart be filled with

THANKSGIVING

Prevent Early Poult Flip-overs

glendaJanuary 3, 2018June 11, 2019

Prevent Early Poult Flip-overs (EPF) in Turkey Poults

How to Raise Turkeys

Each spring, for the past 24 years, we've raised turkey; Royal Palm, Narragansett, Bronze, Bourbon Red, and several others, primarily heritage breeds, though. Occasionally we would find a 2 – 3 day old turkey poult, that appeared perfectly healthy earlier, dead on its back. Researchers believe this is a neurological disorder with a genetic component called Early Poult Flip-overs (EPF). Not one to argue with research, however through observation this issue seems more of a developmental problem.

Here's how to prevent Early Poult Flip-overs (EPF) in Turkey Poults

Our solution is simple, successful, and has eliminated the problem.

Newly hatched turkey's legs are weak, and their bellies big, it's difficult for them to to right themselves. They get stuck on their back, legs paddling, and chirp in distress. If you aren't there to help them they'll die.

If you are going to place newly hatched turkeys in to protein tub brooders wait for one week to ten days and follow this plan instead: Place newly hatched turkeys into a brooder with varying sizes of sticks or small tree branches. If the poults get cast they can right themselves by pushing against the branches. The hatchlings easily navigate through the branches to access feed and water.

After a week or so their legs are stronger, they're out of danger from EPF, and they're ready for the protein tub brooders.

For instructions on making a Protein Tub or Muck Bucket Brooder

look for the article in the Winter 2017 issue of Farming Magazine or the Summer 2017 issue of Tractor Supply Company's Out Here Magazine

Turkeys are easy to raise once you get them past the first few weeks which is a fragile stage for poults.

Are you raising chickens, too?

Check out, The Healthy Chicken Handbook

Poultry Feed

glendaJune 29, 2016June 11, 2019

Poultry Feed

I love this picture. The grasshopper catcher is a perfect example of Necessity being the Mother of Invention. Insects are a great source of protein. Free range poultry fill up on grasshoppers keeping the pests under control. It's a seasonal feast, though. The pioneers solved this by catching grasshoppers in the hayfield and drying them for winter feed. This is just one example of alternatives to corn and soybeans.

Summer through fall our chickens, ducks and turkeys move through the pasture catching insects and eating greens. Take advantage this summer and send the kids outside with a net and a bucket. Let them catch bugs. Have them turn over rocks and look under logs. They'll find plenty to feed the chickens.

A couple of years ago I heard about the benefits of goji berries so I planted some. They're full of vitamins but they taste terrible. Now, instead of using them myself, I dry them for chicken feed. Apparently the chickens don't mind the bitter flavor. Goji berries are easily dried and stored for year round use.

In certain areas of the country its not easy to buy small grains. Here in Iowa corn is king, followed by soybeans. Finding wheat is tough – no one grows it commercially in this area. There's no market for it here. Growing food plots gives the flock both exercise and superior nutrition. Plus, you'll have healthy eggs and meat. A food plot of small grains; wheat, oats, and barley inter seeded with clover and alfalfa provides a balanced diet when grazed green or cut and dried for winter feed. These plots are terrific for growing chicken feed.

This is the time of year to think about feeding the flock in the winter. Learn to sprout grains or grow fodder. The nutritional value of the two is quite different. In sprouted grains the white tap-root is full of enzymes. Once a green shoot develops the enzymes are lost to the sprout, but the green sprout is full of health qualities, too. Your hens will be healthier with the forethought.

And, if you'd like healthy meat and you're not raising poultry yourself we'd be happy to have you as a customer.

Need more great tips on feeding chickens?

Check out The Healthy Chicken Handbook

Muscovy Duck Can Fly

glendaMay 24, 2016

Muscovy Duck Can Fly

Keith hung up the phone, “Are we missing a duck?”

“I don’t think so, why?”

“Robin called, there’s a duck sitting under her pine tree. She said two eagles were attacking it as it flew into her tree this morning.”

Robin lives across the field and down the hill from us. It’s a good distance from our farm.

I checked the barnyard. Sure enough, one of our Muscovy hens was missing. I called Robin back. She explained that she saw two eagles chasing after a white bird. Looking closer she realized they were attacking a duck. The duck flew into the center of the pine’s branches. The eagles alighted at the top of the tree. Eventually the duck fell to the ground and rested under the tree where the branches camouflaged her from the eagle’s view. She sat quietly at the tree’s base.

Earlier in the morning Maisey was sitting under our pine tree barking at a bald eagle perched above her. Miley sat off to the side, eyes fixed on the bird. These two dogs keep the farm safe from predators, however, they're not equipped for airborne assaults. Neither was the duck.

Muscovy duck can fly. They don’t usually fly very far. They’ll fly from the barnyard to the pond or just circle the barn a time or two.

Once the hen was back home we gave her a thorough exam. She’s missing a few primarily flight feathers and was in shock, otherwise she seemed fine.

She’s started laying eggs again. More than likely she’s grounded until her ducklings hatch. So, until then, Maisey and Miley are on guard. Eva and Spike don’t pay attention to eagles and Grant’s the most likely to get carried off. His saving grace is the fact that he’s exceptionally heavy, which is a nice way of saying he’s fat.

Preventing Bird Flu in Your Flock

glendaOctober 20, 2015March 26, 2016

Preventing Bird Flu in your Flock

How to kill tens of thousands of chickens with the flip of a switch

Clean living conditions prevent disease; Sunlight kills viruses, fresh greens boost immunity and exercise improves health. These are the benefits for poultry raised on pasture.

Inside poultry confinement buildings ventilation fans run 24 hours a day. Without these fans the birds die relatively quickly from ammonia fumes and the heat that’s generated from the high density of bodies within the building.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has announced that the federal government is preparing for a bird flu outbreak this fall that could be twice as bad as the one this spring.

The USDA is calling for shutting down the ventilation system if there's another outbreak of Avian Flu. The policy is designed to help farms more quickly keep the virus from spreading.

USDA officials said that teams hired to euthanize birds in Iowa and Minnesota fell behind on destroying infected birds this spring due to the size of the flocks. The new euthanasia policy initiates a 24 – hour “stamping-out.” If no other method of killing would meet the 24 hour deadline federal and state officials, along with the producer, agree to shut down the ventilation system.

For chickens in pasture it's a different story. There is no switch to flip. No ventilation fans to shut down. Just sunshine, fresh air and green grass. Pasture pens are open to allow chickens access to all three. The tops are partly covered to give shade along with protection from the rain. The bottoms are open to the grass. The birds aren’t crowded and they live outdoors during the optimum growing season; May – October.

Before dropping that carton of eggs or package of conventionally raised chicken into your grocery cart the next time you're at the store remember these words from Jo Robinson, author of Pasture Perfect;

“... a chicken that looks stressed and abused on the day of slaughter looks just fine when cut into uniform pieces and wrapped with plastic. The words on the label are targeted to calm any concerns one might have about the meat. This chicken is “Fresh, All-Natural, and Locally Grown!”

Instead of buying confinement chicken make a healthier decision. Find a farmer who raises pastured poultry. The health and taste benefits far surpasses the cost.

Sometimes, I Forget

glendaJuly 20, 2015October 22, 2015

Sometimes, I forget....

...I forget what store-bought eggs taste like, how pale the yolk is.

...I forget that store-bought chicken doesn't have flavor, that the flesh is pale, the texture rubbery. Pastured poultry is superior to conventionally raised in every way.

...I forget that pasture raised pigs don't smell bad, the meat is tender, juicy, and the fat is beneficial.

...I forget that most families don't cook with lard. They've never tasted homemade pie crust or biscuits.

...I forget that walking out your front door to pick cherries, raspberries, gooseberries and apples, from the trees you've planted, is a luxury. It's a special benefit of arranging your life differently than most people choose to do.

...I forget that fresh garden produce is a choice. It's trading your time, planning, and labor in exchange for a plentiful harvest.

I forget that there's nothing sweeter than homegrown peaches or the sight of baby ducklings chasing after a bug.

I forget that most livestock producers don't believe in the restorative powers of MIG grazing. Instead of planning a grazing program they allow their animals to forage randomly. This creates a barren pasture, soil depleted of nutrients, and not enough organic matter or cover crop to control evaporation. These poor decisions, made by many farmers, are a choice. A choice that negatively impacts water quality, wildlife, and climate.

There have been several visitors to the farm recently who've enjoyed the beautiful views and learning about grass based farming. Many of them recall memories of their grandparents farms which were like ours in many ways.

Their grandparents had pigs in the pasture and chickens pecking in the yard. Small orchards provided fruit and cider. Large gardens fed the family and everyone worked together. Picnic tables were sheltered under shade trees where cool breezes relieved the heat of the day.

Sometimes I take for granted that each day is my own. I'm greeted by beautiful surroundings with the people I love and the life we've chosen. Our farming practices are intentionally organic.

The Off-Season

glendaOctober 8, 2014August 25, 2015

The off-season.

As a gardener there comes a day when even the heaviest frost blanket can't offer protection. You resign, relinquishing the garden until spring. Maybe it's because of this resignation, probably not, but nothing could satisfy the melancholy feeling of the garden shutting down like a fresh picked tomato. Fresh tomatoes are gone until next year, this is the off-season.

There's a group of small, like-minded farmers who network together. Barter and trade are frequent among us. Last year we traded a young Gloucestershire Old Spot boar for hen and tom heritage turkey's. This spring the hens were late to set their eggs, some never cycled into egg laying. Talking with a turkey raiser he determined last winter too severe. Turkey hens, regardless of their care, just weren't up to the task of laying, at least not fertile, viable eggs, anyway. That is until this week.

In front of the machine shed door a Narragansett hen sat sunning herself. She puffed her feathers, called in a high-pitched whistle and seven small turkey poults scooted underneath her. Doesn't she know this is the off-season?

Later in the day I collected pumpkins for the sows and boar. Among the vines and fruit another Narragansett hen is sitting on a clutch of eggs. One of the Muscovy hens hatched eggs last week. Five ducklings follow here through the pasture every afternoon. We haven't found where she's hiding her brood, hopefully a weasel or owl won't find them either.

The peach trees, all but one, have been dormant all summer. Scratching the surface bark there’s life under the cambium layer so they weren't cut down. Maybe next spring they'll surprise us with buds, it's doubtful, but I remain optimistic. In October of 2012, following one of the worst droughts in our area, the lilac bushes started to blossom for a second time in one season. The October flower clusters were sparse, but the following spring they were full of flowers again as if the off-season blossoming hadn't interrupted the cycle.

The oak tree along the lane is dropping bushels of acorn that go uncollected. The oak in the pasture is dropping a heavy crop for the pigs to feast on. They've gleaned the fallen nuts leaving the ground underneath bare. One pig in particular stands sentry, he won't let the sheep near the tree. He doesn't realize the sheep want sweet clover not bitter acorns. Between the pumpkins, clovers, apples, and nuts the pigs diet is diverse. Their commercial feed goes untouched when there's so much they can harvest themselves. This is one of the benefits of pastured hogs; a healthy diet.

Sounds of September

glendaSeptember 5, 2013

Now that September is here the air conditioner is off and the windows are wide open. At night I've been running the fan, not because it's hot but to drown out the insect's singing. When I fall asleep the crickets, locusts, grasshoppers and others joining in the evening symphony seem far off and distant. However, if I wake up during the night their sound is overwhelming. It's loud, it's close, it's intense. So much for quiet country living. A couple hours before dawn the coyotes start their own mournful calls. Lying awake I try to judge their distance from the barn, sheep in the pasture, and turkey pen. One morning, a couple of years ago, while he was walking to the catch the school bus, Garrett saw a coyote take a turkey. The bird was too heavy for the coyote to carry while being chased by a young boy. The coyote dropped the turkey, there weren't any nasty gashes or wounds, at least not visible. The turkey walked around the yard, feathers plumped up for a day or two but he didn't recover. That same week Miley was dumped in town and found wandering. A friend called and asked if we could take her. We tried finding her owner, no luck. She's such a nice dog that we decided to keep her. Since she and Maisey have been at the farm we haven't lost anymore livestock to coyotes.

Cookie and I were in the barn having a great visit. He was explaining to me the value of petrocurrency. Anyway, in walked the flock of ducks, the pleasant conversation ended. We couldn't hear anything above the noise from those ducks. Cookie pointed out that of all the animals on the farm the ducks are the only ones who make a singular sound. The cattle have a range of vocals. So do the sheep, horses, chickens and pigs. Ducks, however make only one sound. It's loud, it doesn't vary, and it's incessant. When ducks start talking you can hardly hear yourself think. A sign of the times perhaps...we finished our conversation by texting each other.