this post was submitted on 03 Sep 2025
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Backyard Chickens (and Other Birds)
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1 users here now
[Were you a mod of backyard chickens on Reddit? Message me if you're interested in modding here.]
This is a community for people who keep chickens in their back yard. This includes pets, layers, and meaties at levels that are sub-industrial. Family farms and homesteads are included.
EDIT
The Fediverse is small. There probably aren't enough people here to make up a community for every type of bird that someone might keep so for now, everyone is welcome. Bring us your ducks and geese, turkeys and quail, Guineas and Peacocks, emus and parrots. The community will be focused on chickens but until there are enough of each bird community for their own community they will find care and comfort here.
/EDIT
There may be discussions of animal processing. This is part of chicken keeping. If you don't like it leave and block the community.
You may also be interested in:
Homestead
Parrots
Cockatiel
RULES:
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All Lemmy.ca rules apply here.
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Everyone (see rules 4 and 98) is welcome.
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If you've seen a question 100 times answer it the 101st time or ignore it. Even better, write a complete, detailed answer and suggest that the mod(s) pin it to the community.
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There will be ZERO tolerance for shaming, brigading, harassment, or other nonsense of those who keep and process chickens. You will be permanently banned the first time.
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No, it's not a calcium deficiency. Wrinkled eggs are the result of insufficient or insufficiently viscous albumen. Tiny eggs and missing shells are misfires. They happen.
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If you post a picture that includes a dead animal or blood mark it NSFW. We're not going to tolerate the militant anti-hunting and anti-farming bullshit here but we're also not going to tolerate people rubbing their hunting and harvesting in people's faces. See rule 98. If you post blood, gore, or dead animals and don't mark it NSFW it will be removed and you might be banned.
[Did you actually think there were 98 rules?]
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If you present something as fact and are asked to provide proof or a source provide proof or a source. Proof must be from a reliable source. If you fail to provide proof or a source your post or comment may be removed.
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Don't be a dick. Yes, this is a catch-all rule.
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The mod(s) have the final say.
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
Look into ways to kill chickens humanely. It might be required to reduce an animals suffering or to keep the rest of your flock disease free. If you feel that you can not kill a chicken, then you should think about giving them up for adoption.
Pickup a book about chicken diseases, a chicken that doesn't eat treats or scratch/peck at the ground might be a sick chicken. I recommend The Chicken Health Handbook, 2nd Edition. Obviously, you should buy a copy if you find it helpful.
Take note of the local predators. If you got bears for instance it might greatly change how you want to build that replacement coop and pen.
After reading your comments in this post I suggest you look into what you might need to provide your flock with the correct nutrition. Chickens need grit since they dont have teeth, so look into that. Also an often overlooked thing is calcium which you can supplement with crushed oyster shell but there are also other alternatives, some that may be used both as grit and calcium like calcium carbonate (altho this is often debated). Just make sure your chickens are eating enough and have hard eggshells. Try to see if there is a local feed store by you to understand your options. Also, with the amount of chickens you have it might be better to consider making your own feed. This woukd require you sourcing, storing, and mixing it all yourself which takes effort and real estate but it will also save you a lot of money and might even give your chickens fresher more nutritious food.
There are apps that can help you set recurring alarms for different levels of sunset. I use Suntimes so I have an alarm at the start of golden hour each day, which gives me time to observe the flock and still get them inside before it's too dark
Beginning your message with "look into ways to kill chickens" is diabolical ๐
Unfortunately some people aren't aware of the realities of owning barnyard animals so it's better to say it so people who aren't aware become aware. They aren't pets so you have to treat them a little differently.
I've met people who studied to become a nurse only to discover that they faint at the sight of blood. People need to be aware of their limits before investing into something that's not for them.
There's an entire British comedy series with 10 seasons on this premise. It's called Doc Martin, where a guy with such a fear leaves his job as a surgeon to become a GP in a remote cornish village.