Chicken Family Planning 101

It's a story we hear more often than you'd think. Someone picks up a few chicks at the feed store or takes in a small flock, and a year or two later they're overwhelmed. What start...

The Dark Side of Feedstore Chicks

By Sherstin Rosenberg, DVM.Sherstin is the executive director at Happy Hen Animal Sanctuary, a non-profit 501(c)(3) animal sanctuary located in San Luis Obispo, CA.THE PROBLEMEvery...

Coccidia

If you've done a fecal test on your chickens (and if you haven't, you should!), you may have seen the word "coccidia" on your results. It's one of the most common findings in backy...

Quarantine

Updated on January 19, 2026.We’ve been talking a lot about quarantine lately due the covid-19 pandemic. The word originates from the Venetian “quarantena” meaning "forty days". It...

Welcoming New Chickens to the Flock

Last month, we welcomed two new hens: Rose and Blanche, 12-year-old Ameraucanas from a sister sanctuary. Integrating new chickens into an established flock can be stressful for all...

Do chickens like attention?

Do chickens like attention or would they rather be left alone?This is an interesting question I was asked during one of my recent chicken care classes. The short answer is “It depe...

The Coop Life: A Chicken Keeping Story

By Carina DeVeraCarina DeVera (she/her) is an animal advocate, outdoor enthusiast, and writer. She has been a dedicated champion for animals since she was a child, when — to the ch...

Where does the chicken come from?

Yes, chickens descend from the jungle fowl who themselves descend from the Tyrannosaurus rex (see "Her great-great-...-great-grandma was a T-rex"). But closer in their family tree,...

Buttercup the Cornish Cross

By Abbie Hubbard.Abbie is a dog behaviorist with Humane Society International, and lives with 2 dogs, 3 parrots, 4 budgies, 4 chickens, 2 pheasants and a turkey. You can follow her...

Adopt, don't shop

With spring around the corner, we are starting to see lots of ads to buy baby chicks. Please resist the temptation of buying these fuzzy balls of cuteness and adopt instead.This is...

Thinking about having chickens?

Updated on February 21, 2024.It’s the New Year and one of your resolutions may be to get chickens. So, let’s discuss the pros and cons of keeping chickens so you can make the right...

Gearing up checklist

So, you decided to bring chickens into your family. You have weighed the pros and cons of sharing your life with chickens, read everything you could put your hands on about chicken...

Vaccination

In farms, chickens are usually vaccinated against a variety of diseases including Marek's disease, Newcastle disease, infectious bronchitis, infectious laryngotracheitis, fowl pox,...

chicken adoption

This spring, consider adopting chickens instead of buying them. • You save a life. Like dogs and cats, too many chickens come into shelters and too few people consider adoption wh...

easter chicks

Cute bunnies, fluffy chicks and ducklings are popular in Easter baskets. They are delightful, fuzzy, and irresistible, but are not appropriate gifts. They are not toys, they are li...

Chicken breeds

Like dogs, chickens come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. There are more than 400 breeds of chickens. Some have fancy feathers and big combs, some lay blue eggs, some are tiny, an...

Best home for an older hen

How old is an old hen? Well it depends on whom you ask... For the egg factory farmer, it’s 18 months just after she reaches peak production. For the smaller farmer, it’s around 3 y...

Adopt, don't shop

We bought our first chickens. We selected Ameraucanas based on their breed traits: docile, not broody, bears confinement well, and the fact that they were good layers. We bought th...

hatcheries

99% of all eggs and chicks come from hatcheries, and they are no better than puppy mills. The parents and grandparents are bred and the less desirable offspring are killed in orde...

A second life for ex-commercial hens

We welcomed Luna and Maya to our micro-sanctuary on New Year’s Eve. They are two adorable 2-year-old White Leghorns coming from an egg factory. The first time we adopted hens rescu...

Introducing new chickens

Updated on May 18th, 2025.Chickens are like potato chips... You can never just have one... or even two. But adding new chickens to an existing flock is not as easy as it may sound....

Pecking order

Ever seen your chickens bickering with each other?It usually happens around a valuable resource like the feeder, the favorite nest box, the higher roost. The aggressor is reminding...