by McMurray Staff | Aug 2, 2018 | Chicken Eggs, Chickens, Gail Damerow, Guest Articles, Interviews
When you raise chicks to start a laying flock, it may seem to take forever before you see their first eggs. So how long do you have to wait until your hens start laying? “That depends on the type of chickens you choose,” says poultry expert Gail Damerow. “Chickens...
by McMurray Staff | Jul 21, 2018 | Emily Reynolds, Guest Articles, Guidelines
Biosecurity is the most important line of defense that each poultry owner has against disease. Even if you only have five birds in your backyard, it is just as important for you to develop and utilize daily biosecurity practices as it is for caretakers at Iowa’s many...
by McMurray Staff | Sep 3, 2014 | Hunter Kemper
RESPONSIBILITY by Hunter Kemper For the past several years, I’ve had the privilege of being a part of the Exercise Your Character Event in Des Moines, IA, organized by Hy-Vee Inc. This is an event I look forward to every year as 7,000 4th and 5th graders gather...
by McMurray Staff | Sep 3, 2014 | Hunter Kemper
I hope you’ve all had a wonderful Summer on “the farm.” I’ve been a chicken owner since the end of January and it has been a fun adventure. We’ve gotten to watch our baby chicks grow into pullets that lay beautiful white, brown, and blue...
by McMurray Staff | Apr 25, 2014 | Hunter Kemper
Since we are now the proud owners of chickens, I did a little investigating into the significance of “the egg” this Easter celebration. When did eggs first become associated with Easter? The egg is an ancient symbol of new life and it has been linked with the...
by McMurray Staff | Apr 2, 2014 | Hunter Kemper
The past couple months have been a fun adventure with our chicks. They’re beginning to look a lot more like chickens than the fluffy little chicks that arrived on our doorstep just 9 weeks ago. The weather has gotten warmer and they’re now enjoying living in their...