The Girls at Heritage Chickens

I got to do a presentation about the Heritage Chicken Program at the Western Poultry Conference in Red Deer, Alberta on February 28th! I’d like to share some of the things I talked about. 

The main audience for the presentation was all four poultry industry producers, table egg (eggs you eat), hatching egg (eggs produced that hatch into meat birds), broiler (meat chickens) and turkeys. There were also many representatives from industry groups, feed companies and processing plants there, in addition to professors and students from the University of Alberta. This is the only scientific/industry conference specific to poultry in Western Canada. There is also the Poultry Service Industry Workshop in October, however that is much more geared towards industry tools and practical techniques.

I was asked to give a presentation that described the heritage program and why it came about, as well as what potential benefits it provides to industry. I’ll summarize below the general presentation and content!

Where the Heritage Chicken Program birds came from: 

The heritage chickens came from multiple sources. Some came from the University of Saskatchewan and Ontario, where a rare poultry conservancy program had been conserving genetics of chickens which were influential in creating the modern laying and meat industries. Other strains which were conserved were broilers (meat chickens) from 1957 and 1978. These birds were what farmers raised as meat birds in 1957 and 1978, respectively. The genetics today are very different, but keeping the original genetic stock allows for a failsafe in case something happened to the industry. Other sources of the birds were from a prominent Canadian poultry breeder named Don Shaver. Keeping the birds here allows us to preserve his work in the field of Canadian heritage breeds.

What the Heritage Chicken Program is and why it started:

The heritage chicken program started as a way to make the flock at the Poultry Research Centre self-sufficient as it costs approximately $65,000/year to keep the 1600 birds at the farm. The program was very successful, and allows people to adopt a chicken and receive their eggs from January through September (one dozen per two weeks). The money received from the adoptions goes back into the flock and has made the flock self-sufficient and allowed the preservation of the genetics.

Why people join the Heritage Chicken Program:

We did a brief survey of the 2017 Heritage Chicken Program participants and asked them: Why did you join the Heritage Chicken Program?

Feedback from participants has shown that they like the connection that they get from the chickens and the program, the information about agriculture they receive, the teaching opportunities it provides their families and learning about poultry in general.

Other initiatives part of the Heritage Chicken Program:

Meat Program: Another way the Heritage Chickens are supported at the Poultry Research Centre is through the sale of stewing hens. Each September, the current Heritage Chicken flock is processed at our facility on South Campus, and the frozen, whole carcasses are sold to participants. It is another means of showing the “farm to fork” idea behind agriculture, of raising and animal, showing it respect, but still using its products.

Chick Program: We hatch chicks each spring and offer them for sale through Peavey Mart. All the money goes back into supporting the flock at the Poultry Research Centre. The chicks are vaccinated for all of the major poultry diseases, Marek’s, Infectious Laryngotracheitis (ILT) and Coccidiosis which helps to prevent any disease outbreaks which could impact other flocks or commercial industry flocks. We also require a premise ID, which helps with traceability of chicken flocks in Alberta.

Small Flock Workshops: Helping to educate small, hobby chicken flock owners about the importance of biosecurity, health, how to look for signs that chickens are sick, what to do and who to contact. Our workshops for this year are taking place on April 12 and 13, and the information can be found on https://www.eventbrite.ca/ .

Benefits to industry from the Heritage Chicken Program:

Increased awareness and education of people about chickens and the poultry industry, as well as education of people getting into raising small flocks. People raising small flocks are more aware of biosecurity, which helps keep everyone (commercial and small flocks) safe and healthy. I currently work at the Alberta Hatching Egg Producers, and have my MSc in Poultry Science and Applied Ethology from the University of Alberta, and am able to answer questions, and redirect to appropriate industry groups which helps to minimize misinformation surrounding the poultry industry too!

What are the boys up to

We have heard many stories about the girls in the program but not many stories of what the boys are up! There are specific behaviours that you will find when there are roosters in the pens:

Roosters Protect the Flock

How do roosters protect the flock? They are excellent alarm systems. They use different sounds, calls, and crows to alert the flock. Roosters also walk around the pens several times a day, and station themselves at the entrance where they can be in full view of the hallway to check for predators/intruders.

If an unfamiliar guest enters the barn the roosters use their alarm calls but also will use their attack skills. In a show of aggression the rooster will puff out its hackle feathers (long feathers surrounding the neck) and begin to vibrate its body and kick the ground. This type of threat display is an attempt to intimidate their opponents before an actual attack is necessary. While in attack mode the rooster will jump in the air and will aim his spur (a sharp growth that extends from the leg) in an attempt to injure the intruder. If at this point, the intruder walks away, the rooster is considered more dominant. However, if the intruder waits it out and the rooster is the first to back away, the intruder is considered more dominant.

In the barns, there are times where I am considered the intruder as I go to collect the eggs. I have made the unpleasant mistake of walking away before the fight was over thus giving the rooster a more dominant status. However, if I wait it out the and the rooster is the first to walk away I have the more dominant status.

Roosters Fight

In order to keep the pens from mayhem roosters will fight each other to establish an order. Once a dominant rooster is established the subdominant roosters will sometimes challenge each other for a higher position but will rarely challenge the most dominant rooster.

The dominant rooster will keep his status through small threat gestures such as glaring, raising and fluffing hackle feathers, they will stop other roosters from crowing in mid-crow, and small aggressive pecks. This allows for the dominant rooster to conserve his energy and not have to engage in a full-fledge fight.

Roosters Mate

Dominant roosters will mate with the hens. Roosters will attract a mate by calling out with small short high pitch clicks to communicate they found food. They may not have found food but they still will use the sounds to attract the hen over to them. The rooster will then do a walk around the hen and begin a mating dance. The dance consists of the rooster hopping on one foot and dropping their one wing to the side and hopping on one foot around the hen. If the hen crouches the rooster will mount her and the hen will move her tail to the side allowing the rooster to tread and insert his semen into her cloaca. Some call this a cloaca kiss. The rooster will use his tail to balance while treading on the hen and hold onto her neck feathers with his beak. The actual mating only takes between 5 and 30 seconds. After the rooster steps off the hen she will do a post- coital fluff. She shakes her body upwards to move the semen into the reproductive tract.

One rooster will generally have a harem of 8 – 10 hens. It is crucial that the rooster to hen ratio is met because of the frequency roosters will mate. The rooster to hen ratio should be 1 rooster to every 10 hens. If there are too many roosters in a pen and not enough hens roosters can over exert themselves as well as mount the hens too frequently causing a lot of stress.

This year in April, through our partnership with Peavey Mart we put on two small flock workshops. The workshops were held in Spruce Grove and Red Deer.  The workshops are intended to help answer some questions that new chicken owners face as well as seasoned chicken owners to improve their operation. Supporters of these events include Peavey Mart, Young Agrarians, the University of Alberta, and Alberta Agriculture and Forestry.

Speakers included: Dr. Valerie Carney (Alberta Agriculture), Dr. Frank Robinson (University of Alberta), Rachelle Davidson (University of Alberta), Nichole Boutilier (Alberta Agriculture), Harold Dyck (Peavey Mart Industries), Jest Sidorski (Peavey Mart Industries), and Dana Penrice (Young Agrarians). 

Davidson presented the principles of Biosecurity: protecting your chickens from others and others from your chickens.  She adapted large scale poultry operations to fit the backyard flock size. One major take home message was that simple habits can have major impacts e.g. boot changes and hand washing! Davidson also displayed different chicken behaviours and explained what behaviours you want or do not want to see in the flock. Some behaviours you do not want to see in a flock include: repetitive pecking, lethargy, huddling, and a silent barn. She went on to explain, if you see birds that are repetitively pecking it could be for several reasons but two main reasons are: not enough space, and boredom.  It is important that each bird have enough space and be  provided enrichment such as more roosts, runs, and extra nest boxes. If a bird is found to be lethargic check crop for food, Davidson recommended to separate the individual bird from flock mates and to offer food and water. However if the separated bird does not improve, it is important to call a vet. Huddling birds could indicate that the temperature is too cold or that there is a draft, check temperature and for small cracks where wind could enter the facility. If your barn/coop is silent it could indicate predator presence nearby. Davidson suggests to check for predators, but also check yourself to see whether you may be upsetting the birds from being loud or moving too abruptly.

Robinson explained chicken anatomy and where eggs come from the science behind how an egg is formed and what are the necessary factors needed including nutrients, nesting, and lighting. Some factors that can affect nutrient requirements and intake include genetics, age, sex, reproduction status, environment such as temperature, housing systems, and health status.  He explained poultry housing further to include insulation types, nest box styles, and gave tips on what housing styles to choose when raising chickens for either meat or eggs.  Robinson emphasized finding a coop that you can enter – for easy cleaning.

Carney presented on egg quality, and how to know what eggs to keep and what eggs to discard from the henhouse. The prescribed way of washing eggs, and how to inspect for abnormalities and what they could possibly mean for your chicken. She also emphasized the importance of having a premise identification number. The Premise ID program was established to plan for, control, and prevent the spread of agricultural diseases.

Penrice gave a farmer perspective on her experience raising heritage chickens. She gave practical advice to book processing early for meat birds, housing systems for free-range, and shared lessons learned on her farm.

Boutilier presented her findings form her benchmarking project that examined backyard flocks and biosecurity protocols.

This year Rachelle (newest animal technician) and I (the egg lady) wanted to do something different for our girls. So why not put something new in the pens and watch the girls play! We both must be 90’s kids because after humming and hawing thinking of what we should place in the pens we came up with CD’s.

We found some twine in the barns and brought some old CD’s combined the two and voila a shiny swinging toy. I wish we could tell you that the girls absolutely loved it at first… but that’s not exactly what happened.

After hanging up the CD’s, we noticed a circle of chickens that would not enter the perimeter near the CD. Finally, one brave little chicken skittishly stepped one claw in, then immediately took to the air to get away from the circle. This happened for about 10 minutes then slowly some brave girls and boys stepped into the circle.

We decided to give the girls time and let them discover their new toys, so we left for lunch. We returned to a much different barn! Everyone was enamored with the swinging CD’s. One group of girls decided to remove the CD from the twine and scratch and peck at it on the floor while taking turns nudging it.

Some ladies enjoyed a good “tether ball” match! One girl would reach the CD and peck it so it would reach another bird until there were five chickens all taking a turn pecking at this swinging CD! Too bad we didn’t have a referee who knew how to play by their rules.

By keeping chickens interested in novel items we can decrease any negative behaviour such as compulsive pecking.

 At every stage of the girls’ growing process we focus on different aspects of care for them.  Brooding is a crucial point  in their lives.  Baby chicks are sensitive to temperature changes, drafts, and unknown noises. When they are chicks we need to direct them to the water to act as a “mother hen”.

As the girls begin to mature (before they lay their first egg they are called pullets) they can be sensitive to sudden movements.

Once they have laid their first egg they can be a little shocked to find a round hard mysterious object in their nest box or in this case... on the pen floor.

Thank you to everyone who participated in this years’ Adopt a Heritage Chicken Program.

We could not have done it without you. Thanks to your support we are able to continue our genetic preservation of the 6 heritage breeds (Light Sussex, Brown Leghorn, White Leghorn, Barred Plymouth Rock, Rhode Island Red, New Hampshire).

This program held many highlights, here are but a few: -Receiving a new egg grading machine-Extended partnership with Peavey Mart chick sales -Two very successful how to raise chicken workshops -Winning the Community Connections Award -Welcoming our newest animal technician Rachelle Davidson -Receiving the License to Operate a Meat Facility Abattoir

Our girls have provided so much over the past year: fond memories, fresh eggs, and delicious meat. Thank you for supporting this years’ initiatives including peavey mart chick sale, two poultry workshops, and our sale of heritage chicken meat.

What Next?

I’ve spent some time with the next generation of girls. So far, the Light Sussex has become my favourite breed - but don’t allow that to solidify your decision on who to adopt next!

The Faculty of ALES (Agriculture Life & Environmental Sciences) celebrated its 100th anniversary this year by hosting an Old Country Fair using South Campus Road. The Poultry Research Centre was invited to represent the world of poultry, showcase some research, and tour hundreds of school kids!  Enjoy some of the poultry zone highlights.

The Hatchery

In the hatchery we played a video that portrayed the development of a chick in an egg. On display were live heritage chicks and turkey poults. Students  were amazed at the noticeable size difference between poults and chicks. If you want to see what the kids saw check out the embryonic development video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PedajVADLGw

The Egg Match-Up

Visitors matched ostrich, guinea fowl, peacock, pigeon, chicken, emu, and other strange eggs to their rightful owners using real eggs! Kids were fascinated by the different shapes and sizes - parents too.

The KFC Bucket Challenge

Have you ever wondered whether a KFC 9 piece chicken meal can be pieced back together to resemble a whole chicken? Professor Frank Robinson took on the challenge and with the help of a few toothpicks demonstrated that yes you can put the chicken parts back together.

What a chicken does when you are not watching

Chicken behaviour is extremely fascinating!  Kids learned about roosting, foraging, dustbathing, and different types of pecking, afterwards they were brought to see these actions live!

Eggsperiments

Students from the Poultry Club demonstrated experiments with eggs. They used salt to stand an egg upright, bounced a shell-less egg, used a spin test to find out which was raw or boiled, and showcased the strength of the egg.   

The Chicken Song

Dr. Martin Zuidhof and others brought Heifer in Your Tank back by singing some of their famous educational chicken songs.  

The Chicken Tent

Under the chicken tent held research posters, sustainable chicken practice presentation from ACP, and a live heritage chicken display!

 A Round of Applause

Thank you to ALES for inviting us to this event and to all the volunteers who worked so hard. Thank you to all who were able to partake in this celebration, we could not have done it without any of you.

I’d like to introduce everyone to our newest member on staff at the Poultry Research Centre. Her name is Rachelle and she loves chickens, especially our heritage breeds!

As she interacts with the chickens every day, she has hands-on experience and stories to share of our beloved girls and guys. So how does a city girl become interested in working with chickens? We asked her a few questions to help us understand how she ended up working here at the Poultry Research Centre. 

Amber: May we ask how is it that you got yourself into this type of work? Rachelle: Fluke! I was taking my Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences at the University of Alberta, but I had no idea of where I wanted to go with my career. By chance, I had previously taken a basic animal science course that I did quite well in and enjoyed thoroughly, so I switched into an agriculture minor. One of the requirements to receive an agriculture minor is to take the “Principles of Animal Agriculture” [Animal Science 200] course.  It was in this course that I realized how much agriculture excited and inspired me, which gave me the drive to learn more about farming. 

Amber: You mentioned this course gave you the drive to learn more - what did you find fascinating about this course? Would you recommend people to take this course? Rachelle: It’s hard to pinpoint what fascinated me the most about this course because it wasn’t like any other course I took in university. The ANSC 200 course is based on the principle of free-range learning. Free-range learning is different than traditional learning as it guides you to ask questions that you want answers to, discover those answers, and then teach those answers to your peers rather than read and regurgitate information during an exam. On top of that, the course has a very hands-on lab component that introduces you to agriculture directly from the perspective of a farmer. What I mean is, you have students who are actually going to farms and seeing cows and chickens up close and personal. For someone born and raised in the city, that’s a big deal. Not to mention, Dr. Martin Zuidhof and Dr. Frank Robinson, the professors of the course, encouraged me to ask questions from the basic to the complex and didn’t make me feel less intelligent because I didn’t know what the answer was. Also, both Zuidhof and Robinson are major chicken fanatics. When I witnessed how much poultry excited them, it made me excited and intrigued me to learn more about chickens. The combination of exploratory learning and passion for poultry really showed me that I wanted to become involved with chickens. And anyways, I’ve always loved birds – I guess you could say that all my “chicks” were being lined up in a row, ha ha. It’s funny that you asked if I would recommend this course to people – I already have! In the most cliché way possible, this course changed my life. I want that to happen to everyone who’s a little lost with their direction. Even if it’s not that specific course that changes their life, I want people to have a basic understanding of how modern day agriculture works.

Amber:  It seems like this course shaped a lot of your ideas, can you tell us how you became involved with the Poultry Research Centre (PRC)? Rachelle: During the last year of my degree, I took an animal behaviour course taught by Dr. Clover Bench, the University of Alberta ethology [science of animal behaviour] professor, which began my experience with animal behaviour research. Bench made ethology exciting and taught me how useful and applicable animal behaviour is in agriculture. Simultaneously, I was asked by my teaching assistant from the ANSC 200 course – we were still in touch -  if I wanted to volunteer to become involved with her masters research in animal behaviour. Graciously, I accepted her offer. The research I was involved in was observing broiler breeders at the Poultry Research Centre. This experience helped me realize that I really loved being with chickens and could work with poultry as a potential career. By chance, a position opened up to be a full time animal technician at the PRC during the last month of my BSc . I applied and was offered the position – I accepted, and here I am!

Amber: You went from observing chickens to receiving a full time position at the PRC – what a leap! What exactly do you do here? Rachelle: Everyone here at the PRC is responsible for a specific barn, depending on what studies are occurring at that time. My principle responsibility is maintaining the barn with the heritage breeds. Everyday, I feed the birds, collect eggs, clean the barn, repair any necessary repairs, and ensure proper flock health.  I absolutely love it! Being around the birds makes me ecstatic, I think they’re adorable and exciting. Watching and caring for chickens isn’t just something I do, it’s something that I genuinely enjoy. 

Amber: Do the personalities of the breeds differ in any way? Rachelle: Yes, yes, and yes. It still surprises me how much the same species of animal can vary by breed. I guess if you think about it, chicken breeds are just like dog breeds – a Chihuahua does NOT have the same personality as a bull mastiff. The Light Sussex, Dark Brown Leghorns, and New Hampshire are all very broody. What I mean by broody is their mothering traits, such as nesting and egg protection, makes them tricky to handle. They don’t like their eggs collected at all – even when they know it’s going to happen [eggs are collected three times a day]! The 1957’s and White Leghorns are very flighty. If they could talk, they’re the kind of breeds that would be yelling “The sky is falling! The sky is falling!” Lastly, the Plymouth Barred Rock, Rhode Island Reds are quite docile and curious.  They’re not scared to stick their head in your space just to see what you’re doing.  

Amber: Do you have a favourite Chicken? Rachelle: If you mean by breed, I would probably have to choose Rhode Island Reds. If you mean specific chicken though… then yes I do have a favourite. Actually I have two – and I’ve named them! They’re both Plymouth Barred Rocks. My favourite hen, Bertha, is a social girl who waits for me every day on her nest box perch to pick her up. My favourite rooster, Jack, is a small guy who will jump on my lap and cluck quietly if I happen to take a seat in the pen while observing flock health.

This April, the University of Alberta’s Poultry Research Centre hosted two Small Flock Poultry Workshops. The workshops were to accompany our Peavey Mart Chick Sale in May. 

Both workshops covered many elements of raising chickens including housing and brooding, egg washing, compost management, basics of poultry diseases and biosecurity measures, and an overview of chicken anatomy with a chicken dissection. 

Participants heard from farmers, professors, and veterinarians. Speakers included Blake Hall from Prairie Gold Meats, Daniel Chappell from Country Thyme Farm, Dr. Frank Robinson from the University of Alberta, Dana Penrice from C & E Meats, Veterinarians Dr. Chunu Mainali and Dr. Colleen Christianson from Agriculture and Rural Development.  Harold Dyck, a sales representative for Peavey Mart Industries set up items in which chicken owners could purchase at their local Peavey Mart Store. Some items included a brooder, heat lamp, chicken feed, nest box, feeder and waterers, and medicine supplies. Kane Veterinary Supplies and Vétiquinol supplied the participants with a complimentary Virkon disinfectant bottle. Egg washing guides, and biosecurity packages were also given to those attending the workshop. 

Our Speakers

Dana Penrice

Dana works as the coordinator for the Poultry Research Centre and as a communications specialist for the Alberta Chicken Producers and as a marketing program coordinator for Organic Alberta. She and her partner also run C & E meats in Lacombe, Alberta raising grass-fed, pasture-raised beef, lamb and chicken. Dana began the event with an introductory sharing circle. We each had to say our name, where we farmed, and what was our favourite tool was (although our tool could not be our spouse). Dana shared her unique experience of processing heritage chickens.

Dr. Frank Robinson

Frank teaches for the University of Alberta subjects of poultry production and physiology. Frank’s primary research focus involves the reproductive fitness of chickens and turkeys. Frank spoke on coop designs. He recommended as well as criticized specific coop designs - placing emphasis on what is a good chicken house according to Alberta climate. He also spoke on chicken anatomy and demonstrated a chicken dissection in front of the workshop participants.

Daniel Chappell 

Daniel is a professional horticulturalist and farmer, who has owned and operated Country Thyme Farm, a mixed vegetable and poultry farm, for the past five years. He has worked with chickens and ducks for about ten years, and focuses on heritage breeds and natural, holistic management. Daniel examined ways to keep chicks healthy during brooding stage as well as explained alternative forms of brooding.

Blake Hall

Blake is herdsman for Prairie Gold Pastured Meats and runs a unique herdshare program which direct markets grass-finished beef, lamb, and pastured pork into Red Deer and Calgary, AB. His passion is ethical and sustainable livestock management. Blake demonstrated how to wash eggs, and explained what to do with poultry manure and mortality.

Dr. Colleen Christianson

Colleen received her DVM in 1999, her Masters of Veterinary Science in anatomic pathology in 2001 and her PhD in 2011 from the University of Saskatchewan.  Currently, she lives in Airdrie during the week where she works as a poultry pathologist and scientist for Alberta Agriculture.   Colleen presented on major backyard flock diseases, and how to prevent such diseases through sound biosecurity practices. In the lab in Airdrie she diagnosis poultry diseases for small flock farmers.

Dr. Chunu Mainali

Chunu works as a Surveillance Veterinarian with the Alberta Agriculture for the last 12 years and is involved in designing and developing programs and projects in the area of food safety, animal health, biosecurity and public health. Chunu spoke on a wide range of diseases paying particular attention to biosecurity practices to prevent such diseases.

Each speaker, through subtle humour connected with the audience as they recalled tales of their childhood and raising chickens. Although a wide range of topics were covered, other topics were brought up as the lecture-style set up shifted into an open discussion.  We had a mix of urban and rural chicken owners, some long time chicken owners and many new to the world of chickens.

We wanted to share some of the Easter traditions from supporters in our Adopt a Heritage Chicken Program. Thank you to those who have submitted their stories.

“When I was a kid, in the old country, we used to dye eggs using onion skins.  My mom would collect the brown skins of onions she used for a few weeks leading up to Easter, then boil them for about 10 minutes in a small saucepan with enough water to fully immerse an egg.  After letting the water cool (so it wouldn't cook our eggs or our fingers), we would strain out the onion skins and soak our eggs in the water. White eggs would slowly transition to yellow, to golden, to a deep brown colour, depending on the amount of onion skins in the water and the dipping time.  Once the eggs were taken out and dried, designs could be scratched into the shell with a needle or other sharp point.

Photo Credits: Joseph Francis Sometimes, in order to be able to have our painted eggs and eat them too, we would "blow them out" by poking a 1-2mm hole in the top and bottom with a pin, and blowing out the contents.  (I've been doing this to preserve the shells of some of the lovely speckled eggs our girls produce, and find that blowing into the air cell end, and out from the pointy end tends to be the easier direction.)  The drawback of having hollow shells is that they float in the dye.  We experimented with the effect, creating regions of different colours. To get an even colour, though, we needed to keep rolling the shell in the water.  The dye water also got inside the holey shells, making the process a bit messier and using up the dye faster.  If we planned ahead, we would let the shells dry very thoroughly so that any remaining contents would not contaminate our dye.

Photo Credits: Campbell X

A variation was to leave the onion skins in the water while the eggs soaked.  Areas where the skins touched the shells would often turn a darker colour, leading to mottled appearance.  As a final touch, to give our eggs a shiny polish, we would take a small piece of raw bacon and give the shell a thorough rub.  This added another olfactory dimension to the whole experience.“

Photo Credits: cookbookman17 

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Eggs and Easter go hand in hand... Whether in baking or as decoration. Bapka (an Easter breakfast bread)

Paska (a decorated loaf usually included in the baskets taken to church for blessing at a Sunrise Service)

The Easter eggs below are my maternal grandmother's handiwork and are cherished more with each passing year.

Heritage Chicken eggs used to make Ukrainian Pysanka by a U of A 3rd year science student.

Thank you to everyone who submitted their chicken names. Here is a selection of chicken names that we hope brings you fun, laughter, and joy.

Susie

Susie and poultry go together for me.  I grew up on a turkey and chicken farm.  As this was many years ago, our turkeys and chickens were free range, so in the fall we had to collect them for the end.  There was always one turkey who would roost so high in the trees she could not be caught.  The last turkey was always a small turkey, so that may explain why she got so high.  We always called that turkey Susie.  She was always the last one to go.  Hence the name Susie, for the wee little one.

Photo credits Umberto Brayj 

Moa 

I have a sister in Hawaii who has considered raising hens. Moa is Hawaiian for chicken.  In Hawaii there are many chickens (including roosters) that roam freely. Due to our love for Hawaii and because we couldn't raise our own hens we decided to name our hen Moa.

Photo credits: Greg Hewgill

Alice

I named my chicken Alice because you described her breed as ‘curious’ – so the name popped into mind from Alice in Wonderland. 

Photo credits: Loren Javier

Benedict

We named our chicken Benedict after Eggs Benedict.

Photo credits: wiccahwang 

Henny Penny

We have always read to our children.  When our daughter was born we names her Jennifer.  Very soon her dad was calling his little princess Jenny Penny.  We drove across the country to visit my family the year Jenny turned two.  My husband called our daughter Jenny Penny one day and my mother misunderstood him.  She thought he had called her Henny Penny so that is what my mother called her for the rest of our visit and periodically afterwards for years.  It always made us laugh and we did not have the heart to tell my mother that our little angel was not nicknamed after a chicken.   When we finally purchased a heritage chicken, almost 25 years later, there was never any question but that we name her Henny Penny.

 Photo credits: Jon Rawlinson

Henriette

I named my chicken Henriette for somewhat obvious reasons (Henriette easily shortens to "hen") and because it made me laugh. But I also named my chicken Henriette because it's one of my grandma's middle names, and she grew up on a farm, like her parents, and probably a lot like the great aunt from whom she gained that middle name.

When I turned 14, my grandma told me over my birthday supper that I was now officially "old enough to be plucking chickens and cooking dinner for the threshers". My grandma's young life was farm life, through and through. Chickens were an intrinsic part of that, and continued to be a part of her life when she moved into the city and married, keeping a coop in the back yard for birds and eggs (a responsibility a number of Edmontonians seem to want to resurrect). While I grew up in the city, we still had connections to family relations who raised livestock and grew hectares of cropland. Chickens remain a part of that, and we occasionally got to bring home some delicious birds from the farm, after driving up to the barn during family visits, and taking our pick from the freezer out back.

Choosing to give a chicken the name Henriette is probably not something my grandma would have appreciated! BUT for me, it brings me somewhat closer to connecting with the farm life she once had, and the memories of family and delicious food brought in fresh from the fields and chicken coops. I relish every bi-weekly trip to the farm, for those moments of walking on dusty roads and catching whiffs of freshly turned earth, manure, and the brittle, dusty smell of a field-hardened crop... things my grandma was all too familiar with growing up. Luckily I don't have to cook for the threshing machines, too!

Photo credits: Mack Male

Yum-Yum

There is a "calm and curious" Light Sussex over there named Yum-Yum.  Is is because I am incredibly cultured and named her after the beautiful soprano in the opera, The Mikado?  Or is it because I have a recipe for chicken soup that I plan to try?  You'll never know!

Photo Credits: ღ ℂℏ℟ḯʂ ღ

Babs

I would like to name my chicken “Babs” after one of the delightful chickens in Wallace & Gromit’s stop-animation movie Chicken Run. Babs has a perfect body … perfect for sitting comfortably on her nest for as long as it takes to lay her eggs. Babs is a talented and clever chick. Although she has been described as dim-witted, don’t be fooled. Babs has learned how to knit, so she can knit while she sits, thereby keeping herself entertained as she creates her delicious contributions to the Heritage Chicken Program. Babs is very happy to have this opportunity to earn her keep at the Farm.

Why You Named Your Chicken

Below are chicken stories that have captured a community’s imagination and heart. Our first post could not contain all the stories that we received, and so here we are with Chicken Naming Part II.

Gertie Chase, Annie Pringle Hemstock, and Cecily Jepson Hepworth

I am a third generation Alberta woman, and I helped my Mom take care of the chickens on our family farm. I am also an artist and have been painting a series of heritage chicken portraits. My most recent artworks honours the lives and collective memory of the first prairie women settlers.

My paintings are inspired by these women’s original diaries and letters, many of whom raised chickens, so I have named our three chickens after three pioneer women. Our first chicken was a Light Sussex, and I named her after

Gertie Chase, who came to the Wapiti River area of Alberta from Tonasket, Washington State in the 1920s. Our second chicken was a White Leghorn, and I named her after Annie Pringle Hemstock, who came to the Hannah area of Alberta from Chatsworth, Ontario in 1918.  Our present chicken is a Barred Plymouth Rock, and I named her after Cecily Jepson Hepworth who came to the Readlyn area of Saskatchewan from Chorley, Lancashire, England in 1930.

In the women’s diaries and letters that I have been researching, their chickens are often mentioned with a real fondness, so I think that they would be happy to be a part of the heritage chicken program.

  Carly (Barred Plymouth Rock)

I've been participating in the heritage chicken program for a while now, and my current hen's name is Carly. The very first heritage chicken I adopted I had named Frankie, after Frank Robinson, the University of Alberta vice-provost and dean of students, because of his connection to the University of Alberta farm and agricultural programs (inspired by this video created by the Office of the Registrar: http://youtu.be/bHmP72ATMIk). Carly was named in honour of Dr. Carl Amrhein and his recent departure from his role as provost and vice-president at the University of Alberta. 

  Kendall  (New Hampshire)

We named our chicken Kendall, after our 8 year old daughter. Her favorite part of baking has always been breaking the eggs.  Even after a few years of practice, she is still quite proud of herself when she does it perfectly.

  ChickLit (Brown Leghorn)

When I picked up a few spent hens last year for my soup pot I was very surprised at their size – tiny birds that had been producing what seemed to me to be disproportionately large eggs. So when I wanted to adopt a Brown Leghorn this year, I wanted a name that reflected her diminutive stature.

Chicklette and Chicklet were contenders, but I finally opted for ChickLit because I have no doubt she is a knowledgeable and literary bird. After all, she will spend her life at the UofA, so she must be a smart chicken. I’m sure she shares stories with the flock that reflect her interests. Although not especially highbrow (nor especially lowbrow) she must tell her flockmates tales of comfort and tales of wonder. “The Little Red Hen” is a favourite as is “Tillie Lays an Egg”. “Chickens to the Rescue” inspired feelings of pride.

For the record, she NEVER shares stories from "Chicken Soup for the Soul" as the title frightens her silly. On the days ChickLit feels philosophical, she turns to her existential favourite “Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?” I have heard there is great excitement throughout the flock with the promise of next week’s poultry reading, “Goblinproofing One’s Chicken Coop”. 

   Pearls (Barred Plymouth Rock)

Well “Pearls” was named in a round-about sort of manner and there was a Rooster influence.

Like most kids from my generation, we grew up with Bugs Bunny on Saturday mornings.  One of my favorite characters was Foghorn Leghorn who was a Rooster and one specific story line had him lined up to marry Miss Prissy.  I remember that I had asked my Mom why Miss Prissy didn’t wear Pearls since she was getting married!

No correlation between a chicken and a rooster but Foghorn Leghorn always comes to mind when poultry is the topic of conversation.

Fast forward – One of my nicknames is Pearls as I received a strand from my godmother when I was 16.  They are my go-to choice for jewelry, whether they accompany athletic wear or when I dress up to go out.

  Sydney (Brown Leghorn)

As a child growing up in Sydney, Australia it was common place for people to keep chickens on their property and my family was no exception. Each year around two dozen little yellow balls of fluff would arrive and were cared for in a specially heated box that was housed in the equivalent of our basement. This was a source of great interest. At a certain point, what had developed into a rather ungainly clutch would be transferred to a special chicken run at the bottom of our garden. Feeding, watering, and collecting the eggs from the "chook yard" became part of our regular routine. Long after the association with fluffy yellow chicks had been forgotten the birds were prepared for the dinner table. Sydney seemed like the obvious name for our chicken!  

  Gladys and Audrey (Light Sussex)

2013/14- "Gladys"- named after my wife’s late mother. Raised chickens in first half of life. 

2014/15- "Audrey"- named after my husband's late mother. 

Both ladies have/had a twisted sense of humor and would be honored to have a hen named after them. They are chuckling in the great hen party in the sky! 

Why You Named Your Chicken

Everyone has a story, eggspecially the chickens in our Adopt a Heritage Chicken Program. When asked to tell why the adopters named their chicken, the responses received were heart-warming, amusing, and even practical. Thank you to those whose stories will either make you laugh, cry, or wish you had thought the same thing!

Beloved Fraulein Waldmann (New Hampshire)

I chose a New Hampshire chicken partly because I like the idea that New Hampshire chickens lay large eggs, but mostly because my first full-time job, as a newspaper reporter, was in New Hampshire. I named my chicken Fraulein Waldmann, after my first landlady, a middle-aged German widow who lived downstairs from me with her extremely elderly mother. The building had about 20 apartments. Fraulein Waldmann definitely favoured me over her other tenants, thanks, I'm sure, to our last-name connection (although her last name had two "n"s and mine has only one). She used to bring me homemade treats. When I accidentally destroyed my refrigerator (note to self: do not use a steak knife to defrost the freezer), she split the cost of the replacement refrigerator with me. When I moved out, a neighbour and I compared our leases, which is when I discovered that Fraulein Waldmann had charged me the lowest rent in the building. 

  Miss Chook, the Aussie (Brown Leghorn)

This year when choosing a name for my hen, I reflected back on a one year exchange that my family and I did to Australia in the year 2000.  Our daughters turned 13 and 16 while we resided in Perth, Western Australia.  While there, I managed to locate an old acquaintance that my husband and I first met in Kabul, Afghanistan.  It had been 23 years since we last saw our Australian friend Mark.  When I located Mark living in Melbourne, we agreed to revisit with each other over the Easter holidays.  We boarded an aircraft for Melbourne, Victoria.  Mark lived with his wife and his young daughter in an established neighbourhood of Box Hill.  Their 60 year old Australian veranda brick home was quaint and comfortable.  The girls stayed in the main house while my husband and I got to sleep in Mark’s art studio located in a separate building in the backyard.  Mark was an art teacher at a local private school for girls.  The backyard was like an English garden; filled with beautiful flowers, vegetables and fruit trees.  Along with the beautiful flora there were the family’s 4 chickens. Australians think nothing of keeping chickens.  There are no by-laws throughout most of Australia with regards to raising chickens in your backyard.  It is actually encouraged.   Along with supplying the family with fresh eggs, chickens are a snake’s worst enemy.  Each morning, we were awakened to the sounds of chickens clucking and fresh coffee brought from the house by Mark.  I admired Mark’s life style as much as I did in his nature when I first met him in Kabul.  Aussies give everything a nickname.  Chickens are called chooks therefore my little girl this year is called Miss Chook.

Chiaki! What a lady. (Barred Plymouth Rock)

Our Chiaki is named after Chiako Fujimoto, 藤 本 千秋, a Japanese actress, designer, voice actor, and singer.  Chiaki was married to one of our favourite comedians, Shozo Endo of the comedy duo Cocorico. She often makes hilarious and awkward appearances on the annual New Year's Eve comedy special called No Laughing Batsu that her ex-husband co-stars in. No Laughing Batsu is one of funniest and best event of the year. Chiaki always makes a great appearance much to the chagrin of her ex-husband Mr. Endo. When it came time to pick a name for our Heritage Chicken, we looked at each other and yelled, "CHIAKI!" 

 Clucker, The Not-So Early Riser (White Leghorn)

Early—really early—one morning a month or so before Christmas, I was wide awake but reluctant to leave the warmth of my bed. So as not to wake my husband, I pulled out my tiny iPod and snuggled down, reading the Edmonton Journal, checking the weather and then skittering through Facebook. On it, a girlfriend announced she’d just adopted a Heritage Chicken. I clicked on the link.  Weekend breakfasts for my sweetie must include eggs. So there’s that. And he will do Foghorn Leghorn impersonations at the drop of a hat. “Keep your eye on the ball, son.... Eye. Ball. That’s a joke son.”  And look! Here were leghorn chickens, a whole slew of them, to adopt and lay fresh eggs every two weeks. I’d found him his Christmas present! While he snoozed, I signed him up. But the name?  Dawn finally deigned to come through the curtains and my husband woke groggily to the day.  “If you had a chicken, what would you call it?” I asked, before he’d even opened his eyes. “Clucker,” he grumbled. At least, I think that’s what he said.

   Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice (Barred Plymouth Rock)

My choice of breed (Barred Plymouth Rock) was based on the picture, and the colour of the plumage made me think of salt-and-pepper, which made me think of sugar and spice.  So I named my hen 'Spice', hoping she would be like everything nice. 

The Kid Mix (New Hampshire)

Ours was easy! We enlisted our kids to come up with names, but there was no consensus. Actually the exercise just caused a lot of grief. So we called our hen Abamon. Our kids are Abigail, Amalie and Andon. Everybody got their name in there, and everyone was happy.

  Priscilla Mullins, the loveliest hen (Barred Plymouth Rock)

Since we got a Plymouth Rock hen, we named her Priscilla Mullins, after the pilgrim wife of John Alden. John Alden was the first to leap from the Mayflower to Plymouth Rock when the ship landed, making him the first pilgrim to set foot in North America. Priscilla Mullins was the spunky heroine of the Longfellow poem, The Courtship of Miles Standish, which describes the efforts of Miles Standish, who, though a brave sailor and valiant fighter, was shy in personal matters and feared courting. Standish sent handsome young John Alden, who had served under him on the Mayflower, to plead his case and ask for the hand of Priscilla Mullins, "the loveliest maiden in Plymouth."  Priscilla Mullins shaped the North American female character as confident and bold - she listened to Alden's speech on behalf of Standish, then replied, "Speak for yourself, John Alden." The couple were already in love and did not want to offend Standish, whom they both revered. Soon, they received word that Standish was killed by Indians and so they married. Standish, who was not actually killed, arrived at the wedding, and gave them his blessing. Priscilla and John Alden raised 10 children, including their fourth daughter, Sarah, who married Alexander, the son of Miles and Barbara Standish. 

Plucky the Plucking and Plucked Chicken (New Hampshire)

I named my chicken 'Plucky' because it has a subtle double meaning. First, it celebrates the plucky nature of the chicken and especially the heritage breed that my girl is part of-the New Hampshires. Her name is also a reminder of where ultimately she will end up-plucked and eaten, since the New Hampshires (like the Rhode Island Reds we raised on the family farm) are really tasty. 

Holly the English Hen 

I was in England when the email came stating that my wait to adopt a Heritage chicken was over. I was staying with friends, thus my choice of the Light Sussex breed. She was named Holly after the daughter of the people I was staying with.

The next generation girls are growing healthily. They chirped loudly as I walked into their bird house. The girls are separated by heritage breed. There are 10 pens in which each pen holds approximately 160 chicks.  These new birds will grow up to replace the generation before them, their parents. 

These chickens seem to have gotten over their “teenage stages” as their feathers are filling in. Some have their comb and crown already beginning to show, whereas others have not. In time all the breeds will have these, some more pronounced than others which may contribute to them being higher in the pecking order.

By mid-October these girls and guys will be moved to the same barn that their parents were previously housed in. At first they will start laying very small eggs, some call them fart or oopsy eggs others call them peewee eggs which are anything less than 42 grams in weight.

Around December these growing girls will lay larger eggs that will be used for consumption.

Grow chickies grow!

The heritage chicken program once again has been a grand success. And again with your help we were successful in preserving a genetic legacy that would otherwise be lost.

This will be our last egg - pick up of the heritage chicken project round II.

While kept in the Poultry Research Centre’s Facility at the University Farm the girls had caring staff that ensured they were well fed, watered, and had great environment to grow and prosper. They also were well loved by adopters who enjoyed their girl’s gifts of eggs.

As we observed the girls it became evident that each girl had a different personality.  Some girls even lived up to their names: Henny McCackle, Squak, Strathy Strut, and Egstraordinary are but a few examples. 

Our girls have provided us with so much this past year, eggs, laughter, and a thorough education. The girl’s egg –laying ability starts to decline at the end of 12 months. At about 3 years of age many heritage hens will stop producing eggs completely. We are so thankful for our girls as they have provided us with delicious eggs and a great source of protein.

We want to thank all of you who have supported our Heritage Egg Program as well as some of our other initiatives such as pickled eggs, sale of heritage chicks, and the pasture raised chickens for meat.

We want to thank: MoJo JoJo Pickles for working with us to create such lovely pickled eggs. Peavey Mart for partnering with us in the sale of heritage chicks. C & E Meats and Scholing Farms for raising our heritage chickens for meat.

8 days and counting… On September 18th, we will have had our heritage chickens for 15 weeks and 3 days and they’ll be off to the butcher. For us, it will be the end of a very meaningful project and the beginning of hopefully a long and fulfilling career as farmers.

  This year was our first year diving more fully into farming and the launch of C & E Meats. Along with our chickens we started a couple other projects, including raising lamb and doing some custom grazing. We learned a ton along the way but as I reflect back on the year now, more than ever, I can truly relate to the opportunities and challenges facing the new farmers I have met along the way. Here’s some of what I’ve learned.

  First of all what is a farmer? One of the first things that I had to become comfortable with was calling myself a farmer. I think many of us hold a fairly traditional image of the farmer – male, grey haired, plaid shirt with a pitch fork in hand. This is simply not true. Farmers are male and female, young or old, work 100% on the farm or have off-farm jobs, have lots of land or have a little plot in the city, grew up on a farm or didn’t, the variety is endless. I’ve stopped making any assumptions and started helping people to identify with the title ‘farmer’.  Do you have a garden to feed your family? You’re are farmer! And the girls that you pick up your eggs from every two weeks – they’re farmers too!

  Farming is still a noble profession. I feel very lucky to have gotten into farming through a noble cause. What could be better than starting a farm and preserving heritage chicken genetics at the same time? From what I’ve seen, many new farmers start out this way. They hold strong values that support a healthy, sustainable, community-based future for agriculture and food production. There are many opportunities to link these values with those of consumers and create a win-win situation like has been done with the Heritage Chicken Program.

  Consumers and community complete the circle. I’ve learned just as much from our customers as I have from our farm. Sharing our farm story with others has taught me a lot about what is important to people and its exciting to find out that they truly care about the farm. We were the featured farm at a special dinner the other day and it was incredibly motivating to hear the support from the eaters who wanted to be engaged in what we are doing and wanted us to keep going.

  You can be a farmer too. The discussion about new farming often stops quickly as people bring up barrier after barrier. I think these barriers have to do with our traditional way of thinking about the farm. In as many types of people there are in farming, there are as many types of ways to get into farming. It is all about being opportunistic, willing to work with others, thinking outside the box and being willing to take a chance. There are endless learning opportunities and it is amazing how much information is at your fingertips.

I’m here to tell you that farming is not all doom & gloom (even though we named a set of lamb twins on the farm named Doom & Gloom). It vibrant, its exciting, its doable, its noble, and more important its needed! I recently turned 29 years old and realized that I’m 30 years away from reaching the average age of a farmer in Canada. We need new farmers and we need new and innovative initiatives like the Heritage Chicken Program that will shape the future of farming.

Some of you may have seen what look to be like chicken hairs on chicken meat. Does this mean that chickens have hair like humans do? Although seemingly hair-like, these thin hairy protrusions are not hair but modified feathers.

They are called filoplumes or pinfeathers. The filoplumes monitor where contour feathers will be placed. Contour feathers are the feathers which a chicken may display when frightened, to look fierce, or to simply puff out to stay warm. They also help the chicken stay relatively dry when wet. Heritage breeds tend to have more filoplumes than modern commercial breeds.

Commercial breeds are generally genetically selected for bigger breast meat and bigger eggs, some commercial breeds of chicken are genetically selected for the scaleless gene to allow for higher relative carcass yields, and meat quality.