A typical day

When you are on a farm, there is the "routine stuff" and the "surprises" you deal with. When I tell people I breed and raise chickens, ducks, and quail, they think it's more of a hobby. I WISH! It's a job. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do, but it is a lot of work and I put a lot of devotion into what I do. 

There are days I walk into the quail room, look in a cage, and there is a rat snake engulfing my quail, there are other days when an alligator is in the pond, water mocassins (snakes) swimming in the creek or pond, or an entire garbage can is missing except the lid.

At night I look through the window and a raccoon is peeping right at me! Little spies I tell you, waiting for you to go to bed so they can be naughty!

A typical day consists of me waking up at 7am, letting the dogs out, inspecting the coops. The birds are ready to get out! They all wait at the door. The Marans are more patient, the ducks, however quack when they hear me coming.

What I do this early in the morning is let the birds out so they can free range during the day. I turn on the water spicket and while they are eating the bugs and what not, I collect the duck eggs and chicken eggs. It is less crowded this way.

I really love my Marans Chicken. They lay very dark, almost chocolate color eggs. I have Black Copper, Silver Cuckoo, and Golden Cuckoo Marans. The Black Coppers lay the darkest in my opinion. My other chickens are broody so they are tending chicks at the moment. The Marans are the only ones laying right now. The ducks lay a lot, but they bury them and I have to go digging to get an egg. If my Rouen duck sees me, immediately she starts burying the eggs even though she did not lay them.

I bring the eggs home after I collect and so the eggs can be shipped out. If I didn't sell them I would set them in my own incubator so I can sell day old chicks when ready.

I then do inventory and website updates, answer emails, the business part one would say. I also answer phone calls. If I have egg orders, I have to wrap and pack the orders to go. This is all done in the morning. 

In the afternoon, I look out the window. All the chicken are at the quail building, aka garage. It really sounds like they sit on the roof of the house and crow through the pipe/chimney thing we have. They wait for me to come out. I open the back door, they come running!


I go into the quail building and the first thing I do is collect water bottles and pile them up. It doesn't matter if the water bottles are half full or full. It's hot out and in. All birds are getting fresh cold water. Who wants to drink warm water?  Bacteria builds up and the bird gets sick. I do not need sick birds, especially if it can be prevented.

After I collect the water bottles, I have less in the way to collect my quail eggs. Now I have two rooms, a hatchery and brooder room and a quail room. This will change one day as I expand. But right now, this is all I have.

My hatchery and brooder room is what the title entails. I have incubators in this room as well brooders. I have quail brooders sitting on the shelves and there are larger brooders for the bigger babies when I have those hatch. I put pine shaving on the floor since I have older chicks living in there currently and it's easier to clean up after them that way.

What I do with the brooder/hatchery is move eggs from the incubator to the hatcher. 3 days prior to hatch, the eggs have to be moved to the hatcher so the chicks can position themselves to get ready to hatch. If they are still on the turner, problems can result, although I have had some babies "ride the turner" at times. Once I move the eggs to the hatcher, the eggs are in "lockdown" until 48 hours after the expected due date. It is not wise opening the hatcher each time you see a chick because cool air gets in disturbing the other chicks trying to hatch. Some may quit even because of this. Also, the chick absorbs enough yolk from the egg to sustain themselves nutrition wise for up to 48 hours. 

I always have a brooder clean and ready for the next batch. The chicks need a clean facility in order to not get sick or even die. Fresh water and food available at all times is a must for this little boogers.

Once I check on the hatcher/brooders, feed and water all the babies, I move on to the next room: The quail room. This room consists of my Chinese Blue Breasted (Button) Quail and Coturnix Quail. I am going to move the coturnix outdoors once I figure out an appropriate housing for them. For know they are indoors and happy.

Coturnix Breeders (more cages now)

Button Quail Breeders (more cages now ;))

Now is chow time. The Button quail and the Coturnix have a specific diet of Gamebird crumbles (NON MEDICATED). I mix oyster shell (ground) for added calcium. For the chicks (including chicken chicks, guineas, and ducklings) I feed them Gamebird crumbles blended to a fine consistency and add oyster shell for added calcium.

Now I fill ALL the water bottles and put them back onto the cages. 

The chickens await me. They are already waiting for their turn. I am greeted by chickens, ducks, and guineas. My peacocks are shouting their "HELP!" "HELP!" sound from their pen.

The Chickens, ducks, guineas, and peafowl get a half and half combination of Gambird crumbles, Eggmaker layer diet, and any table scraps we have. When the birds see my red wagon, it's mayhem!

It is already 5:00pm. I have been working for a good 7 hours. I have been also answering phone calls from customers and those with questions about their birds. It's time to bring in the birds to the coop for the night. I have one hen that comes at 6:15pm on the dot, but that is easy. I come out around that time and she will be waiting at the door of the coop. 

I need to work on installing perches. I have an old dog cage in each pen and I use wooden planks that I hose down. The Marans love to roost on it. The silkies are in the second pen. The ducks and cochins are in the third pen. The guineas live with the Marans. They are pretty tame little guys.

The ducks are in two cliques. I have the originals and then the "princessess" Sammy and Madison my crested Pekin Pair. They are always the last to come to their pen because they are "oh so special" in their little minds.

Now for Sammy and Madison....They are a riot!

First they come (half an hour later)

"Should we return?" 

Finally entering the pen...sigh

At 6:15pm, Number 14 comes to the coop so I can lock her up. I then can turn on the electricity and the birds are protected for the night...What a day! 

The end of the day is the most entertaining for me as I have done all the heavy work (think of the days when I have to clean the cages???!!!!) and I get to take my time, smell the roses and enjoy the birds. This is not an easy job, believe me it isn't, especially for one individual. However, I wouldn't trade it for the world. It is my passion and I am sticking to it.