If you have a chicken coop in your backyard, you need to know how to take care of your chickens daily, monthly, and yearly. Knowing how to take care of your chickens will keep them happier and healthier, and they will keep the eggs coming for you to enjoy! How should you take good care of your chickens daily?
Daily chicken tasks include ensuring to shut the coop door at night and opening it in the morning. Checking water resources and ensuring they have a constant water source is crucial while feeding and collecting eggs. Observing chickens daily is essential for noticing health or predator problems.
Learning how to take care of your chickens on a daily basis is the first step to having a thriving flock, and it’s much easier than taking care of a cat or dog. Stay tuned as we walk you through your chicken’s daily needs and how you can ensure they are taken care of correctly!
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Daily Care Needs Of A Chicken Coop
While chickens may not be as high maintenance as other pets, they will still require all the basic things that any other pet will, such as water, food, love, shelter, and attention. Owning poultry could be rewarding and easy, as long as you have everything to keep them healthy and happy.
Look at this comprehensive list below to know how to take care of your chickens’ basic needs daily:
Close The Coop’s Door At Night And Open It In The Morning
The daily responsibilities of taking good care of your flock are the easiest. The first thing you should do for your chickens is close their coop door at night and let them out again first thing in the morning.
Shutting your chicken coop door at night will not only keep them out of the cold and weather elements, but it will also ensure that they stay safe from predators that come out during the night, such as owls, raccoons, or rats, who may be on the prowl for young chicks.
Check Your Chickens’ Water And Refill Or Clean If Needed
Chickens need to be provided with a constantly clean and fresh water source. Water is essential for your chickens’ health. They can become hydrated very quickly, even if they are only left without water for a short period, especially during the hot summer months.
It may also be good to note that chickens do not like drinking dirty water, so you will have to clean their water every day. If there is any dirt or slime in their water container, you need to replace it immediately.
When you decide to clean your chickens’ water resources, you can use warm water with mild dish soap and rinse it well before refilling and placing it back.
You can also choose to use oxygen bleach or chlorine bleach if needed to sanitize the water container, as long as you ensure it’s appropriately rinsed.
Feed Your Chickens
You can free-feed your chickens using a suitable-sized hanging feeder and add fresh chicken feed every day as needed, or you can feed them with a specific amount each day.
There is no fixed rule on how many times you have to feed your chickens, but they will need to have enough feed to eat throughout the day.
On average, one chicken will consume about 120 grams of feed every day. If you find that there is a lot of food left over when you feed them again, you can reduce the amount of food you’re providing them.
As a general feeding guideline, about 90% of your chickens’ diet should come from a specially formulated feed. This will make sure you provide your chickens with all the essential nutrients.
You can also feed your chickens additional food scraps, such as vegetables, fruits, and other grains, to supplement their diet, and give them some variety.
Collect Fresh Eggs
Collecting fresh eggs from your chicken coop is seen as one of the most rewarding parts of owning a chicken coop, and it’s the primary reason for most people deciding to keep chickens as pets.
Although collecting eggs is seen as a daily task for any chicken owner, fresh eggs should actually be collected two to three times daily! Collecting eggs should be part of your morning routine, as well as the evening.
You should collect the eggs more frequently during the warmer and colder months. By regularly collecting the eggs from your chicken coop, you will be helping to keep eggs as clean as possible while reducing the chances of some of them cracking due to hen traffic.
It will also help to prevent your chickens from eating their eggs. Keeping in mind that chickens may become broody if you do not remove their eggs from their coop daily may also be good.
Because the eggs may not be fertilized, a broody hen will believe that she is expected to hatch her eggs and will continue to sit on them for an indefinite period.
When a hen becomes broody, she may become dehydrated and hungry due to refusing to leave her eggs. If your hen becomes broody, you need to take care immediately.
Observe Your Chickens Very Closely
After you have taken care of your chickens, it’s time to spend some time with them. Chickens have feelings just like other pets, and according to studies, they also experience positive and negative emotions, such as happiness and fear.
Spend time with your flock, and make sure each chicken is in good health. Sit with them in their coop and make them feel relaxed, offering them treats from your hand.
If your chickens are alert, active, with smooth feathers and bright eyes, you can take this as a clear indication that they are happy and healthy!
Conclusion
Your hens will supply you with fresh eggs daily without going to the grocery store, but you can only expect this when you have done your part. Remember that chickens will take up much of your time with their daily water and feed checks, collecting eggs, and protecting them from danger.
The coop’s success will depend on how much effort you put in, and the health of your chickens depends on you, like with any other pet!
