Customer Reviews

How To Raise Chickens: Everything You Need To Know

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book covers pretty much everything about raising chickens on a small scale, down-to-earth level. It covers feeding, coop requirements, showing, basic breeds, nutritional requirements, needed equipment and raising day old chicks. I've read so many chicken raising books and most of them cover the same areas that this book does. Though, this book earns 5 stars because of the chapter on chicken medications. I really found this chapter very helpful. Whereas, most of the books I've read on chickens tell symptoms and what might be wrong; this book has the Antibiotic (ie Terramycin, Aureomycin or Sulmet) & other medications and then tells exactly which one should be used to treat what and what other common meds can be used for chickens.

This colorful book is put together on glossy, flexible paper stock that will definitely survive repeated reading or referencing. The photo's are also very good. Even if you have other chicken raising guides, it's worth adding this one to your collection.

For much of 2006, Christine Heinrichs worked on this, her first full length book. As a matter of fact, I even had the opportunity to preview a chapter or two and give my input. I always knew Christine was an excellent writer; however, this book surpassed all my expectations. Truly, Christine has done a vital service for backyard poultry enthusiasts and in the process has made the SPPA proud by her contribution. The book carries the endorsement of the largest agricultural organization in the United States: the FFA. Primarily geared toward the beginner, it carries a wealth of valuable knowledge that makes it an excellent reference work for the mature poultry fancier as well.
The first three chapters focus on the history of the domestication of the chicken and the various heritage breeds available for the enthusiast today. Christine's concentration is on pure bred fowl: specifically those breeds of fowl which are not composite in nature. She divides the presentation of the breeds by the appropriate class as listed in the American Poultry Association's Standard of Perfection. Christine also gives a listing of the bantam breeds and their respective classes based upon the American Bantam Association's Bantam Standard. Thus, she introduces the novice to the Standard and infuses the need for breeding to the Standard from the beginning.
In her fourth chapter, Christine formally introduces the reader to the Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities (SPPA). Actually, she mentions the SPPA and several of its officers several times in the preceding chapters through direct quotations. This chapter focuses on obtaining quality stock. As we all know, for the beginner and, at times, for the long time breeder this is the most difficult hurdle to overcome; especially as it concerns quality stock of rare breeds of poultry.
Chapters five, six and seven focus on the essentials of keeping chickens with the chapters dedicated to housing, feeding and flock management respectively. For the FFA member or novice poultry fancier this area constitutes the second largest hurdle following the location of quality stock. How often we have all known people who have jumped head first into the raising of chickens without adequate preparation only to run into a multitude of problems with a short time. Often the result is that potential fanciers leave the raising and rearing of poultry simply because they were unprepared. Christine addresses all the major needs of any flock owner in an easy to understand manner; whereby, even the beginner is able to gain a wealth of knowledge within a few short pages. Added to her excellent advice are magnificent picture of adequate housing, feed, and healthy flocks.
Her next three chapters focus on perpetuating one's own flock through basic breeding strategies, hatching chicks and selection of future breeders. The presentation of the very complex strategies available for the breeder are guided by the old principle of breeding best to best as guided by the Standard and basic health of the birds. Christine's approach is based upon the need in our high-tech agricultural society for a return to sustainable agricultural practices. At every turn in our post-modern world we find family farms being overwhelmed by industrial agricultural practices based upon the needs of conglomerate agricultural companies whose focus is on quantity production. Christine's desire is to instill the youth of our time with the need for more wholesome agricultural practices that are good for the land, the farmer and ultimately the consumer. This can best be achieved through sustainable agriculture as practiced by family farms.
Christine concludes the final chapters of this excellent book by examining the issues of showing, maintaining healthy flocks and the ever growing arena of legal issues that surround the raising and keeping of poultry. With the ever-threatening issues of Avian Influenza and flock identification breathing down the backs of poultry producers these chapters are indispensable in their sound advice and common sense approach. Christine wades through the media hysteria of Avian Influenza and presents biologically sound arguments to the poultry producer for the continuation of small flocks in America.
As a breeder of poultry, I found the book to be accurate in its portrayal of all aspects of keeping backyard chickens. Christine's common sense approach to chickens was absolutely refreshing. Several of the books on the market today give the impression of the need for a Master's degree in poultry science before one should take the plunge into this fascinating aspect of animal husbandry. I have already found myself returning to the pages of How To Raise Chickens several times during this hatching season. I highly recommend this book to all poultry fanciers be they beginners or long-time breeders.

Really good book! One of the best. Large format, nicely illustrated and comprehensive-- ideal for 4-H clubs and families thinking about keeping a few hens in the garden.

This book plus Gail Damerow's books "Chicken Health" and "Guide to Raising Chickens" would create a great starter library about chickens.

Need help choosing a the breed that matches your needs? 2 other books can help you determine which breeds are docile vs. aggressive, best vs. poor layers, calm vs. flighty, quiet vs, noisy, etc.. Those books are "Choosing and Keeping Chickens" and "Storey Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds".

"How to Raise Chickens" by Christine Heinrichs, strikes me as a well written and well-illustrated high-school textbook.

The fact that it's branded by the Future Farmers of America and the author is staff with the Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities should give you an idea about its focus.

This is a great book for the mid-level 4-H kid, homeschoolers, or heck maybe an FFA program! It's especially pertinent to those who want to get into unusual breeds and showing their birds. Not that it's specific to showing; this book gives a paragraph to pretty much "everything you need to know."

A short history of chickens, breed types, housing, feeding, breeding programs, showing, health care and legal aspects are some of the short, colorful and concise chapters included in the book. The focus is very different from many of the other backyard chicken books, making this one a good addition to your poultry library.

At times I was disappointed that only a paragraph or two was given to a certain subject - there were a few breeds mentioned that I wanted more information on - but by keeping it short Heinrichs offers an accessible guide, and not an encyclopedic tome.

Lots of photos, a colorful layout, and a broad coverage ensures that students will be exposed to most aspects of small-flock management. In addition, Heinrichs provides plenty of resources for readers interested in more detail. I would definitely recommend it to that FFA teacher looking to build a chicken curriculum.

If you are really looking for a book that has everything this is NOT the book. I am new to chickens. With all the great reviews I thought this would be the book for me. Nope. It does NOT have everything I need to know in it. I only gave this book 2 stars because the photos are fantastic. The information that is in this book is okay only because it is very vague, giving more detail in some other areas.

I recently acquired 6 laying hens from a friend. Our interest were the eggs as food. We do not want a rooster therefore will not be hatching our own chicks. This book does NOT have any info in it on how long an egg will last after it has been layed. It does NOT have any info on cleaning an egg after it is layed(whether it is a good idea to do so or not). It does NOT have any info on the potential bacteria you can get from eggs. It does NOT have any info on how to get my chickens to lay in their nesting boxes and not on the ground. It has Zero info on Broody hens. This book really has no info if your interests are in the eggs themselves; not chicks, meat or showing.

I have found all this information in the book "The Joy of Keeping Chickens" by Jennifer Megyesi.

Good general overview about chickens, but I would have liked more detailed information about feeding, housing and caring for them and which breeds are suitable for different areas of the country.

Written by rare-breed advisor and expert Christine Heinrichs, and reviewed for adherence to poultry industry standards by Dr. Clint Rusk (Purdue University Associate Professor, Ag. Education Department), How to Raise Chickens: Everything You Need to Know is a comprehensive manual for novice and experienced chicken raisers. How to Raise Chickens is an all-inclusive guide, written in straightforward terms to be accessible to readers of all backgrounds, whether they want to raise 5 or 50 chickens, on a small city lot or a 40-acre farm, for eggs or for show. Full-color photographs on every page illustrate this straightforward manual of breed types, housing, feeding, incubation and care of chicks, selection and culling, showing, aviation influenza, and much more. Tips, tricks, techniques, as well as basics such as "Before introducing new birds to your flock, always quarantine them for two to four weeks. Some diseases take time to develop." make How to Raise Chickens an absolute "must-have" for anyone considering the practice.

This book is worth much more than you pay for it. Just as it says, It has everything you'll need to know about chickens. Very nice pictures and a great education on the subject. Nice to get what you pay for. After reading a few of the top rated books on the subject I feel this book is by far the best.

After meeting Christine at a Poultry Show over a year ago, I am still using her book for everything I need for my chickens. I started with three chickens about 4 years ago now I have twelve and love every one of them. I am glad I got this book and I continue to see articles about chickens written by Christine in various farming magazines. She has a lot of information and does a great job sharing it. Thanks, Christine!

This well-written book provides sound, practical advice for anyone interested in raising chickens or in just learning more about this intriguing bird. A great resource -