My son is doing a video project for a school assignment, on his favourite topic - poultry. He wants to open his video with a short discussion on the origins of poultry. When we search the Net for info, however, we come up with basically nothing. Does anyone have the information or know of any good sites that describe the origin and history of the domesticated chicken? Where did they come from? When were they first domesticated? What was the first real 'breed'?

You ask a very good question, and I have no idea what breed was first. Almost all chickens (except the Araucana) were selected from the Asian Jungle Fowls, which exist in the wild to this day. I once found a National Geographic article that detailed the commercial hatcheries of ancient Egypt some 3,000 years ago. There are breeds such as the Fayomi (Egyptian) and the Dorking (Roman) that date back at least 2,000 years. It is assumed that chickens were first domesticated in Southeast Asia where the Jungle Fowl lives. One can safely argue that the Red Jungle Fowl which is in the ABA Standard as a bantam is the original breed, because it is basically selected from wild stocks which date back tens of thousands of years.

Hi, Find a copy of "the Chicken book" by Page Smith &
Charles Daniel. Little Brown and Co

Hi my name is vickie and i am in 8th grade!I am doing a 3-5 page report of the selective breeding of chickens!We thouht it would be easy but boy were we wrong.It is very diffucult to find information of the selective breeding of chickens!So if you have any info that could help me please email me or post it up on the board!My email address is snow_baby@angelfire.com
Thanx so much!Hope you can help!

My wife recently discovered a chicken egg within a chicken egg. When she broke open the egg which she purchased from the store it contained the yolk, egg white and also another smaller egg in a shell. This egg was about half the size of a normal egg and appears the same in shape and color as a normal egg. She tried to crack open the second egg and discovered the shell was thicker. She never did open the second egg.

How common is this? We have asked around and no one we have asked has ever come accross this. We are interested in finding out more. If anyone has information we would appreciate hearing from you.

Tom, Not common, but does indicate an abnormality in ovulation and at the last part of egg formation before laying, the deposit of shell. CJR

Hello I need some help.. I really am chicken stupid and I have few questions.. We bought three hens and one rooster.. So far we are getting one egg every other day. Why are we not getting three everyday? Am I doing something wrong? I read on the other things that if you want to hatch them you should gather them up and mark them with the date.. OK and then wait til the hen starts sitting on the egggs and then put the ones that are less then two weeks old in there.. Right? OK but how long does it take for the eggs to hatch? And will they hatch in the house? And is it ok for them to hatch in the house? Can some one give me some advice on what to exspect? What do I need to do to get the hens to lay more eggs? Thanks for the help!!

Angel

Angel7773,
Hens lay well when they are:
Old enough. Roughly 6 months.
Not too old. Old hens may continue to lay for many years, but not an egg a day. An egg a day is VERY good. I believe the window of highest egg prodution is between 6-18 months.
They have high quality feed, such as a Layer ration with at least 16% protein.
They have oyster shell available free choice, a source of calcium for the egg shells.
They have clean water at all times.
They have 14 or more hours of light per day.
They are not molting. Chickens like other birds replace their feathers, and this takes energy, so they don't lay during this period.
They are of a breed known for egg prodution.
They are free of disease and parasites.
They are not stressed by dampness,draftines,or excessive cold.

Beyond this, a change in routine, such as the move to your house or a change in feed can put a hen off laying.

It takes 21 days of incubation to hatch an egg. If you hope to have a hen hatch some eggs( this will be entirely up to Mother Nature, neither you or the hen can "decide" that she will become "broody".A broody hen is in an altered physical state for the 21 days of incubation. ) the part about giving her a clutch or batch of eggs all at once that are less than 2 weeks old is right. I don't understand the hatch in the house part. Not unless you go with a mechcanical incubator, unless you want to keep your broody hen in the house for 21 days! If a hen is to hatch the eggs then leave it to her. At least until all the chicks have dried off (they're wet when they hatch). Then you can decide whether to let the hen care for (keep warm) the chicks, or whether to provide the 95 degree temp and draft free environment that the chicks will require. Either way you will have to provide their food (chick starter) and clean water in waterers too shallow to pose a risk of drowning to the chicks.

There is more, but this is plenty to digest until you actually have chicks on the way! Good Luck. Heather

As for my pullets, 2 of them lay an egg a day each while the other two havent even begun yet. I have recently introduced a cock into the flock and hope to hatch a few myself. I cant really tell if the female is broody yet as I am also new at this. Do Malays make good broodies? BTW, their eggs are half the size of normal eggs. Is this bad news?

Virak Sath (Suryajana@juno.com)

What breed of chicken or what age of chicken is used for buffalo wings?

Like all meat a cornish x at the same age as all the other meat birds.

Most all the chicken sold in groceries and used for the Colonel's empire are Cornish X. They grow incredibly fast and reach a good size when they are so tender they can be cut with a fork. Most birds are in the 6-8 week age range when they are dressed out and go into the food chain.

This may be the most stupid set of questions any of you have ever encountered, but understand that I grew up in the mountains of Colorado--that may be enough said.

My friend owns a horse ranch, but she bought a few chickens to have in a coop. She has knowledge for caring for them, but when I started asking questions about how this egg laying all happens, she was at a loss. Through our discussions, and the opinions of whoever walks by at that moment or whoever else is in the vicinity, we have tons of questions. Basically, we want to know how the rooster fits into all of this. Do hens lay eggs without a rooster around? How do some eggs produce chicks and some eggs get eaten for breakfast?? Will an egg develop into a chick only if it stays with the hen? Do you see how absolutely stupid we are about this? But our curiosity is up and I would like answers. I have tried the encyclopedia and did not find anythink helpful. Any information we get will be helpful. Thanks!