Introducing: A New, More Humane, Industry Chicken Coop Standard

May 26, 2016 / 2 Comments

A New, More Humane, Industry Chicken Coop Standard

When shopping for a chicken hutch you’ve probably seen plenty of coops that promise housing for 6, 8 or even a dozen chickens. Then, once you get home and assemble the new coop you find that not only is it too small for 8, but in fact, it doesn’t even have enough room for the three chickens you already have to live comfortably! Now, you’re likely disappointed in the seemingly false advertising and overestimation of chicken capacities. We want to change that.

Chicken coops are only as strong as the weakest link within the design. For example, if the nesting box is 12” x 12” x 12” (Which accommodates one to three birds maximum) and the manufacturer of the coop has enough run space for 8 chickens but only that one nesting box, it can’t house eight chickens. Actually, it can only house about two to three.

We noticed that this discrepancy is consistent throughout the chicken coop industry. This is because the chicken coop standard was invented and then copied by other manufacturers in the business. Advantek was one of those manufacturers. Now, the time has come for us to focus on designing humane chicken coops for our backyard chickens. Because of this new initiative, we have updated the correct quantity of chickens are that can reside inside any given coop.

From now on, all of our chicken coop capacities have considered the following:

2-3 square feet per chicken for roosting and space. 1 square foot on the roosting bar
12” x 12” x 12” for a nesting box per 1-3 chickens max
3-6 square feet of running space

Multiple reports have stated that, unsurprisingly, chickens living in humane situations are healthier, live longer, and produce more eggs. Chickens stress very easily (this can’t be emphasized enough) and when stressed, egg production may cease and chickens could become ill.

Going forward, we will be featuring the humane chicken coop standard capacities vs. industry standards on our packaging. You may also notice that our chicken capacity counts have already changed across all of your favorite e-commerce retailer’s websites. Our goal here at Advantek is to safely shelter all animals in sustainable and healthy environments; to see each and every animal within a happy home.

Chickens are great pets and they contribute so much more than fresh eggs to the household. Keeping them healthy and giving them enough space to thrive creates benefits for the chicken and the chicken parent that are priceless.

That is the story. One simple observation that led to the questions. Those questions led to answers that lead to something great. Just wait until you see the results.

Explanation of Research Process by Dave Bloom, Chief Researcher of this project

When I was hired by Advantek in late 2015, I knew at the onset that my responsibilities would include writing about chickens. This is a company that focuses on pet products so this was by no means a shock to me. But at the time, pretty much the only things I knew about chickens were a few jokes, recipes and the fact that they poop–like a lot.

I wanted to learn everything I could about chickens, especially how to care for them and try to understand what a backyard chicken goes through on any given day. We design chicken coops and I needed to know how the coops are created to cater to chickens; not only what was the chicken coop standard, but what were the other practices in place to care for chickens? I did some research online, more or less in passing; reading people’s thoughts on their blogs and other somewhat unreliable information. I would do an internet search every few days to get my feet wet with information and I started to feel confident in my introduction to the world of chickening. With so much untrustworthy content online I needed confident sources that I could cite and utilize going forward. I did some exploring about chickening books and started my education with these three books; Chickens For The Backyard Homesteader by Suzie Baldwin, Raising Chickens For Dummies by Kimberly Willis and Robert T. Ludlow and The Backyard Chicken Bible by Eric Lofgren. I then followed it up with these two magazines that had special issue dedicated to chickens; Amundsen, Lucie B. “How To Raise Chickens.” Modern Farmer. Spring 2016 and Williams, Christian. (Ed.). (2016). Guide to Backyard Chickens: [Special issue]. Grit. The information in the magazines echoed everything I had read in the books and my confidence continued to grow.

After all of that reading I ended up with a new question for every question answered.

Looking at the products that exist out there I noticed that there was a clear industry standard for chicken coops that benefits the chicken owner, but not best constructed for birds, and in some cases are downright bad and unhealthy for them. We want to make products that benefit both. The biggest takeaway from some of these authors is that they themselves are backyard chicken owners, not reporters or writers assigned a story. Most of the chickeners that wrote these books went the Do It Yourself approach to build their coops. This of course, is always an option for you if you decide, but the core of building your own or purchasing a Humane Chicken Coop remain the same. We want chickens to live in environments that cater to their health and well being. The ideals put forth in our humane chicken coops educate on proper space for chickens in coops, correct size of a roosting bar, adequate run space and how exactly a nesting box should be sized for your chickens.

There will soon be a lot of new humane content on our website. Visit often as we’ll add information on Proper Practices, DIY Ideas and of course, The Humane Chicken Coop Standard. Are you as excited as we are?

Keeping Chickens Cool During The Summer

May 19, 2016 / No Comments

Keeping Chickens Cool is not a terribly difficult process but one that needs to be in place to help facilitate the care of our pet chickens during the hottest months. Almost every type of climate if affected by this; while the south will see warmer months more frequently than the north, spikes in temperatures occur most everywhere, so please be cautious and aware to keep our chickens safe.

I stay cool by looking this good.

KEEPING CHICKENS COOL

Ventilation

While proper ventilation should be built into the chicken coop that you own, finding ways to add additional air flow is key to keeping chickens cool as the weather heats up. This includes adding a fan inside of the coop–that isn’t always a viable option depending on the size of the coop, but if a workaround can be done, go for it. The usual warning applies here in regards to live wire or cords that chickens could get injured on. To assist in cooler temps inside, ensure that there’s only a thin layer of shavings on the ground. This will act as an insulator and keep the coop warmer.

Freeze It

On those extreme hot days where we open up the freezer door and just stand there letting the cold air envelop us, think of that kind of cold relief for your chickens too. One of the best ways of keeping chickens cool is to put ice in their water. Keeping their H2O fresh and clean is a no-brainer task and adding ice to the bowl helps keep the water cool as your chickens drink it up. It also helps maintain proper body temperature of the chickens.

Be careful of the choice in feed for those really hot days. Certain foods take longer to digest which in turn creates additional body heat. Put some berries into the freezer and share them with your chickens. Raspberries, blueberries and strawberries are ideal for a frozen treat. melons work great too. Cut one in half and freeze it and let your chickens pick out of the melon bowl will go a long way in keeping your chickens cool. Here’s a link for a quick read on what to not feed your chickens.

Shade

Keeping chickens out of direct sunlight is the obvious answer to the shade situation, but there are many small ways that shade can be offered and it will make a huge difference. Having a roof over your chicken coop is smart for many reasons, but the sun is sneaky and can find ways to shine right upon the chickens. If you use Advantek’s Medium Gazebo,

the inclusion of the Sun Shade makes a huge difference blocking that direct sunlight.

Any additional shade could be the difference between healthy and unhealthy chickens.

Spacing

A lot of these practices translate from how we would take care of ourselves during the hottest of days. Avoid allowing chickens to exert themselves too much and ensure that they aren’t huddled together. Giving them proper space in the shade to remain cool is key. Keep their dust bath area nice and shaded too. The cooler earth will feel good as they bathe and wait out the hottest hours of the day.

Chickens are easily stressed animals and it’s our job to take care of them. Much like we keep them and ourselves warm in the winter we need to ensure we keep them cool in the summer. What ideas do you have? Share them below.

Teacher Appreciation Week (And Those Classroom Pets)

May 5, 2016 / No Comments

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week and while we here at Advantek believe teachers need to be appreciated this way all year long, we wanted to give a special shout out to those that take the chance and have animals in the classroom as pets.

There are so many benefits to having pets in the classroom. Not only does it take an animal that might not have had a home and surround it with a family, pets in the classroom have the ability to assist in educating our children.

Did you have pets in the classroom while you were in school? What kind of pet was it? What are your memories? What did you learn? We’d bet your take away was a lot more than you realize. That’s why, this Teacher Appreciation Week, we wanted to mention those furry and or scaly classmates that bring our children added benefits and thank the teachers that take the chance on bringing in pets for our education.

Have you said thank you during Teacher Appreciation Week?

Pets in the classroom is a website the advocates such a practice. Some of their insights and research reveal that, “Classroom Pets Stimulate Learning Classroom animals are wonderful resources for teachers to make learning fun in all subjects!” They go on to say, “Whether it’s Math (“how much does a hamster weigh?”) or Science, (“what does a snake eat?”) Geography (“what part of the world do ferrets come from?”) or Grammar (“what words would we use to describe a goldfish?”) students will approach learning all these subjects with a new enthusiasm and interest. Other classes can even come visit your classroom pets and your students can create special presentations about the animals.”

They also talk about how having a pet in the classroom enriches the learning experience.

“• Even kids with no exposure to animals or nature in their home environment can see, feel, touch and make connections to the wide world of animals.
• Observing and caring for an animal instills a sense of responsibility and respect for life.
• A pet brings increased sensitivity and awareness of the feelings and needs of others—both animals and humans.
• Kids learn that all living things need more than just food and water for survival.
• Students will see directly how their behavior and actions affect others.
• Studies show that the presence of animals tends to lessen tension in the classroom.”

Read more about pets in the classroom here.

One teacher that we spoke to said this about pets in the classroom, “It’s not solely about responsibility, it’s about respect for animals (my passion.) I plant a seed to one day try and have all animals loved, resulting in no animal shelters and no animal abuse.” We couldn’t agree more.

The Be Humane website has findings on pets in the classroom. They say, “A class hamster, guinea pig, lizard, or even goldfish can be fun and exciting for schoolchildren, but it also has real educational, leadership and character-building value, according to a new study from American Humane Association in collaboration with the Pet Care Trust. Phase I of the two-phase “Pets in the Classroom” study features surveys and interviews of nearly 1,200 teachers and reveals that having a class pet can teach children important values like compassion, empathy, respect, and responsibility for other living things, as well as give them much-needed leadership skills and stress relief.” Read the entire article here.

There’s been a lot of dialogue about having pets in the classroom and the benefits involved. An internet search reveals a lot of content on the subject.

The website Animal World listed a bunch of bullet points in their report. Below are three of them. Visit their page to read all of the benefits.

1. Pets teach compassion – Children learn to care for another living creature. They don’t always know how to interact with other creatures and this can teach them to touch softly, feed an animal and become in tune to their feelings. For instance, petting comforts an animal.

2. Pets teach responsibility – You are never too young to learn how to coexist with other living things. Pets are dependent on their owners for feeding and care. Children can learn how to feed a pet on a regular schedule, give them exercise and also clean out their cages.

3. Pets teach kids to think – While children learn to read and write in school, they also need to think through situations. If a pet is limping, something is wrong with it that needs attention. Cleaning a cage takes thought. The pet needs to be moved to another location before the tank can be cleaned. Where will you put the pet?

What are your thoughts about pets in the classroom? What benefits do you see?

Make sure to tell your teacher thank you, not just during Teacher Appreciation Week, but as much as you can.