“I do love my chicken girls!” exclaimed Kathy Huizenga of Morrison, IL. She brought half a dozen chicks to delight attendees, but she had a goal. “We are promoting the idea to bring the Poultry Show back to the Fair. I like hens. I like eggs. I like the enjoyment of [raising them],” she stated.
“We just wanted to make this fun, and the chicks have been a big hit at the fair!” They like to nestle under the feather duster and look in the mirror.
These are egg layers; Huizenga only has ten hens. They eat feed and are free-range pastured. The latter diet yields more protein in the eggs, and the yolk has better color.
“Mine are strictly for enjoyment. They all are named; I have a sign with their names [displayed].” She has raised hens for two years.
The chicks are purchased, rather than hatched from her stock. Every 26-to-28 hours, her birds lay an egg, averaging five eggs a week. “Bantams lay less.” She does not have enough to sell, so they go to friends and family. “I give away” extras,” she said.
Huizenga concluded, “I am not sure who is more worn out, the chicks or me! I could not do this if it were not for help from family.”