It is an exciting time when you bring home your new chickens to start your own free-range flock! To get them in their best condition and ready to lay and keep well throughout the seasons, here are some points to consider as a new hen owner:

1. Let your hens out soon after sun-up and bed down before dusk to reduce the danger from predators. Stick to a routine that will change with the seasons’ changing light levels
2. Provide fresh water daily in a galvanized metal drinker in the shade. Plastic waterers are more likely to grow algae and tip over
3. Provide feed in a trough with extra space to avoid fighting for food. A length of guttering capped at either end works well and can be easily cleaned
4. Feed a balanced diet of 100-150g of Smallholder Natural Free Range Layers Pellets or Layers Crumble per hen per day
5. Feed Smallholder Super Mixed Corn as a treat in the afternoons and feed small quantities; an egg cup amount per hen per day
6. Smallholder Natural Free Range Layers Pellets and Layers Crumble are a complete balanced daily feed for POL (Point Of Lay) and laying hens and should be fed all year round.
7. Provide daily access to grit (aids digestion)
8. Clean out your hen house at least once a week, especially in summer, to reduce odour and flies. Through summer, disinfect against red mite
9. Use shavings for bedding and in the nesting boxes as straw may be eaten and cause digestive problems
10. Hens should have daily access to fresh grass, an area to scratch and a sandy area to dust bathe. Hens need easy access to shelter from sun and rain: their feathers are not waterproof
11. Don’t feed your hens grass clippings as they can cause digestive problems
12. Provide a roosting area in the hen house long enough to accommodate more hens than you own to reduce squabbling
13. Clean and scrub your hen’s drinker and feeding trough weekly with a mild dish soap, rinsed well, to practice good hygiene
14. Use a wormer every six months available from your veterinarian or licensed poultry feed store

Remember, as light levels reduce in the Autumn, it is natural for your hens to lay fewer eggs or stop laying completely. When Spring brings lighter mornings and evenings, they will come back into lay once again. Feeding a balanced daily diet of Smallholder Natural Free Range Layers Pellets or Crumble throughout the year, will ensure your hens are in great shape for the busy year ahead.