A chicken in the nose of a kayak-Juneau chickens will get in the darnedest places!
The wooden and wire box is called a "chicken tractor," used to free range chickens around your yard and save them from getting nabbed by an eagle.
Story last updated at 8/25/2010 - 12:29 pm
JUNEAU - If you're worried about the safety of the eggs on your grocery store shelf, an alternative could be found right in your own backyard.
Having hens in Southeast is easier than you might think, says Juneau chicken raiser Nancy Lehnhart. She said she has always been a farmer at heart, and like any agricultural endeavor, the main ingredient is passion.
"Gardening here is difficult unless you really enjoy weeding and digging," she said. "It takes somebody who's really into it."
There will be a discussion about chicken farming in Southeast at the upcoming Local Food Festival in Juneau this weekend for those who might be interested in putting up a coop.
Eggs have been in the headlines recently due to a nationwide outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis infections. So far hundreds of millions eggs have been pulled from the shelves of grocery stores across the country, and hundreds of people have become ill, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
There is always a risk in food production of any kind, but Lehnhart said the wellbeing of her farm, comprised of only a half dozen hens, is easy to track.
"Our chickens are really healthy, you know what the conditions are," she said. "They just seem so happy."
Lehnhart used to get her chickens by mail. When they are a few days old, baby chicks are simply put into a box with holes in it and posted. Gender identity is always a tricky business. Lehnhart said that experts can tell the difference between males and females by a discreet mark on their bills. After a couple of days you can't tell them apart, until one of them starts crowing and develops a big comb in on his head. The odds are good that you'll get mostly pullets in your mailbox, Lehnhart said, but mistakes are made.
"There's always a rooster floating around in there," she said.
These days, Lehnhart buys her chicks from Swampy Acres in Juneau. Buying them in town helps supports local business, but she also likes getting to size up the new members of her coop first.
"Then I can pick and choose the ones I want," she said.
The first time Lehnhart butchered a chicken, she received a lesson on it at Swampy Acres first. Doing it is easy and doesn't take long, she said, and it's done quickly and humanely.
Last Sunday, Lehnhart was preparing Mabel, a former layer, for chicken enchiladas. It can a little hard after getting to know your feathered friends, but it's putting the chicken to good use.
The real trauma is going out to the coop and finding your flock has been murdered. Chicken loss due to predators in Juneau is rather high, Lehnhart said, though it's not as much about the classic image of a fox sneaking into the henhouse.
Eagles haven't been a problem for her, Lehnhart said, which surprises her. A bear did take one of Lehnhart's brood once, but the real threat comes from feral cats and dogs. She says she had lost dozens of chickens to dogs, which can come in and kill an entire house of hens.
It can be traumatic to deal with the aftermath, Lehnhart said, though she attaches no blame to the canines.
"It's not their fault, it's part of their instinct," she said.
Interest in the local food movement is growing and reaching the region, said Juneau chicken supporter Marc Wheeler. Last month Wheeler and others encouraged the Juneau Assembly to modify land use codes, to allow for up to six hens to be kept with a single permit. The assembly voted unanimously in favor of it.
Lehnhart's chickens usually produce four or five eggs a day. She gives away what her family doesn't use.
She said she's excited to see a growing enthusiasm in new and especially younger people in the community for small-scale farming.
"Chickens are just a great source of food and fun for families!" she said.
People interested in finding out more about raising chickens and other agricultural undertakings in Juneau can visit the Local Food Festival at the JACC Saturday, August 28 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. To keep up with what the Juneau Chicken Owners are up to, you can follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/juneau.chickens.
For more information about the nationwide egg recall, visit the FDA's website at www.fda.gov.
Richard Radford may be reached at richard.radford@capweek.com.
