Gregory S. Archer provides information on starting backyard poultry flocks. The key points are: 1. Careful planning is important, including research on regulations, housing needs, and disease prevention. 2. Sources for birds should be reputable, like university programs or certified hatcheries. Flea markets and newspaper ads are not recommended. 3. New birds should be quarantined from existing flocks for 3 weeks and handled carefully to prevent disease spread. 4. Proper housing, feed, and management are necessary to keep the flock healthy and productive.

1. Gregory S. Archer, Ph.D.
Associate Professor and Extension Specialist
Department of Poultry Science

2. 1. Gather accurate information (see
resources)
2. Plan well
• Be prepared for all possibilities
 Manure management/disposal
 Dead bird disposal
 Housing/ventilation
 Predator control
3. If for business, know the applicable rules
and regulations
4. Find reputable source of birds

3. University/Extension
• posc.tamu.edu
• extension.org
 Small and Backyard Flocks
 Publications, webinars, Ask an Expert
Government agencies
• USDA,Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA),
CDC, DSHS, etc.

4. Internet
• Avoid blogs, forums, PETA, HSUS, Mother Earth News, etc.
• BAD information
People who used to have chickens
People who know people who have chickens
“How to” books and magazines

5. Reputable sources
• National Poultry Improvement Plan (NPIP) certified hatcheries (can
order through US mail)
• Reputable breeders
 Ask for documentation of disease testing
Not recommended:
• Flea markets
• Ads in the paper
• Friend of a friend

6. Ideal Poultry – Cameron,Texas
Murray McMurray – Iowa
Morris Hatchery – Miami, Florida
Strombergs - Minnesota
Meyer Hatchery – Ohio
Welp Hatchery – Iowa
many more on internet
www.idealpoultry.com

7. Quarantine from existing flock for at least
3 weeks
• Not in same building or pen
• As far away as possible
• Monitor for disease symptoms, particularly
respiratory
• Handle sick or quarantined birds AFTER the
other birds.
• Wash hands thoroughly and disinfect boots
Not recommended to comingle birds of
significantly different ages

8. Depends on:
• Type of production
 Eggs
 Meat
 Both
• Production expectations
 Make a profit
 Reduce food bill (not likely)
 Personal use and satisfaction
• What you like

9. 280 eggs/yr
Egg laying ***
Meat Production **
Aggressiveness **
Broodiness *
Space needs ***
Bantam version? Yes
Climate Any

10. < 200 Eggs
Egg laying ***
Meat Production ***
Aggressiveness *
Broodiness ***
Space needs ***
Bantam version? Yes
Climate Any

11. < 200 Eggs
Egg laying ***
Meat Production ***
Aggressiveness **
Broodiness *
Space needs ***
Bantam version? Yes
Climate Any

12. < 200 Eggs
Egg laying ***
Meat Production ***
Aggressiveness **
Broodiness *
Space needs ***
Bantam version? Yes
Climate Any

13. Egg laying **
Meat Production **
Aggressiveness *
Broodiness *
Space needs ***
Bantam version? No
Climate Cold

14. Increasing
daylength
Pituitary
gland
GNRF
Ovary
Oviduct
LH
FSH
Progesterone
Estradiol
Hypothalamus
• Length of daylight most important
facet in stimulation of sexual
maturity.
General relationship is:
• Increasing photoperiod =
stimulation of sexual maturity
• Decreasing photoperiod =
delay of sexual maturity

15. Increasing
daylength
Pituitary
gland
GNRF
Ovary
Oviduct
LH
FSH
Progesterone
Estradiol
Hypothalamus
• During pullet growing period,
daylength must NOT increase
• Must decrease or remain constant
• 12 hours of daylength is considered
the threshold needed to stimulate egg
production

16. Increasing
daylength
Pituitary
gland
GNRF
Ovary
Oviduct
LH
FSH
Progesterone
Estradiol
Hypothalamus
• Conversely, to maintain egg production
during the laying period, daylength
must NOT decrease
• Must increase or remain constant
• 15 - 16 hours is recommended for a
constant daylength

17. When
everyone
gets chicks
When they
will be 18
weeks old
Light is
decreasing

18. Will be 18
weeks old
When you
should get
chicks
Light is
increasing

19. Functions of Housing
▪ Protection from weather extremes
• precipitation
• winter and summer
▪ Protection from predators
• particularly at night
▪ For laying hens, a place to nest and lay eggs
▪ For chicks, proper brooding environment for
early growth period
▪ Maximize efficiency

20. Layer Housing
▪ Suggest confined housing
• promote bird health
• promote egg quality
• reduce potential for predation
• Wire or slat (wood or plastic) flooring optimum
• Littered flooring (wood shavings, rice hulls, wash sand) second best

21. Layer Housing
▪ Free-range housing
• Provide a permanent or mobile structure to provide minimum housing
❖ protection from predators (close at night)
❖ protection from bad weather and cold
❖ nest boxes for egg laying
❖ feed and water

22. Highly recommend anchoring

23. But what about mobile coops or
“chicken tractors”?

24. Poultry: Science and Practice, 1951

25. Poultry: Science and Practice, 1951

26. Poultry: Science and Practice, 1951

29. Things to consider with mobile coops
▪ May have to move daily, depending on density of birds
• Enough land??
▪ Heat/Cold stress
• Air flow
• Shade
• Moisture
▪ Predators
▪ Rain and ground moisture
▪ Still must brood baby chicks in a building

30. Permanent vs Mobile
Permanent Housing Mobile Housing
▪ Build up of shavings/litter
▪ Control environment
▪ Predators less access
▪ Raise birds in one
system
▪ More birds per house
▪ Fertilize pasture
▪ Less control over
environment
▪ Predators easier
access
▪ Brood birds then move
to mobile
▪ Maximum coop size?

31. Hand-gathered nest boxes

32. Feeding the Right Ration
▪ Commercial poultry feeds contain numerous similar feed ingredients. Several different
types of rations are available, however. (As an example: starter, grower, finisher and layer
rations) These are designed to meet the specific needs of different types of birds.
▪ To know which ration is best for your flock, you need to know the answers to these
questions:
1. What age birds are you feeding?
2. What kind of birds are you feeding?
3. Are the birds being raised for meat or to produce eggs?

33. Feeding Mistakes
▪ The most common mistake is feeding the wrong feed.
• Do not give young birds a layer ration.
• The calcium level is excessively high for young birds.
• Do not mix scratch grain with a complete commercial ration.
❖ Cracked corn, for example, is low in protein.
❖ By mixing cracked corn with a complete commercial grower ration, you dilute (reduce) the protein level
as well as the vitamin and mineral content of the diet.
❖ The birds will not grow as well or lay many eggs and will also be less resistant to disease.
❖ Nutrient deficiencies may lead to feather picking, lameness, sores or even death.
▪ The second most common mistake is not feeding enough of the appropriate type feed.

39. Feed Ingredients
▪ Calcium sources
• It is recommended that 50% of the calcium in a
layer diet be of large particle size.

40. Poultry: Science and Practice, 1951

42. Feed Ingredients
▪ Yolk pigmentation
❖ Yolk color is the result of carotenoid pigments
called xanthophylls.
❖ Xanthophyll content of various ingredients:
Corn 20 mg/kg
Wheat 4 mg/kg
Milo 1 mg/kg
Alfalfa meal 175 mg/kg
Corn gluten meal 275 mg/kg
Marigold petals 7,000 mg/kg

43. Feed Management
▪ Poultry feeds should be as fresh as possible. Never store feed
for longer than 1 month in the summer and 2 months during the
winter.
▪ Never allow birds to eat moldy feed; toxins produced by molds
will cause serious harm to poultry.
• Allow birds to clean up their feed at least once a week. This prevents
caking in feed troughs and accumulation of moldy feed. It also keeps the
birds from picking out certain ingredients and assures that they are
eating a balanced diet.

44. Sale of Table Eggs
▪ Retail food establishments are not allowed to use ungraded
eggs
• must be received from an approved source that is licensed by the
regulatory authority
❖ egg license = Texas Department of Agriculture
– additional rules for packaging, labeling and inspection
• eggs must be clean, sound and at least Grade B
• must be delivered in refrigerated equipment at 45°F or less

45. Sale of Table Eggs (Graded)
▪ TDA Statutes:
• Agricultural Code, Title 6. Production, Processing
and Sale of Animal Products
❖ Chapter 132. Eggs
▪ TDA Rules:
• Texas Administrative Code, Title 4: Agriculture
• Part 1: Chapter 15. Egg Law
Chapter 18. Organic Standards and Certif.

46. Who needs an Egg License from TDA?
▪ Egg Dealer-Wholesaler
• A person engaged in the business of buying eggs from producers or other persons on his own account
and selling or transferring eggs to other dealer-wholesalers, processors, retailers or other persons and
consumers.
• A dealer-wholesaler further means a person engaged in producing eggs from his own flock and
disposing of any portion of this production on a graded basis.
▪ Egg Processor
• A person who operates a plant for the purpose of breaking eggs for freezing, drying or commercial food
manufacturing.
▪ Egg Broker
• A person who never assumes ownership or possession of eggs, nor changes the grade or pack of
eggs, but is engaged in the business of acting as agent, for a fee or commission, in the sale or transfer
of eggs between producers, or dealer-wholesalers as sellers and dealer-wholesalers, processors or
retailers as buyers.

47. Who does NOT need an Egg License from
TDA?
• Retailers
• A person or business that sells eggs directly to consumers, unless the
eggs are sold for personal benefit.
• Restaurants
• Individuals
• Individuals who sell un-graded eggs from a personal flock. If you sell
graded eggs from a personal flock, then you DO need an Egg License.

48. Texas Egg License
▪ Things to consider:
• all eggs must be graded (no longer allowed to sell ungraded eggs)
• required to pay an egg inspection fee
• must submit monthly egg reports to TDA to ensure that the correct
amount of special fees are paid
• https://www.texasagriculture.gov/RegulatoryPrograms/EggQualityProgra
m.aspx

49. Important Items
▪ Sec. 132.084. Misleading advertising.
• “A person commits an offense if the person
advertises or sells shell eggs below the quality of
Grade A by describing the eggs as “fresh,” “yard,”
“selected,” “hennery,” “new-laid,” “infertile,”
“cage,” or with words that have a similar meaning
❖ a misdemeanor

50. Sale of Table Eggs (Graded)
▪ TDA contacts for egg licensing
• EggQuality@TexasAgriculture.gov
Fax: (888) 215-4883
Phone: (512) 463-769
• Christina Osborn
❖ Director Consumer Product Protection
• Andrea Allely
❖ Program Specialist
❖ (512) 463-3585
▪ TDA Organics program
• Email: Organic@TexasAgriculture.gov
Phone: 512-936-4178

51. Graded eggs what does that mean?
▪ Eggs are categorized into one of three consumer grades:
• Grade AA – The freshest and highest quality eggs will receive a Grade
AA.
• Grade A – Very high quality eggs will receive a Grade A.
• Grade B – Grade B eggs are usually used for breaking stock (liquid
eggs) and baking, depending on the number of defects.
▪ https://www.ams.usda.gov/publications/content/egg-grading-
manual

52. Sale of Table Eggs (Ungraded)
▪ Directly to consumer
• required to obtain food establishment license and meet the structural
requirements for a food establishment
❖ licensed by local health authority (city, county or district) or DSHS if
no local authority exists
• eggs must be labeled as “ungraded”
• eggs must be labeled with producer’s name and address

53. Sale of Table Eggs (Ungraded)
▪ Directly to consumer at Farmers’ Markets
• required to obtain food establishment license and meet the structural
requirements for a food establishment
❖ licensed by local health authority (city, county or district) or
DSHS if no local authority exists
• eggs must be labeled as “ungraded”
• eggs must be labeled with producer’s name and address
• must also obtain a Roadside Vendor License
• S.B. 81 – new rules for licenses at Farmers Markets
• For more information, contact your local health authority or the
DSHS Retail Foods Division
❖ Contact Information
– Email: Retail Food Service Establishments Program
– Phone: (512) 834-6753
– Fax: (512) 834-6683

54. Storage of Eggs
▪ Eggs should be refrigerated as quickly as possible after cleaning
and grading to preserve quality and reduce the potential for
bacterial growth.
▪ FDA, TDA and DSHS regulations:
• Must be maintained at 45 °F or less at all times

55. Biosecurity and Sanitation
▪ What is “Biosecurity”?
• Protecting your birds from disease
▪ What is a vector?
• Something that may transmit a disease
• Rodents, birds, insects, shoes, car tires, shared
equipment, best friend, pet, feed, water, dust, air….

56. Biosecurity
▪ Strategies to control disease causing organisms and their
carriers (vectors).
▪ Protect poultry flocks from any type of infectious agent.
• viral, bacterial, fungal, or parasitic
▪ Control transmission of disease from flock to flock.
▪ Preventative measures
▪ Biosecurity is the cheapest, most effective means of
disease control available.

57. Major Components to
Biosecurity
•Flock Management
•Isolation
• Traffic Control
•Cleaning/Sanitation

58. Finding Help
▪ Local Vet
▪ Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratories – Poultry Labs
• Gonzales – (830) 672-2834 – Dr. Ficken

59. Reportable Diseases
▪ Must be reported immediately to TAHC upon
disclosure
• Viral:
❖ Avian Influenza (AI)
❖ Exotic Newcastle Disease (VVND)
❖ Infectious Laryngotracheitis (ILT)
❖ Duck Plague
❖ Avian Encephalitis
❖ Paramyxovirus Disease (other than END-VVND)

60. Reportable Diseases
▪ Must be reported immediately to TAHC upon disclosure
• Bacterial:
❖ Salmonellosis (Pullorum, Fowl Typhoid)
❖ Avian Tuberculosis
❖ Ornithosis