Maybe you already keep chickens or other poultry and are considering adding ducks. Or maybe you’re thinking of starting with ducks as your first foray into the world of poultry. To help you decide whether or not duck keeping is for you, here are some of the benefits of keeping ducks. Ducks are easy to […]
Continue Reading
How old can eggs get— if they aren’t deliberately preserved — is a question facing archeologist investigating a 1,700 year old egg discovered in England. The shell is still intact and CT scans show the egg contains liquid, possibly consisting of the original yolk and albumen. Where did this egg come from? The egg’s contents […]
Continue Reading
Put on your best vocal chicken impression to win. Complete form below to sign up for 2025.
Continue Reading
7 Great Tips For First Time Chicken Owners Start with chicks or mature birds instead of eggs Choose dual-purpose chicken breeds (meat and egg layers) Keep your first coop simple Keep your coop clean Get a heated water bowl Use natural foods and scraps from your own kitchen Establish a daily routine for filling feeders, […]
Continue Reading
by Cackle Hatchery What is the best place to buy baby chicks? Without a doubt, Cackle Hatchery® is by far the best place to buy baby chicks, along with everything you might need to raise them to be happy, healthy chickens. Here’s why: Largest Selection Cackle Hatchery offers 230 varieties of poultry. That’s more varieties […]
Continue Reading
We recently had the pleasure of hosting Johannes from Omlet at our facility nestled in the heart of Lebanon, Missouri. It was more than just a visit; it was a meeting of minds, a shared understanding of the profound bond between humans and their feathered companions. As we sat down with Johannes, the story of […]
Continue Reading
The Swedish duck has its origins in the early to mid 1800s in Pomerania, a region on the Baltic Sea that was once controlled by Sweden. The breed first came to the United States in 1884. The only variety listed in the American Standard of Perfection is the blue variety, accepted in 1904. Physical Attributes […]
Continue Reading
The internet is rife with photographs of eggs from chickens and other poultry that have black shells. Are they a trick of the imagination? Poor photographic lighting? Or true poultry eggs with inky shells? If so, which poultry breed lays a black egg? Maybe Ducks Among ducks, the Cayuga sometimes lays eggs with black shells. […]
Continue Reading
The Ancona duck originated in the 1910s, yet remains a rare breed that has never been listed in the American Standard of Perfection. Cackle Hatchery® is one of its few long-term breeders, having maintained Ancona genetics since 1977. Physical Attributes Anconas are typically white and black, or any combination of white and color, in irregular […]
Continue Reading
Ducks, like other birds, periodically replace their worn-out feathers with a full set of fresh plumage in a process called molting. Young ducks go through two consecutive molts. After maturity, the hens renew their feathers annually, while the drakes go through two annual plumage changes —the eclipse and nuptial molts. Most domestic duck breeds in […]
Continue Reading