I really enjoyed the article about the problems of feeding chicks water that is too cold. It was very interesting in regards to people thinking that every thing has to be so sanitary for chickens to be healthy. Back in the old days and on my trip to NY, Dairy Farmers let their chickens free range with the cows in the fields. Most of the time they intermingle with the farm animals unless there has been a coop built specifically for them. My hen house holds geese, ducks, chickens and one momma turkey. They keep each other warm in the winter months and cohabitate nicely. My coop is not immaculate but I have good healthy birds and when a hen wants to sit on eggs, I let her do the natural thing, same with ducks and geese unless there are problems. They have natural instincts for raising young and whenever it's possible, I let them take over. Best Wishes, Margaret

Tracey : Can anyone identify? I've included a picture that shows some chickens I got from a lady about a week ago. The three on the right act just like pheasants and they make chirp sounds like a pheasant. They have very long tail feathers and they fly around the yard. Their legs seem long and they have no bustle just a svelte body. Can you tell from this picture if they are indeed pheasants? Sincerely Tracy Johnson