Neil Armitage (533)

I am an experienced poultry keeper who has been raising chickens for over 20 years in challenging conditions in Yorkshire, UK. I am passionate about helping people learn about and enjoy the benefits of keeping chickens. I love raising chickens because they are such friendly and productive animals, providing me with fresh eggs, meat, and fertiliser, and they are a lot of fun to watch.
A double laced barnevelder cockerel

Sexing Barnevelders

A blue splash barnevelder hen free ranging on grass

The Splash Barnevelder

A beautiful example of a double laced barnevelder hen

The Double Laced Barnevelder

A show bantam barnevelder that scored 95 out of 100 points in judging.

Bantam Barnevelders

A show quality black barnevelder hen on display.

The Black Barnevelder

A show quality trio of white barnevelders

The White Barnevelder

My trio of partridge barnevelders

Partridge Barnevelder

An stunning silver laced barnevelder bantam

Silver Laced Barnevelder.

Two young gold double laced barnevelder chicks free ranging on pasture

Types and colours of Barnevelders

A barnevelder hen sunning herself in the sunshine

Barnevelder image and video gallery

A selection of brown eggs from barnevelder hens

The history of the Barnevelder

A stunning show quality silver laced barnevelder hen

Barnevelder breed standard

A show quality blue splash barnevelder hen on pasture

Showing Barnevelders

A double laced barnevelder show quality hen

The Barnevelder breed profile

Pictures, video and measurements to show what is going on iside the egg during the 21 days of incubation

What is happening inside the egg during incubation?

A broody then that abandoned her nest.

Why do hens abandon their nests and eggs?

Hens can spot bad eggs quite well

Why do hens push eggs out of the nest?

An incubator in use hatching chicks

Why do incubators fail?

An incubator with an exterior water tank and humidity pump

Why do incubators need water?

One of my incubators showing eggs in a cradle

Why egg turning during incubation is so important and what the science says is best .

My egg flock has 60 hens and no roosters and produced many eggs.

Can hens lay eggs without a rooster or cockerel?

One of my flock of red sex link chickens.

Red sex-linked chickens and how to breed them.

Do you need to deal with broody hens or can you just leave them

Do you have to break a broody hen?

A young buff Sussex chicken foraging free range.

What to grow to help feed your chickens.

My egg flock eating windfall pears.

Can chickens eat pears?

A flock of chickens in a neighbours garden.

How to keep a neighbours chickens out of your yard or garden.

A young chick perching.

Do chicks and baby chickens roost and perch.

One of my Golden comet chickens.

The Golden Comet breed profile.

My flock of barnevelders eating nuts

Can chickens eat nuts? And which ones?

A chickens feet feet with problems.

What is wrong with my chickens feet?

Sudden death syndrome in chickens

Sudden death in chickens

A blue marans chick ready to be sexed

Sexing Marans chickens

A white skinned Marans chicken, plucked and ready to cook

Keeping Marans chickens for meat.

how much are beautiful hens like this and where can you find them

How much do Marans cost and where to get them.

Copper black marans free ranging

Caring for Marans chickens.

A copper blacj marans hen eating treats

The history of the Marans chicken.

Dark shelled Marans eggs ready for incubation

Incubating and hatching Marans eggs.

What are the colours and types of Marans chickens

Marans types and colours.

Marans is all about the eggs

The Marans breed standard.

The winning display of marans eggs from the national poultry show

The Marans dark brown eggs.

3 of my copper black marans hens free ranging

Marans chickens. A complete breed guide.

A batch of fermented chicken feed, ready to use.

Fermented chicken feed. Should you and is it worth it?

Drunk chicken cartoon

Can chickens have beer, wine, spirits and alcohol?

Three of my hens eating grated carrot

Can chickens eat carrots?

one of my show chickens

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My bantam barnevelders on deep litter

The deep litter method for chickens

One of my young la bresse chickens free ranging

la Bresse Gauloise chicken breed profile.

My chickens eating celery. they seem to like the crunch.

Can chickens eat celery and celeriac?

A white leghorn hen with a dirty bottom.

Why do my chickens have dirty bottoms

The five freedoms for chickens safeguard their basic rights

The five freedoms and what they mean for chicken keepers.

My egg flock getting stuck into left over apples

Can chickens eat apples

Adding new chickens to the flock can cause problems

Intergrating flocks and adding new chickens to the coop

A selection of eggs from my hens with two tiny ones.

Will my chickens eggs get bigger?

My chickens roosting in the coop at night

Why chickens stop going into the coop at night and what to do about it.

A winning silkie chicken at a poultry show.

The Silkie chicken

A 12 week old grower free ranging on grass

Cold tolerance of young chickens and growers

How you store fertile ggs for incubation is very important

Storing fertile eggs for incubation

My chickens eating mushrooms

Can chickens eat mushrooms, toadstools and funghi

A silver double laced barnevelder at a poultry show

Barnevelder chickens

How to select fertile eggs for incubation

Selecting fertile eggs for incubation

two of my cream crested legbars eating courgette

The Cream Crested Legbar breed profile.

My flock of chickens eating their way through some potatoes

Can chickens eat potato, sweet potato and yams?

Candling a chickens egg to determine fertility

Chicken fertility and reproductive problems

my chickens eating grated parsnip

Can chickens eat parsnip?

An Ancona hen in a cage at a poultry show

Ancona chicken breed profile.

2 of my flock pecking away at rutabaga or swedes

Can chickens eat rutabaga, swedes and turnips?

A chicken suffering with Newcastle disease.

Newcastle Disease in chickens

Me holding a polish hen in my hand

Polish chicken breed profile.

Some of my flock eating flowers

Can chickens eat flowers and which ones are to be avoided.

Mycoplasma gallisepticum - MG - in chickens and how to deal with it

My chickens eating yoghurt

Can chickens have yogurt and is it any good for them?

a stunning porcelain brahma chicken

The Brahma chicken. All about the gentle giant.

a chicken with the classic posture of egg yolk peritonitis

Egg yolk peritonitis. The causes, symptoms and treatment of EYP.

I use hollow cinder blocks to feed grit and shell to my chickens

The complete guide to feeding grit and oyster shell to chickens. With FAQ

My egg flock eating cooked rice

Can Chickens eat rice and is it good for them?

A nest with olive green eggs

Complete guide to Olive Egger chickens and how to breed them. With FAQ's

Cinnamon queen chickens eating while free ranging

Cinnamon Queen chickens

A chicken with infectious coryza

Infectious Coryza in chickens. And what to do about it.

Some of my chickens eating a marrow

Can chickens eat courgette, zucchini and marrow

My chicken running of with the tomato while i am trying to film them

Can chickens eat tomato