Katie Jones
Contributor
Suwannee County 4-H is excited to kick off its Fourth Annual Chick Chain project. Youth ages 5 to 18 are eligible to participate in the project, which begins on Tuesday, April 1, and wraps up around Tuesday, Sept. 30. During the six-month project, youth raise chicks into mature laying hens. The project is designed to teach youth about proper care for poultry projects and provide them with the opportunity to raise their own birds, which will eventually provide healthy eggs for their families to enjoy.
During the project, participants learn about the birds’ housing requirements and changing nutritional needs, along with how to keep records of their expenses and eventual income. They also learn bird and egg anatomy and different breeds of chickens. Towards the end of the project, they learn about how to select their best birds and prepare them for exhibition in a laying hen show. The project wraps up with two small poultry shows where they can exhibit the laying hens they raised, one here in Suwannee County and the other in Madison with participants from Lafayette, Taylor and Madison Counties also included.
Because the purpose of the chick chain is for participants to end up with laying hens, all the chicks utilized are from laying hen breeds like Leghorns, Rhode Island Reds, Wyandotte, Orpingtons and Australorps.
Suwannee County 4-H is part of the UF/IFAS Suwannee County Extension Program. Participation in 4-H is open to all youth ages 5 to 18 in Suwannee County. Individuals interested in this or any other 4-H program are encouraged to contact Katie Jones, the 4-H Youth Development Extension Agent for Suwannee County, at (386) 362-2771 or suwannee4h@ifas.ufl.edu for assistance with enrollment and registration.