Hatching Eggs and Homesteads

When you order a Chicken Life Cycle Curriculum and Hatching Kit, you are supporting a small, women-owned business – right here in Kansas. We asked Heather of LeChateauDeJade to give us a little bit of background about herself and where we get our fertilized chicken eggs from. You’ll also meet her flock of chickens! HOW COOL to get a sneak peek of what your little cuties might look like when they grow up!

Q: Hi Heather! Tell us about your homestead! Have you always lived on a homestead?

A: Hello! I have always lived in a small farm, apart from while I was going to college. I missed my animals greatly during this time. After I got married and graduated college, I was delighted to be able to start my own small farm with my husband.

Q: What kind of animals do you have?

A: Our small, homesteading farm has many kinds of animal life, including a horse, a donkey, a small cattle herd, our three dogs, and my chicken flock.

Q: What is your favorite breed of chicken?

A: Currently, my favorite chicken is my Chocolate Cuckoo Orpington rooster. As far as a favorite breed, I have more of a preference to the temperament, color, and patterning of my chickens versus the breed.

Q: What is your favorite thing about chickens? Are there any cool facts we should know?

A: Hands-down, their individual personalities. Chickens are intelligent creatures that can recognize many faces and voices. I have some chickens who will “sing” when I talk to them.

Q: What is the most important thing to know about hatching and raising chicks?

A: Hatching and raising your own chickens can be very rewarding with patience. I love hatching and raising my own chickens because they are healthier and hardier than those that I can purchase. My free-ranged flock also teaches younger birds, so they are more mindful of their surroundings.

Q: What would you tell someone who is considering moving to the country and embarking on their own homesteading adventure?

A: Having lived in dorms and apartments during college, I wouldn’t consider living anywhere but the country now. If you are considering moving to the country and get the opportunity, I would say “Go for it!”.

Q: Is there anything else we should know about you and your flock?

A: By trade, I am a K-6 educator. One of the reasons that I started raising chickens was my students’ desire to be able to see a baby animal be born after I had told them about some of my experiences on the farm. At the time, I remember thinking, “What is the best way for me to bring this experience to them?”. After consulting with my building principal and superintendent, I was allowed to hatch chicks in my 6th grade classroom! From this point, I started diversifying my flock to allow me to raise cold and heat tolerant birds, as I live in an area that the temperature may range from -20 degrees to 110 degrees.

Thank you, Heather! We love supporting other small businesses, especially when they are operated by strong women such as yourself. It’s non-negotiable to us here at The Sensory Site that we acquire our eggs from a happy, free-range and well loved flock. Thank you LeChateauDeJade for checking all the boxes!

Here’s what you can expect from Heather’s fertilized chicken eggs…

Egg colors: Though you may receive multiple eggs that are the same color, they are different breeds! You may receive white, cream, peach/pink, light-medium-or-dark brown. Some eggs will have freckling/speckles.

Possible Characteristics of chicks:
Split body coloring, solid body coloring, patterned (Barring, Double barring, Lacing, Colombian, or Partridge patterning).

Possible breeds (mixes also probable!):
Chocolate Cuckoo Orpington
Brown Leghorn
Buff Orpington
Calico Princess
Golden Comet
Barred Rock
Sapphire Gem (Blue Rock)
White Rock
Black Rock
Rhode Island Red
Cinnamon Queen
ISA Brown

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