Staying Fit Inside & Out

Being healthy and fit inside and out means the physical plus the food we consume.  Health and fitness means the mind, body and spirit.  Working out - yoga, weight training - hiking, walking, biking.  

Something struck me early on that meat - being the flesh of an animal - was not a loving warm meal to nourish our bodies.  If one does choose meat - including poultry and fowl - it would benefit people to minimize their consumption.  Can you count how many animals your family eats in one year.  The carnage waged on the oceans is no better.  I love sushi but I also feel for the blue fin tuna that is caught and hacked, etc - whenever blood is involved - it makes me think - is the life we are taking really worth that one little meal? - and if so, how often should we indulge?  The world population is estimated to reach 7 billion in 2013!  Imagine how many animals and fish are killed - it is well into the trillions - right?

All this plus occasional cheese, coffee, wine,  pasta, pizza, and eggs which we harvest or purchase locally - what more do you need?  Maybe eating animals and fish semi annually - but always keeping a tally of the animals you consume.

I could not help but feel for these chickens which a nearby farmer raised humanely - they were readied for slaughter the next morning - about 20 of them.  Processed and put in the freezer, they would provide chicken for one year minus the amount they would sell.  Just how many chickens does a typical American family consume?  I am sure it is many many more than 20.  

Think about the number of animals one consumes.  To get some ideas non meat consumption - see my food blog where I post "plant based" recipes.  
http://natlnutrients.blogspot.com/

Caring for Chickens

Posted by Murray McMurray hatchery - and duplicated here - we also found out from our chickfarm friends - that for hens to lay eggs, they need LIGHT! 1. Lighting Hens need 14 or more hours of daylight each day to lay well. During late fall and winter, particularly from October through February, they won’t receive that many hours of daylight naturally. You have a choice, you can either let them take a break from laying or provide additional lighting. 2. Stress Stress can cause your hens to stop laying. What causes them to have stress? Allowing them to get frightened or handled to much, letting them run out of food or water, moving them to a different pen or coop, or disrupting their pecking order can all cause stress. 3. Feed Laying hens need a balanced diet to lay well. Good quality layer feeds have the correct balance of protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, calcium and other minerals. If you feed table scraps or scratch grains to your hens, you should use moderation so as not to upset the balance. 4. Water Chickens should always have access to clean water. In the winter, take precautions to make sure their water doesn’t freeze. 5. Diseases or Parasites Diseases or parasites can slow or stop laying. The Chicken Health Handbook (Damerow) is a good source of information on this topic. 6. Temperature Hens lay best when it’s not too cold or too hot. If possible, keep the temperature in their coop above 55° F in the winter. During the summer, provide plenty of shade and cool water. 7. Molting Chickens will molt about once a year and usually slow or stop laying eggs during that time. The molt will last from two to six months. 8. Age As your hens get older, they will lay less frequently. Usually, they lay best during their first and second year, then as they approach three years old, their laying will decrease. By the time they’re about five years old, they’ll only be laying about half as frequently as they did at their peak. Raising a new flock every few years is the best way to have an ongoing supply of home grown eggs. 9. Predators Predators such as skunks and snakes will eat eggs. Prevent this by gathering the eggs more frequently, and improve pens and housing as needed to keep the predators out.