Cal Poly SEF Chickens

We are working on a project to take care of a flock of chickens in a sustainable and organic manner that puts the health and well being of the chickens at the forefront of the operation. This is because we believe the best eggs come from the healthiest and happiest hens.

When the chicken operation was originally taken over by SEF Chickens, there were two hens living in a coop with a roost and 3 nesting boxes.

CHICKS!!

Here is a picture of their owner/caretaker, Max Kellogg:

Here is a picture of one of the hens that was left, a Black Sexlink nicknamed ‘Queen Latifa’:

The other hen that was left is a Plymouth Rock, and is very friendly to people. She loves eating worms.

Below is their home, a chicken coop made by Joe from a converted goat shed:

This is their automated water bowl, which fills up with water when it gets low:

Here are some pictures of their nesting boxes, which they use to lay eggs in:

The following 4 hens were the next to arrive. They consist of 2 Plymouth Rocks, 1 Black Leghorn, and 1 Wellsummer.

Here are the Plymouth Rocks (Black and white peppered coloring, and younger and lighter than the other Plymouth Rock):

Here is the Wellsummer, she is the mommy now! (Dark brown feathers with yellow/black coloring around the neck):

And here is a picture of the Black Leghorn (Black feathers with white patches by the face, and a large red gobble):

After that, we decided to get 3 more hens.

Here is the new, older Wellsummer:

And here are the 2 newest hens, Rhode Island Reds:

And here is the very latest addition to the flock, Red a Rhode Island Red/Chanticleer rooster:

Red is a rooster, and he doesn’t lay eggs, but he provides another very valuable service to the flock. He acts as the guardian of the flock. He stays on the alert for any threat to the hens, and sends out an alarm if anything dangerous approaches. He is the first one to notice someone coming into the chicken pen, and makes a ‘cluck’ noise when this happens.

He also helps to keep the pecking order in line without so much fighting. Before Red got there, the hens would fight amongst themselves to establish a pecking order. One hen in particular would get pecked at a lot. Once Red got there, he had a little fight with the two older hens and won, and quickly established himself as the head chicken. He doesn’t have to fight anyone anymore, and will stop the other hens from pecking each other. They are more unified under his leadership.