298: Kathy Shea-Mormino on Healthy, Happy, Hens.
Keeping backyard chickens healthy through simple steps.
Known as The Chicken Chick, Kathy brings an informative style and fresh perspective on raising backyard chickens to millions of fans around the world. An attorney by profession, Kathy is the founder and one-woman creative force behind her wildly popular and award-winning Facebook page and blog, The-Chicken-Chick.com.
Her practical approach and sense of humor allows her to connect, educate and share an appreciation for keeping chickens as family pets as well as for their eggs. With a following of over 700,000 Facebook fans, she has become the person folks interested in keeping chickens, go to for information, advice and fun! She is also the author of the bestselling book The Chicken Chicks Guide to Backyard Chickens, Simple steps for Healthy Happy Hens by Voyager Press.Don’t miss an episode! Click here to sign up for weekly podcast updates
In This Podcast:
Sometimes helping a neighbor out can truly change your life in ways you never expected. Kathy Shea-Mormino changed her path from attorney to now running a successful business sharing advice through her Facebook page and blog about raising chickens. She says keeping backyard chickens should not be over-complicated and shares her simple steps to keeping the hens happy and healthy.
Listen in and learn about:
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- How she came to be a chicken lady
- The time she took care of some chickens for a friend and became intrigued to learn more
- Starting off with a dozen chicks
- Making her own label for her egg cartons that she used for the eggs the hens produced
- Starting a business and creating her Facebook page and blog
- Sharing information with others online
- How the act of keeping chickens has changed over the past few generations
- Complete nutrition for chickens
- Why nutrients in certain combinations are important
- Why treats and chicken scraps are not beneficial
- Why clean water is essential
- Her recommendation against introducing adult birds to your flock
- Dealing with predators, and accepting your level of risk tolerance
- Tips to make free range chickens safer
- Keeping the chicken coops safe and clean
- What to do if you want to keep chickens in your backyard
- Zoning regulations and keeping chickens
- The challenges of finding veterinarians
As well as:
Her failure – being a waitress and failing at it
Her success – becoming an entrepreneur and starting her Chicken Chick business
Her drive – making sure the information she provides is accurate, accessible, fun and makes sense
Her advice – Keep it simple
Books written by Kathy:
The Chicken Chick’s Guide to Backyard Chickens: Simple Steps for Healthy, Happy Hens
Kathy’s Book recommendations:
Keeping Bees & Making Honey
How to reach Kathy:
Website: www.the-chicken-chick.com
Facebook: @TheChickenChick
UrbanFarm.org/TheChickenChick
