By lee koelzer | Director
Cathy is the new matron taking care of Fred's children. She is Fred's late wife Peace's sister, and as she is a single mother, she brought her two daughters with her.
While she has very little experience with chicken rearing, Cathy is very willing and excited to start the poultry project up again. We figured that since she is just learning for now, she should learn from another African woman, who is raising her chickens in a healthy, humane, sustainable way. So we took her to visit our partner farmer Rebecca.
Rebecca has a huge farm with over 1000 chickens. Unlike typical battery farming standard to Uganda, Rebecca understands that the quality of life and nutrition for the chickens is instrumental in keeping them healthy and producing eggs. Rebecca uses coops which are chain link open air on both sides to ensure proper ventilation. The core area to climb around. The chickens having enough space to thrive makes it so that the chickens do not need to be de-beaked as there is virtually no risk of them attacking each other. Healthy greens are hung around the coop daily so the chickens can get the nutrition they need, exercise from jumping to peck the greens, and basic stimulation. There is an infirmary coop where all sick chickens are taken to and isolated from the rest of the flock until they are healthy again. The coops are cleaned out regularly and the manure used as organic fertilizer for the farm.
As Cathy and Fred's children would like to re-start the poultry project, we figured it would be important for them, and their new caregiver to come see a chicken project that is running properly. It was a great day in the village.
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