Learn the oldest
partnership in agriculture.

You'll set your first clutch of fertilized eggs in a forced-air incubator, learn to candle at day 7 and day 14, and understand the humidity curve that separates a 90% hatch from a 40% one. We cover shipped eggs, shipped embryo risks, and what to do when lockdown arrives.

A chick that survives hatch can still die in the brooder. We build two brooder configurations — heat lamp and radiant panel — and you'll learn the behavioral cues that tell you temperature is wrong before a thermometer does. Feed, water, pasty butt, Marek's vaccination.

Static runs breed disease. You'll walk our four-paddock rotation system, understand stocking density per breed size, and sketch your own coop layout. We'll cover predator pressure by region, ventilation math, and why the nest box location matters more than most people think.

Every breed decision is a trade-off. Egg production versus temperament, cold-hardiness versus heat tolerance, dual-purpose viability versus specialty market value. You'll work through selection matrices for your specific context and learn what selective breeding actually requires over a 3-generation program.

Processing is the chapter most schools skip. We don't. You'll learn low-stress handling, humane dispatch, scalding and plucking, and clean evisceration — all in the context of a working farm where these practices are done with care and intention. Optional for students who prefer to observe.