Relaxed Farming - our farm in your classroom

Provide a sturdy house with perches & nestboxes: we naturally perch at night (this is our in-built defence against predators) so we need a house or barn or similar where we can be shut in every night and roost (sleep high on our perches). One of us needs about 30cm of perch space (although the bantams only need 20cm or so).

Our owners put Miscanthus and straw on the floor of the house to catch our droppings and this also gives us something to scratch around in if it rains and we have to stay in. We also need nestboxes to lay our eggs in - this makes it much easier for you to collect them as well - we like our nestboxes to be filled with sawdust (nice and soft for our bottoms) and dark (we have curtains hanging in front of ours) so we can feel secure and private!

Our house must not be draughty but it must have ventilation otherwise all those nasty germs will hang around - a bit like a classroom with all the doors and windows shut. In the winter we can be in our house from 3pm until 8am the next morning so we don't want it to be too stuffy and full of germs.