Winter is here with freezing temperatures and lots of snow. Birds are more cooped up, and and it can be a tricky season to keep a healthy bedding. Several products we offer are very helpful in keeping the bedding healthy and aerated during the winter months.

Moisture in the coop always needs to be addressed. It promotes ammonia production and allows harmful bacteria to proliferate. It also increases the risk of frost bites for your birds. Zeolite and MICRONA limestone poultry grit can be advantageously used to help maintain a good bedding.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YyP9lY-x4A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCjMlEoYCeI

Zeolite improves air quality in poultry barns, by keeping the bedding dry and reducing the ammonia in the air. Air quality is paramount for the health of your birds. Chickens start suffering lung damage when ammonia is present in the air at a concentration of 10 ppm. The human nose only detects it when the concentration is 25 ppm. Considering that chickens are much closer to the ground too, a lot of damage can be done to their lungs before you even know that there is ammonia in the air. $42 plus GST per 50 lbs bag.
http://www.tigaacres.com/zeolite.html

​MICRONA Limestone poultry grit can also be sprinkled in the coop after cleaning the bedding, at the rate of one handful per square foot. Its high pH can help prevent the proliferation of bacteria such as salmonella as they need low pH to thrive. Regular $49 plus GST per 50 lbs bag, on sale for $45 plus GST until December 23, 2022.
http://www.tigaacres.com/granigrit-fertrell-canada.html

The cost of shipping goods has been increasing greatly over the last few months and I’m sure I’ve caused more than one heart attack when I send shipping quotes 😀

However, here are some things we do to help reduce or eliminate shipping costs: 
1. Delivering orders.  
Trevor’s engineering job literally takes  him across Alberta, and sometimes to some areas of BC and SK, on a very regular basis. He is able to deliver orders on his trips to jobsites! He is also in Calgary every day. 
So far, these deliveries have been on a case by case basis. However, we are creating a data base of people who would like to be notified when Trevor is headed in some specific directions (granted, the notice is sometimes very short).   
This will be by subscription only, so let me know if you want to be added and what area you are in. 
Trevor will be headed to Barrhead next week, for example. 

2. Grouping orders that need shipping. 
We have been able to ship on a single pallet several orders for people living in the same area.  The more there is on a pallet, the cheaper the rate per pound becomes as we get into better pricing brackets. 
Here are the locations where we have shipped grouped orders: 

• Vancouver/Chilliwack, BC 
• Courtenay, BC 
• Kelowna, BC 
• Prince George/Quesnel, BC (for these 2 locations, please note that the Bouchie Lake Country Store also carries our products since April 2022, so you have the opportunity to get your order through them) 
• Saskatoon, SK 
• Winnipeg, MB 
• Woodstock/Mississauga, ON 

We will add locations as needed. 
If you would like to be notified when shipments are organized to one of those locations, please subscribe, and let me know the area you are in. 
We are currently taking orders for a shipment going to Kelowna, to ship in the next 2 weeks. 

3. We also head to the Lethbridge area about every 4 weeks.  If you live anywhere on the way between Sundre and Lethbridge or in the Lethbridge area, we can deliver on our way. We can go down either via the main highway or through Strathmore and Vulcan too.  
Our next planned trip is tentatively set for Sunday July 3rd, 2022. 

4. We are also happy to coordinate and meet with any of your friends/family member who might go see you or that you come visit to give them your order. 

5. If you know of a feed store near you that you think would be a good fit to carry the Fertrell products and would be interested in doing so, don’t hesitate to give them our info. That will bring our products in your neighborhood. 

We can also deliver orders you place with Gascon Custom Milling, as they are just down the road from us. They custom mill feeds using organic, non-GMO ingredients along with the Fertrell products.

Feel free to email us if you have any questions!

Due to the current situation regarding the Avian Influenza in Alberta, we are taking the following measures, effective immediately. These measures come in addition to our current bio-security program.

1. All orders will be shipped or delivered;
2. We will no longer be able to deliver directly to your farm or accommodate pick ups at TIGA Acres, but will gladly meet you in an other location that works for you and us.

The purpose of these measures is to protect our customers' operations as well as ours, and we are currently not allowing any outside visitors on our premises.

If you have recently placed an order with us that was either going to be picked up or delivered, we will be in touch with you to make alternate arrangements.

Thank you for your understanding.

by Jeff Mattocks, author of Pastured Poultry Feeding and Management, and animal nutritionist at The Fertrell® Company.

" Sorry for the graphic picture (see below) but it makes a point. As I read post on this site and many other, I see quite a bit of inappropriate feeding methods.

1. Free choice feeding - allowing your birds to consume as much feed as they would like on a daily basis for their entire lives.
2. Free choice feeding combined with feeding treats like scratch, sunflower seeds, mealworms, etc.
3. Feeding a measured amount of feed and providing treats to keep your chickens friendly and so they like to see you.

I have been guilty of all three of these and some days do. But I have learned the hard way that too many calories per day is a bad thing. I have also learned the hard way that imbalanced nutrition leads to poor health and performance.

Many poultry feeds available on the market are nutritionally balanced to provide the daily nutritional requirement for most birds with 4 oz. per bird per day. 1 pound for every 4 birds. That doesn't mean 4 oz. of feed and scratch and treats on top of that. that is just more empty calories that will end up as stored fat. This stored fat gradually accumulates on the inside of your chicken until it looks like the picture attached.

Stored fat a.k.a. obesity (see illustration below) will reduce fertility, hatchability, and the ability to breed all together. It will also reduce the life span of the bird in general. Mostly, it will be a huge waste of your money.

Meanwhile, I see comparing feed prices, looking for lower cost of feed, or complaining about their feed bill. Take a look at how much you are feeding. is it too much? how much could you save by weighing or measuring out the right amount on a daily basis?

For me it was easy. I only weighed it once. I counted my chickens divided by 4, that's how many pounds they needed daily. Then we found a container that held precisely that amount of feed. Used that container everyday until it was worn out.

We had healthier birds, better production, better longevity and they were still happy to see us when we came to feed them.

I am not saying that an occasional (not daily) treat isn't a good thing. It will make you feel better and the chickens feel loved. Occasional is once or twice a week. it is also very small amounts as to not throw off their nutritional balance.
​
Enjoy your chickens longer and save a little money. Win - Win for everyone."

​Reprinted with permission from Poultry Breeder Nutrition on Facebook.

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