By KAREN BINDER
Illinois Correspondent

CARBONDALE, Ill. — Some folks are flying their coops to learn more about raising backyard chickens with the inaugural Coops du Jour of Southern Illinois.

On Sunday afternoon, June 6, participants can visit up to a dozen chicken coops and learn about the various types of coops, chicken breeds and general care during the free (“cheep”) tour, as well as help the Jackson County 4-H Club raise some money.

Each participant will receive free directions for a self-guided tour to 12 locations throughout the county. They also will have the opportunity for $10 each to buy t-shirts and fried chicken dinners.
Besides the tour, Ken Koelkbeck, a University of Illinois Extension poultry specialist, will present a free educational poultry presentation at 5:30 p.m., at the Murphysboro Youth and Recreation Center, 1818 Walnut St. in Murphysboro. The chicken dinner will be hosted at the same location and same time.

Koelkbeck’s research focuses on conducting practical studies on management and nutrition of laying hens and broilers, and has recently studied the use of non-feed withdrawal induced molting programs for laying hens.

Coop tourists are encouraged to bring questions, as well as any concerns about meeting any local laws and ordinances, care and diseases.

“Disease can travel on people from coop to coop, especially on shoes. Keep sanitation/bird protection at the forefront of your mind,” said event organizer Angie Kuehl, adding that visitors should not enter coops or a chicken run.

The premise for the tour arises from the need to support county 4-H clubs, and the chicken coop tour was an easy event to agree on because of its obvious farm roots, Kuehl said.

With map in hand, the participants will easily find each coop location with help from yard signs featuring the Coops du Jour chicken logo.

Coop hosts will be available to answer questions about the coops, breeds, molting, egg sales and more.

Sponsors include University of Illinois Extension, Thomas Publishing and Annie Mae’s Restaurant. For more information, call 1-618-687-1727 or visit coopsdujour.com Registration is available online or at the Carbondale Rural King, where there’s also an information center.