How to Keep Backyard Chickens

Member

By ermadoris
User-Submitted Article

Article Rating: (2 Ratings)

One of My "Girls"

Are you one of the many American families that is considering keeping a flock of chickens? Having chickens has become so popular in recent years that even zoning regulators in large cities such as Seattle and Portland are changing zoning regulations to accomadate the keeping of a small back yard flock.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Zoning approval in your city.
Hen house or "coop"
Nesting boxes
Fenced area
Clean water source
Feed
Bedding

Step 1

Home Sweet Home

Once you have determined the number of chickens that is allowed in your county or city the first thing you need to do is to provide a "house" for your birds with a strong fence around it to keep out dogs and other predators. The size you need will be determined by the number of chickens you will keep. Chickens are social birds and want to be part of a flock, so it is not a good idea to keep only one. The minimum number of chickens I would recommend is three. Only the hens lay eggs, but some folks enjoy having a rooster around too. The roosters are the ones that crow (loudly) early in the morning. Hens only softly cackle. It is a soothing sound.
Step 2

You will need to have some nesting boxes mounted on the wall or nailed to a bench. The boxes need only be big enough for the chicken to comfortably sit in to lay their eggs. The boxes should be filled with straw or dried grass to provide nesting material and make for easy cleanup. The floor of the coop should be covered with gravel for drainage with a nice layer of straw, hay, or dried grass. Some people use sawdust here. Whatever you use, just be sure to change regularly to keep your chickens as clean as can be. When you clean the coop simply toss your dirty bedding into your compost pile. It makes excellent natural fertilizer.
Step 3

Finally, you are ready to choose your chickens. With a myriad of breeds to select from you will want to research this part carefully. Your particular choice should be based on area temperatures, purpose of the chicken--will it be kept for eggs only--or might you want to raise chickens for meat? The best place to learn about the type of chicken to select is your local Cooperative Extension Office. They will also be able to provide you with information on types and amounts of feed to use.

Comments

frischy said

Flag This Comment

on 8/24/2009 Inggymae, let him taste some farm fresh eggs. Buy them at your farmer's market. When he tastes the difference, he will be sold. That's my opinion anyway. There is no comparison in taste!