Why You Should Have Chickens

Why Should You Have Chickens?

When I was 15 my family decided to get chickens.  We had no clue what we were doing but we had heard it was easy to do and we could get fresh eggs every day! It was definitely something we had to try!  Through an online site (there are many) we went in half and half on baby chicks with our neighbor who had chickens for a few years. We got Buff Orpingtons and Golden Comets.

We were so excited when they arrived in a tiny box.  We kept them in a large fish tank with wood shavings for bedding, a heat lamp, and a chick food and waterer.  They were happy in there chirping at all hours of the night (oh how I loved their loud persistent chirp at 2 A.M. when I worked the next morning...)  At this point we were getting our coop ready outside.  We converted half our shed into the coop, then had an enclosed aviary off of that, and from there a large fenced in area for them to roam and forage.  When our chicks were ready we brought them out to their new home, set them down and watched them run around and explore their surroundings.  This is such a rewarding feeling!

Every morning my dad goes out to the coop to collect our eggs.  We currently have 12 chickens and we are getting about 11 eggs a day.  This could be due to one or more chicken not laying every day, or one chicken who doesn't lay eggs at all.  Have you ever had a fresh farm egg?  There's no egg you can buy in the store that tastes as good as a fresh farm egg.  They are usually much larger in size and barely fit into the Extra Large Egg carton! They are also very rich in flavor.  I will never be able to go back to eating only store bought eggs!

They taste so much better, are larger, and you know exactly what your chickens are eating and their living conditions.  By having your own chickens you are supporting animal rights, and promoting healthy living conditions and a more natural diet.  You can feel good about eating eggs from you happy chicken friends every morning with a side of farm fresh bacon and a pot of fresh brewed coffee!

We have had plenty of encounters with predators such as raccoons, foxes, and even weasels where we have lost anywhere from 1 bird, to all our birds at once.  When this happens it is absolutely devastating.  There is almost nothing worse than coming home to find all our chickens dead, with raccoon tracks in the mud all around them.  But we can't let that discourage us to the point of giving up.  We have to look and see what went wrong, figure out where we can improve and make the necessary changes to protect our livestock.

I highly recommend doing your research and making sure you have a secure coop for your birds before they arrive.  You want to know some key things before you buy your chicks.  You should know what breed would work the best in your situation, the best coop styles for your needs, how to keep your chickens healthy, what to feed them, and possibly with meat hens when and how to butcher properly.  This great eBook will help you figure out all the answers that you're looking for before buying chickens! There are many crazy ideas out there to DIY your own coop, but a strong sturdy and convenient coop is what you want to make handling, feeding, and collecting eggs easy, and keep unwanted visitors out!  If you are a DIYer or even know someone who is, Here is a fantastic place to get detailed plans to build your own coop!

Click on the links to get started!  And have so much fun raising your chickens!

Answers about chickens eBook

Detailed coop plans!