mykdsmomy Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 I've been thinking about chickens for a while....Well, chickens and a garden. I've attempted the garden thing several times but it's never worked out.....then again, I don't think I set it up right from the beginning. I'd like to be more self sustainable....We don't have land....just a small backyard...but we can have chickens here (as long as they are so many feet from our house, etc). Are chickens worth the work for the eggs? Is it frugal? Any good websites to learn more about suburban chicken keeping? We have two small obnoxious dogs....will they be compatible with the chickens? Anyone else do this? Thanks :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HSinNH Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 I've been thinking about chickens for a while....Well, chickens and a garden. I've attempted the garden thing several times but it's never worked out.....then again, I don't think I set it up right from the beginning. I'd like to be more self sustainable....We don't have land....just a small backyard...but we can have chickens here (as long as they are so many feet from our house, etc). Do it!! We love our small backyard flock! Are chickens worth the work for the eggs? Is it frugal? Any good websites to learn more about suburban chicken keeping? Once you get the coop up, they are practically zero work. Just open the coop in the morning and shut it at night. We have also left them "cooped up" for up to four days with no issues. I have not actually done the calculations myself, but no, having chickens for eggs will not save you much money. But, at least you know where your food came from and how the chickens were treated. If you can let them free-range, obviously your cost will be lower. Check out the backyardchickens.com forum. Those people are wonderful! We have two small obnoxious dogs....will they be compatible with the chickens? Maybe, maybe not. We had three chickens killed by the neighborhood dog. :glare: Anyone else do this? Thanks :) Do it...it is great learning experience for the DC, as well. PM me off list if you have any other questions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer3141 Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 We've got 13 chicks coming at the end of April so I hope they're worth it. Wait until I've done it and then maybe you can get a great deal on a coop??? :D:D:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myfunnybunch Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 I've been thinking about chickens for a while....Well, chickens and a garden. I've attempted the garden thing several times but it's never worked out.....then again, I don't think I set it up right from the beginning. I'd like to be more self sustainable....We don't have land....just a small backyard...but we can have chickens here (as long as they are so many feet from our house, etc). Are chickens worth the work for the eggs? Is it frugal? Any good websites to learn more about suburban chicken keeping? We have two small obnoxious dogs....will they be compatible with the chickens? Anyone else do this? Thanks :) We have back yard chickens. They're not a lot of work once you get started. Unless you find someone with laying hens for sale, you have to raise them from chicks, but once that's done, they just need fresh water and food daily, and you have to clean their coop (which is good for the garden!). IMO, chickens are worth the work for the eggs. You may not save money (unless you already only buy organic free-range farm-raised eggs for $$$$), but you will know exactly what your hens have been fed, and their healthier diet will make healthier eggs. My hens' eggs have yolks that are a dark orange-yellow. I can tell the difference between my eggs and the pale yellow store egg yolks. Website: BackYard Chickens You will need to build or buy a chicken coop. If you want a garden and have "obnoxious" dogs, you'll need to build or buy some kind of enclosed run for the chickens. Otherwise, the chickens will eat the garden and the dogs may try to eat the chickens. Or play with them, which is just as bad. Chickens do a fantastic garden clean-up right before spring planting, and even add fertilizer! :D I let my chickens free-range the garden about this time of year, then put them back in their side yard once it's time to plant. As a matter of fact, my next task when I'm done with this post will be to go salvage the last of our winter greens from the garden so we can put the chickens in there sometime this week. Have fun! :) Cat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 We love our chickens. This fall one hen went broody and sat on two eggs. We got such a kick out of watching her raise her babies. (Obviously we have a rooster, too.) I agree that it probably won't save you money but it is so nice having fresh eggs and the difference in appearance and taste is quite noticeable. And chickens really can make good pets too. Our kids are constantly carrying them around and playing with them. I don't think our chickens have any idea how much they are loved. :lol: Back at our old house we had two dogs--an Australian Shepherd and a Lab. Our Lab was a trained hunting dog. She seemed to forget the chickens were birds unless one of them flew. Then she would snatch them out of the air and carry them around. Since she was trained, she wouldn't harm them in any way. It freaked the chickens out a little but didn't seem to bother them too much. The chickens loved our Australian Shepherd. They would actually curl up with her in her dog house. If you are worried, a rooster would help protect the hens. But sometimes roosters are more trouble then they are worth! And sometimes they aren't allowed in city limits. Chickens help keep pests down. Ours even catch mice. They are a lot of fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msjones Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We had chickens for a while. Didn't keep them. :( The biggest problem in a small yard with a small coop/run is that they poop A LOT. If your coop/enclosed run is small it will stink if you don't clean it frequently. If you're in a crowded neighborhood, that could be a problem. If you let them free range in a small yard, you will have chicken poop everywhere. There is a lot, lot, lot of poop. I don't think it matters much in a big space, but in a small space it builds up quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remudamom Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I love my chickens. Right now I've got ten babies, eight teens and and ten adults. They are a major pita but I wouldn't be without them. Mine generally run free, we have no neighbors and they can go all over the horse and cattle's pastures. They do not keep us in eggs, they're just a hobby for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blondeviolin Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 This fascinates me... If only we had more space... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berta Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I love my chickens! I have seventeen chicks, eight of them are 9 weeks old and 10 are six weeks old. I would suggest doing a lot of reading at backyardchickens.com before making a decision. And, if you decide to get chicks, build your coop a LOT bigger then you think you will need. DH and I agreed on four hens, but I wound up with 17, and a lot of them are turning out to be roosters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zookeeper Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We love our chickens! I think we have about 30. They do a good job of keeping us in eggs and even a few extra dozen to sell here and there. This time of year we leave their food down all day, but during nice weather we pick it up during the day. Having chickens is one of the things I never knew I would love! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riverland Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I've attempted the garden thing several times but it's never worked out. I'm not a gardener either! I'd like to be, but I just can't quite get it right. Are chickens worth the work for the eggs? I do not like animals that require too much work. We have chickens. They are not hard work. The initial set-up requires work (coop, laying boxes) but that was dh's project:) Some food, some water & they're set. Depending on where you live, don't except eggs in the cold & dark winter or the heat of the summer. Just as important as the eggs, though, I think having chickens is a great experience for the kids. My youngest is 12 and they have been totally her responsibility for the past couple years. Of course, dad helps when the coop needs mended. Oh, and neighbors and friends love to buy any extra eggs from dd. Is it frugal? Depends. Are you building your own coop from scraps or buying new lumber or ordering pre-built? Are you purchasing food or are they free-ranging in the grass? FYI... Ours free-range on an acre, but they still love their purchased food. And remember, they lay mostly during mild weather with plenty of daylight. Any good websites to learn more about suburban chicken keeping? When we first started, I consulted this website a lot: http://www.backyardchickens.com/ We have two small obnoxious dogs....will they be compatible with the chickens? Maybe, maybe not. We have lost lots of chickens to dogs. Some dogs have great fun killing them (not eating, just killing), others leave them alone. If your dogs (or neighbor dogs) are a problem, you will have to build a dog-proof enclosure (which does add to the work). We've also had problems with skunks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTJo1996 Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We have had 2 batches of chickens. We live in a rural area and on a family farm of about 100 acres. (we only own 4 acres - my f-i-l owns the farm) We have had trouble with coyotes and with hawks. I love that we knew where our food came from and what our hens were eating. But in terms of cost, we were feeding them $15 worth of food every month and at times getting only 1-2 eggs per day out of 20 chickens. NOT a great rate or return! And that was not the organic chicken feed - it costs double that! We are currently chicken-free but will probably get some chicks this spring. Who can resist those baby chicks???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camikins2010 Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We live in a cove, so our backyard is larger than most of the houses in our subdivision...we have two chickens (I would not get anymore living where we are now). They are for the most part "free range" except at night we do lock them up in their coop. Definitely worth it and not hard at all the maintain...water and food once or twice a week...and my girls clean up their coop once a week. Right now they are not laying as much due to the winter season, but that's ok. We decided not to put a lamp in their house and they seem to be just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellers Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 Are chickens worth the work for the eggs? Is it frugal? Any good websites to learn more about suburban chicken keeping? I think keeping chickens is a great experience for kids. You will have to buy egg maker and scratch, but you can feed the chickens most kitchen scraps. We have two small obnoxious dogs....will they be compatible with the chickens? Are they terriers? We have three rat terriers, and two of them are chicken killers. One day one of them got in the guinea hen house and killed 15+ of our guinea hens. We also have a fox terrier that is is a chicken killer. Once a chicken killer, always a chicken killer. Anyone else do this? We love keeping chickens. We have two separate pens. The former guinea hen house is now home to full sized chickens and the other pen is home to bantams. My DD14 has a banti she has had for at least six years. This little old hen is like a dog, she loves being held. This pic below is about five years old. It's my DD14 with one of her Banti hens. We hatched this little girl from eggs we bought on ebay. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hypatia. Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We live in a suburban neighborhood on ~1/4 acre lot. We have 4 hens in the fenced backyard. They have a coop over an attached run that they stay in at night and roam the backyard during the day. We bought them as week old chicks in mid-September and we just got our first eggs today. Mid-morning my 7 year old DS1 lets them out, then after dinner each night he gives them fresh food and water and closes the coop. Each night they've already gone back in their coop, he doesn't have to chase them. Once a week or so we clean out the upper area of the coop where they roost at night and dump it in the compost, we change/add more bedding down below as needed. There is lots of poop. Lots and lots of poop! When I envisioned owning chickens, somehow I didn't envision lots of chicken poop on my back porch, where they hang out looking in the sliding glass door into the kitchen! We have square foot gardens and container gardens in barrels. I'm not sure yet how we'll be fencing them in this spring to keep the chickens out, one step at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misidawnrn Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I love my chickens. We have an acre in a subdivision that is a little out of town. We have 10 chickens of mixed breeds. Only 2 of my girls are not very friendly (blue Austrolorps sp?) My 8yo can pick up the rest of them. They don't peck or anything. There was a shed on our property when we bought last May and we turned 1/3 of it into a chicken coop. I used an old pantry cupboard on it's side without the door for their boxes and an old wooden ladder for their roost. I bought a window at the Habitat for Humanity resale store and my BIL put it in for free. We paid someone $150 to put in a wall to wall off the 1/3, with a door in it. So about $220 total. I use sand on the bottom of my coop instead of wood shavings. You don't have to scoop the poop, it will just decompose into dirt. They eat a mix of chicken food and hard winter wheat (my husband is a wheat farmer so I just load up my garbage cans at the farm with the wheat that falls off the truck and auger-so basically free) I haven't figured out a cost/productivity analysis. I don't sell my eggs but give them to family and friends. They are fun, eat leftovers like a dog, and help give DD8 some responsibility. We don't have a rooster because we have neighbors and I don't want to have complaints about noise. I would like to let one hen get broody and raise babies but can't without a boy! Also, roos tend to be mean and I don't want them to attack my kids. We let them freerange some on our acre but the darned things get out of the back gate and go to the neighbor's where there is a dog so most of the time they are in a 12x12 dog kennel that is on the one side of the shed. THe previous owners had big dogs. This was before the wall was built on the inside so it's a little smaller space now. My DD and her friend holding chickens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I've been thinking about chickens for a while....Well, chickens and a garden. I've attempted the garden thing several times but it's never worked out.....then again, I don't think I set it up right from the beginning. I'd like to be more self sustainable....We don't have land....just a small backyard...but we can have chickens here (as long as they are so many feet from our house, etc). There are several books on some space homesteading. Backyard Barnyard is a favorite for me. When we started our chicken adventure last year I also checked out every book I could at the library. The County Extension Agent also had lots of information. Most books are written for small owners, or so it seems. Because my son was in 4H we were able to buy the most amazing layers at an incredibly cheap price. Are chickens worth the work for the eggs? Is it frugal? Any good websites to learn more about suburban chicken keeping? We love the eggs. Is it frugal? Not in the beginning. The cost to set up the coop and run was way more than we expected simply because we didn't already have something we could convert. My dh is also not handy so having ot find people who could help me build a coop and all that got to be a real chore. You also have to remember that unless you buy grown hens, it may be 6 months before they start laying. They do love kitchen scraps so that is nice. www.Backyardchickens.com and then go to the area for your state and begin making commections there for information about laws, where to find good, cheap feed, and so on. You can also make connections with folks who sell chicks, know what breeds work well in your area, and may have old equipment available. We have two small obnoxious dogs....will they be compatible with the chickens? Even the most gentle lazy dog should be considered a threat to chickens. Too many just can't resist that big fluffy *toy* in their own backyard. The chickens can bring out some primitive huinting instinct or something. We love our eggs, and the chickens are easy. Really. We give them lots of food, scraps, and water, and they give us eggs. We now have enough chickens that we sell eggs and that helps cover food costs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 Chickens are fun. We have had some for several years. You can look on Craig's list under farm and garden for chicken coops. You do have to be careful about buying a used coop though for disease but our local craig's list has several new ones for save quite reasonably. Our chickens eat with the horses and 2 have even taken to laying their eggs in the corner of my horse's stall. Our australian shepherd gets along just fine with them. I don't think we save money by having them vs. buying store eggs but the eggs are VERY VERY good............so good in fact that my friend is hand carrying a dozen of our eggs from Michigan to Barrow Alaska (in the artic circle) to her husband.......praying that airport security won't give her a problem. They are fun to watch and do eat lots of bugs. You can get a chicken "tractor" for them to be in during the day that you move around the yard to help spread the poop which is good fertilizer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy the Valiant Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We have them, and they lay enough eggs that we sell the extras, which pays for the food, so OUR eggs are free! They are a lot of fun, and (since we have quite a few and are not attached to them emotionally), when they quit laying, we have chicken soup. :) Ours eat all our kitchen scraps (except raw potatoes and egg shells), and they're very low-maintenance on a daily basis. Good exercise and experience for our kiddos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I don't have chickens, so I don't know what I'm talking about BUT I've never heard that they are a cost-effective way to get eggs. Apparently, though, people are rewarded in other ways. Maybe if you think of them as pets who give back a little more you'll be happier. I wouldn't do it for economic reasons, but I've got to own up to fantasizing about one day having a few chickens as a hobby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We have them, and they lay enough eggs that we sell the extras, which pays for the food, so OUR eggs are free! They are a lot of fun, and (since we have quite a few and are not attached to them emotionally), when they quit laying, we have chicken soup. :) Ours eat all our kitchen scraps (except raw potatoes and egg shells), and they're very low-maintenance on a daily basis. Good exercise and experience for our kiddos. Why do you not feed your chickens egg shells?? We do all the time as a way of recycling the caclium. I do however stick them in the microwave briefly to cook any thing left inside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mykdsmomy Posted February 13, 2012 Author Share Posted February 13, 2012 Oh my goodness, thank you everyone for the great responses!!! I have a lot of reading to do!!! Misidawnrn~ Thank you for sharing your pics!! I am a visual person so seeing what a set up looks like helps tremendously!!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riverland Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 Why do you not feed your chickens egg shells?? We do all the time as a way of recycling the caclium. I too always thought that eggshells were beneficial to the chickens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KS_ Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I too always thought that eggshells were beneficial to the chickens. I think the main thing is to crush them up thoroughly so they don't resemble eggs any longer, to help prevent the chickens from becoming egg-eaters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in TN Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 Chickens and gardens do not go well together and so must be kept separate! Chickens will eat any/every green thing within their reach :D . But I have both, and highly recommend them! I haven't found them to be cost effective, between the cost of feeding them and other general supplies. Well, I guess if you are buying organic eggs otherwise, it might balance out. They are wonderful to have, at any rate. Our family eats LOTS of eggs and in their peak laying season our 7 chickens provided about 3 1/2 dozen eggs per week which is about what we use each week. We buy eggs most of the year to suppliment. They are like pets to us, though - we can't have dogs or cats due to allergies, so we don't really expect them to earn their keep. An added benefit - the spring we moved into our house, our kids got ticks every time they were outside. Drove me nuts. But in the years since then we haven't had a single tick. I think the chickens somehow take care of them (and they're not even free-ranging). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 I think the main thing is to crush them up thoroughly so they don't resemble eggs any longer, to help prevent the chickens from becoming egg-eaters. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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