Why I Love Chickens

  

    Today I want to write about chickens. Why? Because I think they’re one of the most productive animals you could ever get. 

     If you are starting from the beginning, chicks are very cheap. I got mine for $4 each. Tractor Supply stores sell them, and local farm stores often do, too. If you are buying a bunch, you can also order them online, giving you much more options as to what kind you want.

     If you have wood lying about, you may be able to put together a chicken coop for free. If not, Amazon sells coops like this one . Although it does cost money, I think it would definitely be worth it.

     If you buy little chicks, you will need to buy a heat lamp (unless you already have one) and chick starter feed. The good thing is, you can save the heat lamp for future batches of chicks.

     Once the chickens are big enough to live outside, you can give them layer feed. If you have a feed store nearby, then this is pretty cheap. We get a 50lb bag for $12-$13. We also give them almost all of our leftovers, which not only prevents food from going to waste, but also helps us to not need to spend as much on chicken feed. 

     If you have a safe yard, it’s also nice to let them roam some. I only let our chickens out when I’m outside, since we have close neighbors and a big road nearby, but they enjoy it immensely. Watching them range around the yard is one of my favorite things to do. They are able to get protein from eating all the bugs, and we have free bug service. So it’s a win-win situation! Then you just shake a cup of their feed and they usually come running back to their coop.

     The main benefit I see from having chickens is the huge amount of eggs they give us. While all breeds are different, our 9 leghorns give us about 8 eggs a day. That comes out to 56 eggs a week or 248 a month! So a $12-$13 feed bag once every two months or so definitely seems worth it.

     If you know how to process chickens, that would also be another benefit to having them. There are lots of tutorials on YouTube, and then you would know exactly where your meat is coming from. 

     If you get a rooster, you can basically get unlimited chickens. Sometimes a hen will sit on her eggs. This is called going broody. If she does, then you don’t even need an incubator. She’ll take care of keeping them warm till they hatch, and also after they hatch. She’ll even introduce them to the flock for you. 

     If you want to hatch eggs but you don’t have any hens going broody, you can always buy an incubator. You don’t need to get one of the most expensive ones, and again, you can use it over and over through the years. 

     To summarize, chickens are one of my favorite animals because:

-they are cheap

-give tons of eggs

-fun to watch

-can be processed if needed

-you never have to run out, just hatch a batch of eggs when you need

Does your family have chickens? What are some of your favorite animals?

—Laura