I get asked a lot of questions about owning chickens, caring for chickens, why I have chickens etc. I’ll attempt to answer some of those here:
- Why chickens?
This is probably the single most common question that I get when it comes to my chickens. We didn’t really plan on having chickens, it sort of happened to us. As my first post explains: Ronnie, our rooster, showed up out of no where. We aren’t really sure where he came from, but since he was here and no one came to claim him. So, after some internet research we decided to raise chickens. - Are you allowed to have chickens at your house?
People often ask this question, and it varies from area to area. Where I live there is no regulation against keeping poultry (or livestock for that matter), and I happen to be fortunate not to live in a neighborhood that restricts anything like this either. So, if you want to keep chickens, make sure that your city/county laws don’t restrict it, then make sure your neighborhood doesn’t. Keep in mind two things: chickens are not livestock they are poultry, check for restrictions on roosters specifically (there are a lot of places that don’t let you have a rooster but will allow hens). - Are chickens difficult to care for?
The short answer is no. Chicks are relatively high maintenance but still not any worse than a kitten or puppy, possibly less. Once they are grown enough to be put outdoors chickens are some of the easiest animals to keep. Because mine free range, each morning I let them out and each night I lock them back up. If you are in a situation where your chickens cannot wander freely, you will have an enclosed run where they will be able to move in and out as they please which will limit your daily chores to checking for eggs and making sure food and water supplies are sufficient.
I’ll be adding more to this as I have time and more questions are asked.