Let's talk Chicken!

[Jim Bremner]

I have a back yard that I could build a chicken coop in for fresh eggs.

Who's done it and how smelly, how hard is the work etc. And yes the city allows hens but not crowing roosters.

We have Hawks, Falcons & Racoons so I understand that they will need to in the coop 24/7 365

[ckissick]

Not smelly at all for me. Not a lot of work. Build a large, covered run. I have a 4X8 coop and an attached 8X8 run for up to 5 hens. Two laying boxes with doors that open to the outside for easy egg retrieval.

Use sturdy wire to keep out large animals who can rip through thin chicken wire. Add a layer in the lower 3 feet of fine mesh wire to keep raccoon hands out. I have a 6-inch deep by 3-inch wide trench filled with concrete to keep out diggers.

Eggs must be at least 2 weeks old before they can be peeled after boiling. Buy a recipe book for egg dishes. Enjoy. Hens are a pleasure to have around.

[PorscheGAL]

I found chickens to be very easy. If they have food and water they are good. I used the "deep litter method" with pine shavings in the coop but in the outside run area, I found fall leaves worked wonders for keeping the smell down.

I had 8 hens that layed more eggs then I could eat so I started making pasta with the extras. I will never go back to store bought pasta again.

By the way: Very good forum to answer your questions. Hundreds of Thousands of Chicken owners on this site. You can get great ideas on coop designs and raising chickens.
www.backyardchickens.com

[Skytrooper]

Chickens are very easy to keep, as previously mentioned, food and lots of water are key to happy and successful egg production. Keeping the coop clean will cut down on 90% of the smell, which is not bad to begin with. I currently have 12 hens and a wacko rooster. The fresh eggs are super delicious ! I give them to my friends by the dozen. I will eat a store egg still, but they do not compare with a fresh egg.

[vash]

i've done it.

yes, they smell a bit. not offensive to me, but dont kid yourself..they smell. my hens are..well, were EVERY BIT as loud as a rooster. i let mine run free. in the morning they would scream bloody murder for me to let them out. if you never let them taste freedom, maybe they will shut the eff up..mine had me held hostage. one dozen *****y hens screaming in unison. good lord.

my hens consistently laid eggs, one egg from each bird, every single day, for three years. that is alot of eggs. my neighbors would bring me egg cartons, i fill them and return the carton full to them. eggs were delicious. super fresh eggs were impossible to peel as hardboiled.

after they stopped laying, i had free loaders living with me. they just ate, screamed at me, ate, and crapped all over the place. i made a decision and killed them. they were very very tough to eat. even as a coq eu vin. so i made the BEST chicken stock ever. i froze bags of the stuff and i made the best soups ever.

my mistakes? build the coop before you get the birds. really think about what to do with the birds when they quit laying. you cant really introduce new babies because they will get beaten down by the older birds. get comfortable with killing them and eating them? i named my birds after food dishes. "curry" was my favorite.

plan a compost bin, because you will have lots to compost.

[Rickysa]

It's a great hobby....we've had our flock of "girls" going on 7 years now. Super easy to keep and they all have individual personalities. They are like pets to the kids. You can throw most anything together for a coop...they just need some cover, a roost and a place to lay eggs.

We have hawks also, but do let them out in the yard whenever you can hang with them to watch them...they will skedaddle back into the coop the minute they see/hear a hawk...just be sure to cover the entire coop top with chicken wire.

[zipinitaly]

I just finished building a coop and have had chickens for a couple months now. My best advice for the smell is to build what are call 'poop boards' under the roost, frame it like a cat box and use a product called Sweed PDZ. PDZ is marketed for horse stalls, it absorbs all the ammonia odor from the chicken poop, it is also completely natural and compostable. I just run a scoop through the PDZ every other day or so.

[Buckterrier]

I'm down to 3 hens. Plan on getting a few more. As PorscheGal says Backyard chickens is a great resource. I clean the coop & run out every morning so no smell, (they are more like pets with benefits ). Here's a pic of my coop and run.






I even ran electric to the coop. I leave lights on in the winter so they'll still lay eggs. Chickens need light in order to lay.

[RWebb]

everybody in town has done it (except me) - the advantage is that you can have fresh eggs to go along with all the raccoon, possum and fox meat - maybe some hawks too

... because every predator nearby will want to visit your yard

[ckelly78z]

Google and build something called a "chicken tractor". It is a movable fenced in area with sides, top, and bottem that has two wheels on one end, and handles on the other to move it around every day in the yard to get a fresh patch of grass and area to scratch for the chickens.

We have free range chickens that produce FAR more eggs being able to eat bugs, grass, and get sunshine than when they were in a stationery coop the previous Summer.

[allaircooled]

I want some hens but my city doesn't allow them. Neighbor behind me does have a rooster though that crows all day everyday so I am wondering who would really care if I kept 4 hens in the backyard.

[jcommin]

The hobby is nothing like an actual chicken farm and processing plant. I was in a plant in NB where 16 million chickens lived and processed. The smell was so bad in and out of the plant, I didn't eat chicken for 6 months. I know what it means to be a 'dirty bird'.

[Bill Douglas]

What fun.

Maybe some exotic chickens to impress guests

[Hydrocket]

Build something called a chicken tractor. It's a moveable coop with wheels. You move it every day (or other day) in the yard. Keeps you from having to shovel the poop.

[Jim Bremner]

My property would be perfect I have a lower part of the property that is 15' Lower than the rest of the land.

Was thinking about the chicken tractor but I showed this whole thread to Joanna but she's vetoed the whole damn thing.

[ckelly78z]

Originally Posted by Jim Bremner

Joanna but she's vetoed the whole damn thing.

I guess you will have to choke your chicken then (if you already got it !)

[mikeesik]

I live in the city and my bud and I were walking down the back alley.
We heard a lot of chirpng in a garbage can.
We looked in and there were about nine freshly hatched chicks.
I took two and my friend took the rest.
Fortunately it was the summer holidays and I could spent time with these two exotic pets.
Turned out that the one died but the other was healthy and very alive.
Chickens are smarter and more interesting than I was meant to believe.
In the morning I'd let 'pecker' out of the garage and when the sun was going down she'd come back by herself into the garage.
Real interesting animal and one that eventually deciphers you from someone else.
Got a real kick from it as it would get all excited seeing me with a shovel in my hnd.
It would follow me to the garden to get worms.

Unfortunately when Grade Seven started Pecker went missing.
I cant recall if we had chicken for supper that day or the next.-i hope not.
I really loved that bird.
When I buy my own house and stop renting, I will do it again.
I really hope you do this and get some Chickens. You'll be more entertained and involved to ever notice any smell.

[futurefun]

I had chickens in LA & enjoyed them except maybe the rooster who spurred me a few times. Keep them clean their water fresh the eggs are superb. Currently getting chicken & duck eggs from neighbors not the store.

[Evans, Marv]

We live in a rural area, and I would like to get some chickens but don't think I will. My neighbor across the street lost 4 of his 7 chickens to a bobcat a few months ago. Another neighbor who kept his entirely enclosed told me it was OK when the coyotes, racoons, foxes, possums, and even bobcats came around looking at them. But after seeing the puma eyeing them, he decided to turn the whole thing into a garden.

[john70t]

No experience but:
Poultry fecal matter has some nasty respiratory associations in humans.
Probably best to have a water hose/drainage for cleaning.

Make things easy.