Is it Easy to Keep Chickens?

For most, the answer is simple: raising chickens is so easy. It's like having an outdoor cat, they'll pretty much take care of themselves. But if you're reading this article, chances are you want to hear some specifics. Really, each of these points has thousands of articles relating to them. Nevertheless, here is our best attempt at a very general overview to help you consider whether chickens are right for you.

What is a Chicken Run?

The fenced-in area around the coop is called the chicken run. That's where chickens run around. It's best to have the chicken run covered because you will probably have hawk attacks or predators that can climb, such as raccoons, possums, and skunks. You will also want your chicken run to have wire that goes deep. This way, if a predator tries to dig under the coop, they'll actually be digging at that wire. It'll prevent them from digging a hole directly under the coop.

Let's talk about the chicken run. The chicken run should have dirt and hay, stuff for them to dig and scratch up. Also, chickens like to take dust baths. If you're wondering why your chicken is burying itself, it's just taking a dust bath. They do this to get rid of lice and mites and bugs that are on them. This brings me to my next point; create it, and they will come. When you have chickens, you will start seeing more mice and rats and chickens will eat these things, so you're going to have to find another way other than poison to get rid of them.

Do Chickens Fight?

A pecking order is a real thing. You want to let your chickens establish this over time. It's OK. They're going to be pecking on each other. If they are pecking on each other too much, to the point where they're getting bald, you might have too many chickens or not enough space, think about reducing your flock.

What is Molting?

If you're wondering why your chicken is losing her feathers, it's called molting. They lose their summer or winter feathers and grow new feathers for the new season. Different chickens do this at different times.

Where do Chickens Lay Their Eggs?

How many chicken nesting boxes do you need? You only need a couple. Chickens like to use the same box where somebody else is laid their eggs. It’s OK.  Don't let it bother you. I happened to build 10 nesting boxes I have a flock of about 20 chickens, and they all want to go in the same nesting box. It's just too many.

What do Chickens Eat?

Well, weed and grass clippings are great to feed your chickens. They'll eat just about anything. You want to have a water source nearby, in or near your coop. Chickens get overheated easily so you want to have lots of water dishes in the shade and keep them elevated because they'll dig dirt into them.  You can also use water nipples and attach them to any bucket.

Can I have Chickens, Ducks, and Rabbits Together?

If you're wondering if you can mix chickens and ducks, yes, but ducks love to muddy up the water, and they need to swim to stay healthy, so if you mix your chickens and your ducks, your chickens are never going to have clean water unless you're using those water nipples.

If you're wondering if you can mix chickens and rabbits, yes. If you have enough space they will get along just great.

Do I need a Chicken Coop?

Chickens need elevated spaces. You want to have vertical spaces, especially inside the chicken coop because chickens sleep standing up. It's called roosting. They typically only use her nesting boxes to lay their eggs. Closet L brackets are great for inside the chicken coop. They give you a shelf for the chickens to stand on and a place to put a stick so they can roost. Low covered spaces are also great for really hot days because they provide extra shade and shelter for rainy days. Sometimes you might find an egg in there as well.

What is the most Common Health Problem for Chickens?

Well, one of the most common problems is eye problems. Although it's the most common problem, it's not really a problem. So they have something wrong with their eyes, if you want to get rid of it use some diatomaceous earth, or you can put antibiotics in their water but that means that you can't eat their eggs for a couple of weeks.

What about my Chicken’s Eggs and Do I need a Roster?

If you see a little bit of blood in the chicken’s egg it's OK. They're fine to eat they just ruptured a vessel when pushing out the egg.

You don't need a rooster to get eggs. Chickens will lay eggs with or without a rooster and different breeds of chickens will lay different colored eggs. The only thing a rooster is good for is making your eggs fertile. He'll also make your hens look pretty beat up.

Don’t try to hard boil fresh eggs. They're almost impossible to peel. You want to wait at least a week before hard-boiling your eggs, the older the egg the easier it's going to be to peel.

Chickens lay fewer eggs as they age. You will get about one egg a day their first year or two then less and less each year. Chickens will start laying eggs when they're about six months old. you can let your chickens free-range. They put themselves away at night it's so easy. If you want to put them away it's going to be a cat and mouse chase. You also want to watch out for predators.