by Rex Trulove

Created on: June 25, 2008

Why would you want to raise chickens in the first place? After all, you can buy eggs and packaged chicken in the store. There are some great reasons and tips for raising them, though.

Probably the first would be the monetary savings from raising chickens. For a small family that eats a lot of eggs, six hens will produce more eggs than they can consume on a daily basis. The only expense is in the feed that is given to the chickens, and the larger the area they have to range, the less food that is necessary.

What this means, practically, is that the eggs cost far less than the current prices charged at the store. In fact, with a reasonable amount of room, and with six hens, the cost can be less than fifty cents per dozen. The eggs and meat are also a lot healthier than the store bought variety.

What is more, the chickens love eating pests like earwigs, slugs, and insects. This may sound gross, but the eggs and meat are higher quality than you can purchase in a store, partly because of the additional protein, and at the same time it means that you don't need to use chemical pesticides to control garden and yard pests.

When raising chickens, it is important to understand that like all other animals, they require a source of fresh water. It is also vital to feed them chicken food, even if they have free run. For egg layers and meat chickens, the extra carbohydrates and proteins assist the chicken to lay and to gain weight.

Chickens do require a place of shelter out of the weather and a place to lay their eggs (in the case of hens), but they will also readily eat any kitchen wastes you might have. If you have spoiled or moldy food, chickens will happily eat it, and will suffer no bad side effects. They will also eat both meat and vegetable matter. The fact is that there is little that a chicken will not eat, and their constitution is such that they can deal with the most disgusting foods. They thrive on garbage.

Don't discard the eggshells, either. Instead, bake them in a slow oven for 30 minutes to an hour, crumble, and feed them to the chickens. This helps them boost the calcium levels that are needed for egg laying, and even roosters thrive on the additional supplement.

The chicken droppings are a natural and wonderful addition to a compost pile, too. High in nitrogen, they help the compost break down rapidly and the result is a richer compost. Raw chicken manure should never be used on plants without composting or aging, though, because it is so high in nitrogen that it can 'burn' the plants.

In many smaller towns, having chickens in your backyard is permissible, though it is a good idea to check the local laws before doing it. Roosters are usually frowned upon if you have close neighbors, because of their propensity of crowing, but hens are allowable in many places.

Backyard chickens produce better eggs and better chicken meat than the commercially grown chickens. If you have the room, it isn't a bad idea to raise some chickens in your back yard.

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