Backyard Chickens

I have been buying fresh chicken eggs for about 2 years now from a friend.  The eggs are more flavorful and the yolks are extremely yellow compared to those you buy in the store.  Yes, they can be more expensive.  I have heard they range from $1.50 - $4 a dozen around me in Wisconsin.  I pay $3 a dozen, but they are well worth it.  This spring we decided to get 2 chickens of our own.  My friend who raises chickens bought 40 in April and he let my boys pick out any chicken of their choice.  My youngest picked an Araucana chicken and named her Pillow Tiger.  This type of chicken lays either blue or green shelled eggs.  My oldest picked a Buff Orpington, named her Cinnamon, and she lays brown eggs.  Having the birds lay different color eggs is perfect because now we know whose chicken egg we are eating.  :)   Our chickens will start laying eggs mid to late October and we are very excited. 

If you are thinking about having chickens there are some things you should think about.  By no means am I an expert seeing I have just recently started owning chickens. 

• You will need a chicken coop/house for them to be safe in and roost at night.
• Make sure your municipality allows them and there may be a limit on how many you can own.
• Know what is appropriate to feed them (chicken treats).  There are different feeds through the different stages of their growth. Here are some things chickens should not eat.
• Do you need a winter hardy breed?  Living in Wisconsin this is a must for us. 
• Chickens only lay eggs for 2-5 years but live 10-20 years.  Will you keep them after they stop laying?  If not, maybe get a breed that is a good egg layer and has good meat to eat.
• Do you have an area for them to free range?

My husband built the chicken coop for us in an afternoon, it works perfect.  Each chicken needs 4 sq feet in the coop.  I let out the chickens every night to free range in our yard.  I am a little nervous because we do not have a fence and to each side of us they have a dog.  Eventually we would like to have a small picket fence area and have them roam free in it.  Due to lack of funds it will have to wait until next year. 

The first night I let them out of the coop I was so nervous that I would not be able to get them back in.  However, it is in their instinct to go up higher for protection.  Every night, I find them back in their coop at dusk, so no worries. 

Look at the color of those yolks!  It is hard to tell, but the shell is green.  I must say you have to be careful in what you use these eggs in since the yolk is so yellow.  If you bake a cheesecake or are making something white that requires yolks, be warned, it will discolor the finished product.  I made a cheesecake with them and it was almost yellow!  I still brought it into work, but had to explain the coloring. 

Make sure you do your research before you decide on chickens.  I am lucky, because if they do not work out, my friend said he will take them back at anytime.  Most people do not have this luxury though.

Keep on cluckin'!