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You can start small and try it out. Buy or build a small chicken tractor--basically a coop on wheels. Easy to build if you have carpentry skills. Then you can roll it around your yard day by day and keep the hens mostly safe from predators (I say mostly because depending on your area, some wildlife can get in a coop). A small one can hold 2-4 hens, which, depending on breed, can give you nearly an egg a day each. No need for a rooster if you have a small amount of hens.

Then you'll see how easy it is, chickens are pretty self-sufficient. If you need to go away for a few days, a neighbor can keep them fed for the price of the eggs they lay.

When I saw how easy it was and fun for the family, we got more and more, branched out with different breeds, got a proper coop, let them free range (they pretty much always return to the coop at night), and now I am experimenting with growing their food to reduce the cost of feed. (They eat scraps as well, and I grind up our eggshells to feed them back their calcium)

I kept my old small tractor coop for hens that are brooding (sitting on eggs to hatch), chicks to grow up in, or a hen that needs to be kept from the others for one reason or another. Also have a rooster or two for security and to keep the eggs fertilized. Can't bring a new rooster into an established flock that already has a rooster. I've found that if you have 2 roos (boy chicks) grow up together, they are good at sharing the flock without fighting each other to the death.

Cats learn to stay away. It only takes one hard peck and they learn fast. Dogs are harder, because they have the chase instinct. We always got livestock-type dogs that are bred to protect vs. hunt. Neighbors dogs, hawks, raccoons are a problem, but good fencing, good roosters, and making sure their coop is closed up at night helps.

1 year ago
2 score
Reason: Original

You can start small and try it out. Buy or build a small chicken tractor--basically a coop on wheels. Easy to build if you have carpentry skills. Then you can roll it around your yard day by day and keep the hens mostly safe from predators (I say mostly because depending on your area, some wildlife can get in a coop). A small one can hold 2-4 hens, which, depending on breed, can give you nearly an egg a day each. No need for a rooster if you have a small amount of hens.

Then you'll see how easy it is, chickens are pretty self-sufficient. If you need to go away for a few days, a neighbor can keep them fed for the price of the eggs they lay.

When I saw how easy it was and fun for the family, we got more and more, branched out with different breeds, got a proper coop, let them free range (they pretty much always return to the coop at night), and now I am experimenting with growing their food to reduce the cost of feed. (They eat scraps as well, and I grind up our eggshells to feed them back their calcium)

I kept my old small tractor coop for hens that are brooding (sitting on eggs to hatch), chicks to grow up in, or a hen that needs to be kept from the others for one reason or another. Also have a rooster or two for security and to keep the eggs fertilized. Can't bring a new rooster into an established flock, I've found that if you have 2 roos (boy chicks) grow up together, they are good at sharing the flock without fighting each other to the death.

Cats learn to stay away. It only takes one hard peck and they learn fast. Dogs are harder, because they have the chase instinct. We always got livestock-type dogs that are bred to protect vs. hunt. Neighbors dogs, hawks, raccoons are a problem, but good fencing, good roosters, and making sure their coop is closed up at night helps.

1 year ago
1 score