Getting Started With Chickens

Keeping chickens is a fun and easy endeavor, and for self-sufficiency enthusiasts, they are a wonderful first step towards raising small livestock.  Providing both meat and eggs in exchange for a small amount of feed and care, chickens are hands-down the most efficient animals on the homestead.  If you are new to keeping poultry, a little bit of effort and expense in preparation for your first flock can translate into a lifetime of fresh eggs, meat and free entertainment!  Here is a preparation guide to get you started.

1.  Be Informed of Local Ordinances Pertaining to Chickens

The very first step towards keeping chickens is finding out whether or not they are legal in your area.  Check your city ordinances.  Most cities post ordinances online, and they are generally searchable.  Use the keywords “chickens,” “poultry,” or “livestock” to find the sections that apply.  Search online for local enthusiast groups that may be able to tell you what laws exist and how to comply with them.  If poultry is allowed in your area, find out how many you are allowed to keep, how far from a residence they must be kept, how tall your coop can be built, and whether or not you can keep a rooster.  There may be other rules, as well.  Comply with the law thoroughly to keep the authorities, and perhaps busy-body neighbors, at bay.

If you live in a neighborhood that has an HOA, find out what guidelines exist.  If poultry is allowed, build an attractive coop and keep your neighbors informed.  Inviting them into the process and promising fresh eggs goes a long way to appease reluctant neighbors.  By keeping the coop clean, following all of the HOA rules, and handing out eggs, you can avoid nasty letters from you HOA board.

1. Prepare Your Coop

Chickens have simple housing needs:  shelter from the elements and predators, roosting bars, and nesting boxes.   While chicken enthusiasts often enjoy having elaborate chicken coops, there is no need to go overboard in the housing department as a newbie.  Start small with a simple chicken tractor or coop, large enough to house a handful of chickens.  If you find that you enjoy your flock, you can always upgrade later.

A web search for “chicken coops” will yield an abundance of homemade and commercial coop ideas.   One popular coop style is a “chicken tractor,” or small coop on wheels that can be moved easily. ‘A’-frame chicken tractors are inexpensive to purchase, or, if you are handy, easy plans are available online.  For a more permanent structure, a converted shed or playhouse makes a great home for chickens.  With a little creativity and some recycled materials, a coop can be assembled inexpensively. One local urban farmer built a three-sided structure out of old political signs, hung a few roosting bars under the roof and fenced the area, creating a very simple and inexpensive coop and run for his hens.

Whatever you use to create your coop, make certain that it is secure from predators.  Despite the name, chicken wire is not the best option for coop fencing as it is easily torn by dogs, coyotes and other animals.  Hardware cloth is a better option.  Use it to fence your coop, and bury it a few feet below your fence line to prevent a hungry predator from digging underneath and getting to your vulnerable hens.

1. Prepare Food and Water

Provide a feeder that is large enough for several chickens to eat at once, and fill it with commercial chicken feed appropriate to the age of your chickens.  Young hens who are not laying yet need a “grower” feed, and laying hens need “layer” feed.  Read the instructions on your preferred brand to know which feed to purchase.  Suspend the feeder off the ground, at about shoulder level with your hens.  This helps to prevent bedding and droppings from getting into the food source.

Place at least two watering devices in your coop.  Chickens need a constant source of water.  If one source gets spilled, blocked, drained or contaminated, a second source should always be available, especially in warm weather.  Having a second source will also prevent a dominant chicken from blocking a hen that is lower in the pecking order from drinking.

Provide some “scratch” feed to help cooped hens digest their food.  Chickens have no teeth for chewing.  Instead, they scratch the ground to find small pebbles that they swallow.  The pebbles serve to grind the food in their digestive tract.  Free range hens generally find enough pebbles to do the job, but cooped hens need a supplement.  Scratch feed can be served by throwing it on the ground; no feeder required!

1.  Choose Your Hens

Now that you are ready to bring your flock home, find a reputable source from which to buy.  In the spring when chicks and poults are abundant, ask around at local feed stores or check Craig’s List for “point of lay” hens.  These hens are young, about 5 months old, and should be just starting to lay eggs.  Visit your potential source, and talk to the owner about their hens.  Ask if they have been immunized, keeping in mind that organically raised hens will not have received any shots.  Check for signs of respiratory distress, such as watery eyes or congestion.  Do not purchase animals from any location at which hens show even minor signs of illness because respiratory diseases can be deadly and spread rapidly amongst a flock.  Make certain that chickens are free of mites, which are tiny bugs that you will find under wings and on the fluffy feathers underneath the bird.  Even if you don’t see any mites, a tell-tale sign that they are present is small black dots of feces, the appearance of which is like pepper on feathers and legs.

Ask about the age of the hens that are for sale.  Reputable sources should be able to tell you an exact age, or at least a very close estimate.  If the hen is more than one year old, her prime egg-laying years are behind her.  Choose a younger hen to maximize the number of eggs that she will lay for you.

Additionally, inquire about breeds.  Of those that are available in your area, which ones will be the most productive for eggs or meat?  If you need quiet hens, which ones will make the least noise?  Another question to ask is which breeds fare the best in your climate.  If possible, call ahead to potential sources to find out which breeds are available for sale, and do some research online to find out in advance which ones will work best for your particular situation.

The hard part is over.  Daily care of your chickens will now be easy.  Like any other pet, feed and water them daily.  Refresh bedding and clean the coop when necessary.    Because they live outdoors, take measures to protect them from temperature extremes, and inspect them regularly for health issues.  Collect eggs once or twice a day. Most of all, have fun with them!  Hens who receive regular, positive human contact can be very friendly towards their keepers and chicken antics are uniquely entertaining. For more in-depth information about keeping chickens, visit The Micro Farm Project at the following links:

http://www.squidoo.com/keeping-chickens-healthy

http://www.squidoo.com/urban-chickens

http://www.squidoo.com/raising-backyard-chickens-from-scratch

Kari Spencer is a Master Gardener and the owner of The Micro Farm Project.  She enjoys raising chickens on her small urban farm, and usually has around 20 laying hens roaming around the property. Raising chicks and collecting eggs are two of her favorite activities on the farm. She is an advocate for urban chicken coops and loves to share her passion for poultry with others.