The Top 24 Questions about Raising Chickens for Meat and Eggs

It doesn’t matter if you have 100 cases of Mountain House foods or a basement bursting at the seams with stored food, if you aren’t actively growing and raising your own foods, you’re always going to be reliant on stores or other people for your food supply. As preppers, we should be detaching ourselves from these systems of support to become more self-reliant. There is no better way to do that than raising chickens for meat and eggs. Today we’re going to go over all the commonly asked questions about the basics of raising chickens so you can make an informed decision on whether or not raising chickens is right for you.

Check the local laws and ordinances
First and foremost we need to make sure that raising chickens is legal on your area. Although I don’t put a lot of respect into local zoning laws and home owners associations, the micro-government code enforcers have a habit of making people’s lives hell when enforcing local codes and ordinances, especially when it comes to raising animals.

How do you find out what the laws are in your area?

Every city is going to have a municipal code regarding chickens. Usualy there is a limit to the amount of chickens you can have, whether or not you can have roosters, if it is permissible for your chickens to be free range and even how large your coop can be. Go to Google and search for “(your city and state) chicken laws”. Additionally there are many great sites out there that give information and links to municipal codes in your area such as BackYard Chickens.com

What about neighbors and HOAs?

If you live in an area with a Home Owners Association (Move!) you’ll want to get a copy of all the rules and regulations for the HOA and check if there is anything in there about raising chickens on your property. DO NOT ask a representative of the HOA, as these people are very quick to make up regulations when asked. As far as your neighbors, although it is your property, you may want to have a dialogue with your neighbors about the chickens. Try to quell any concerns they have about the smell, noise or any other issues. Even better, when you start getting some egg production, give them some eggs. This goes a long way in preventing any arguments you might have with them down the road.

Building or buying a coop

Obviously your chickens are going to need a home! Your two options are buying or building a coop. It doesn’t take a lot of material or construction experience to build a coop and could potentially save you a lot of money versus buying a prebuilt coop.

Is it cheaper to build your own coop?

This will depend on the type of coop that you want for your chickens. You could build a coop for less than $50, but it’s not going to house more than a few chickens, and may require some routine maintenance. The cost will really be determined by how much the materials will cost in your area. The best way to keep the costs down if you choose to build your own is to reuse materials. Wooden pallets are a great source for inexpensive framing wood for your coop.

Where can I get plans to build a coop?

Backyard Chickens.com has an amazing database of over 2200 chicken coop designs. You can check them all out (for free) HERE

How much would buying a coop cost?

This depends on the type of coop that you want. There are coops you can buy for less than $100, however these are going to be small wire framed coops without a roof. For a decent coops that will house at least 6 birds with a roof expect to pay somewhere around $400-$500

Where could I buy a coop?

If you’re going to be buying a coop, I would suggest looking for something used. Craigslist is a great resource to check. Google “(your city) Craigslist” and go to the “Farm+Garden” section. Chances are you can find a great deal on a used chicken coop any time of the year. If you want to purchase a brand new coop, Tractor Supply has a great selection.

How big does it have to be?

The amount of birds you want to have will determine how big your coop needs to be. The rule of thumb is that each bird will require 4 square feet of space in your coop to mak sure you aren’t crowding your chickens. Yes you can get away with less, but it is not advisable for the safety and health of the birds.

What can I do to make sure predators can’t get in?

Whatever coops you decide to go with, make sure it is solidly made. It needs a solid frame and cannot have any holes or openings in it near the bottom whatsoever. Chickens have a lot of predators, big and small. The last thing you want is to go check on your chickens and find out that a fox was able to squeeze in…READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE