Comments on: Chicken Coops in Your Backyard

By: Gavin

Gavin — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 20:25:37 +0000

Well, you don’t HAVE to get feed, you can feed them a lot of stuff.

By: Marie

Marie — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:55:00 +0000

I know those smelly places in Athens and also in the town on Lake Lanier we used to go to in the summers. Can’t remember the name but it was apparently the “broiler capital”. But yours shoudn’t be anything like those mega-sized genetically engineered farms so no worries;-)
My husband and I first started fantasising about having a chicken tractor whilst living in the concrete jungles of Japan. I’d never felt further from the land there despite living in a sake rice region. Missing green things was one of our major reasons to return to New Zealand, but I’ve yet to get my chicken tractor!
Good luck!

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By: Tim Henderson

Tim Henderson — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 03:22:30 +0000

My wife and I are in the start-up phases of a micro-farm and are absolutely going to incorporate chickens in our sustainability plans. Chickens are great recyclers of kitchen waste, good for pest control and make awesome little tillers between plantings. Not to mention the tasty fresh eggs.

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By: Cheap Like Me

Cheap Like Me — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:14:11 +0000

We too are contemplating chickens – maybe next spring. My 8-year-old is excited about helping to design a coop. We priced feed the other day and it looked like for 2-3 birds, it would cost around $15 a month (US). Not too bad if they turn out the eggs. Of course, I buy feed for wild birds for $15 every few months, and all they do for us is turn our front porch into a hull- and poop-littered disaster zone.

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By: david miller

david miller — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 00:03:45 +0000

really appreciate all those insights.

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By: Lola

Lola — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:04:37 +0000

Our dog went crazy, killed them all, and (yes) stacked them in a pile for us to see.

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By: terrin

terrin — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:00:34 +0000

I raised chickens on a standard suburban lot on Mercer Island, outside of Seattle, for many years. We gave them the run of the yard which they were able to demoslsh in about three months. I loved the whole operation and chickens are more interesting than you might expect. Problems are: care is needed with the feed as rats are bound to show up; you may need to clip your chickens’ wings so they don’t fly over to the less-agrarian neighbors’ decks; few jurisdictions allow roosters so you need a plan when your “sexed” chick turns out to be a he and not a hen; chickens need to be treated regularly for mites; raccoons and coyotes can be a problem; your winters may not be mild enough for the portable “coop” which you show. Finally, not all your friends and neighbors will trust real eggs and be prepared for many questions from people who do not understand that females produce eggs without the help of males.

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By: Carlo Alcos

Carlo Alcos — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:35:43 +0000

Do tell. Oh please, do tell.

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By: Carlo Alcos

Carlo Alcos — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:35:05 +0000

Kind of gives new meaning to Tweet hey? Yes! I was hoping no one had used that yet. Although I did enjoy Dave and Deb’s “wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be” (have I told you I’m a sucker for a good pun?).

That’s a cool idea. We have a dream. And that dream is to one day have some land to have a few farm animals. And yes, chickens will be on that land.

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By: Lola

Lola — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 23:56:16 +0000

Haaaa.Brings back some fun memories. We also raised a couple chickens back in Nigeria…until the unfortunate dog incident.

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