Backyard Poultry – How To Raise Chickens

Learning how to raise backyard poultry is a relatively simple task. One you have a their coop and yard area set up, they don’t require a lot of maintenance to stay healthy and content.

The biggest responsibility with backyard poultry is making sure they are protected from predators. It is the only thing you don’t want to forget to do on a daily basis. In my case, I let my chickens out in the morning, and shut the door behind them at night (chickens will naturally make their way at dusk to roost, but sadly they won’t shut the coop door behind them). Even in an urban setting where you don’t expect a lot of predators, raccoons and sometimes can be a problem. And if that is too much, you don’t even have to let your backyard poultry out of their coop and run area – it’s just an option to give them more room to range freely.

The next biggest responsibility with backyard poultry is making sure they have water and food, and that you collect their eggs. Each chicken will lay about 5-6 eggs per week, so expect to collect them daily or every other day. I’ve gone several days and it was never an issue. If you have food and water containers they only need to be filled when they’re empty, which will probably be on a weekly basis. I also throw them a handful of chicken scratch as a treat every day, which just supplements their diet, but it’s more of a treat than a requirement.

Other responsibilities for backyard poultry include cleaning out the coop and providing a source of heat in the winter. The coop only needs to get cleaned every month or two, which is easy enough with a few shovel loads (which can be added to a compost or garden as fertilizer), and adding back a shovel or two of wood shavings or straw. And, as far as heat goes, I set a heat lamp up on a timer during the winter that not only keeps their water from freezing, but tricks the chickens into thinking the days are longer, which keeps them laying eggs all winter long (normally they would stop for a few months).

All in all, that is about all it takes to learn how to raise chickens. My chickens spend the better part of their days just pecking around the yard looking for things to eat, and don’t get into a lot of trouble (ok, sometimes they get into my garden and dig up plants…but I forgive them).

If you are looking for some fun, low maintenance pets that give back a little bit in the form of eggs, backyard poultry is something worth looking into.  More and more cities are allowing them, as it’s as easy as checking with your local zoning department.