Keeping Chickens In The Back Garden - Top 3 Reasons for Raising Backyard Chickens

Free-range chickens unwittingly perform various tasks in a small-farm setting. They feed on pests, insects and food scraps; loosen up the soil and pull out weeds by scratching; making the soil fertile and of course laying eggs. Keeping chickens in the back garden however may pose some trouble than benefits. Their habitual scratching could destroy your young plants and certainly you really don't need fertilizing your concrete or brick pavement, if there is any. If you really want to keep chickens in your back garden for whatever reason, keep them in a confined space. So what is the purpose of keeping chickens in the back garden anyway? There are several, depending on the intended use by the owner. This would also dictate on what kind of chicken breed you will buy and the types of holding places you will construct for this wonderful enterprise of chicken raising. Here are the top reasons for keeping chickens in the back garden:

1) As pets Chickens as pets is not as much a popular idea as chicken as food. But many are getting the hang of it because really, chicken are engaging, easy to train, and fun loving animals with personality, that is if you look at them from a different perspective other than looking forward to them as something to eat. They could be loyal companions and would even rest on your lap if given the proper training and attention. For this you wouldn't mind them roaming freely in your garden. But if you happen to live in a predator-infested area, you have to a make a closed and guarded chicken-run or holding pen for your pet chickens. Examples of ideal chicken breeds for pets include the Jersey Giant, Bhrama, and Bantams.



2) For meat There are people who are fed up on buying those bland, cage-raised dressed chicken from the supermarkets so they go about doing the task of keeping chickens in the back garden for personal consumption themselves. With this, they can ensure the quality of life and ultimately, the quality of meat their homegrown chicken will have. You could well give this a try, that is, if you will find ways of humanely killing your chicks without shedding a tear or two.

3) For eggs Finally, eggs! This is the staple of the chicken business and you might as well cash in with this multi-million industry, although on a small-scale level - well, smaller than that. Whether you want to produce eggs for personal consumption or for profit, you should pay more attention to the living conditions of your laying hens and the construction of you chicken coop that would provide the best conditions for laying eggs. The internet is a great resource for information about keeping chickens in the back garden for egg production so it would hurt if you click that mouse a few times if you're really interested. Looking for more tips on keeping chickens in the back garden? Discover everything you need to know and how easy it is to raise your own chicken. Separate yourself from the usual chicken owners and avoid costly mistakes. Go to: How To Raise Chickens





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Keeping Chickens as Pets

Keeping chickens is becoming increasingly popular, and is one of the UK's fastest growing profitable hobbies. Apart from making great pets, chickens pay for themselves with eggs. So why not take a step towards being more self sufficient and start keeping chickens in your garden?

Chickens are easy to look after, and they only need cleaning out once every couple of weeks. They will find most of their own food in your garden as they eat mostly grass and insects. Although they will also need some corn or layers mash once a day, as well as a supply of fresh water.



They make lovely pets and can quickly become very tame. A good tip is to whistle every time you feed them, then when you whistle your chickens will coming running down the garden to see you!

Your average hen will produce about 280 eggs per year, which means you will probably have some left over to give to friends and neighbors in return for looking after them when you are away!

Hen houses are easy to come by and they don't have to look bad in your garden. There are a few which are painted and look very attractive. Some even have plastic floors which makes your life even easier. I would avoid ones which are made from just plastic though, they can get bad condensation inside. My chicken coop is made by Oakdene Coops, Chicken coop

Chickens are also great with children as they don't try to escape like most pets might! Also collecting the eggs in the morning is very rewarding and exciting for children and adults alike!

Chickens come in many many different breeds, there are 100's to choose from! They vary greatly in size, colour, character and egg production. Hybrid hens lay the most eggs (300+ per year). Other breeds such as the light sussex lay a similar amount of eggs but are arguably more attractive.

Bantams are another option, they are smaller than normal chickens, and thus require less space to keep. This is quite an advantage for people with less space in their gardens. Also, the eggs they lay aren't all that much smaller when compared to normal hens.

Some chickens are breed purely for elegance and good looks! Silkies are a good example of this, they have a lot of plumage on there heads which gives them a very amusing look!





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