Let’s see, we’ve talked about the advantage these days of having pet chickens, and I also talked about space and environmental considerations. Now let’s talk about some of the more important aspects of keeping and caring for pet chickens.
The number one concern that I am always asked about by folks who want pet chickens is “What should I do for a coop?” or “How do I build a chicken coop?” There are a lot of opinions on this and here’s mine. You want a coop with plenty of room for the chickens to nest, move around and scratch. I prefer to put it under a tree if possible for shade. You should be able to clean it without too much effort, and it should be solid and secure from predators.
For plans, I recommend my friends visit Bill Keene’s page. He knows chickens and he knows how to build any kind of coop you could possibly need. His material is a must read as far as I’m concerned – before you do anything else. Yes, there are other places where you can find other plans but Bill Keene’s work is number one in my view.
Normally you buy your chicks from a feed store or co-op. Suppliers are having a hard time meeting demand right now so you might have to wait a week or two to get your chicks. Most suppliers are more than happy to answer any questions you might have.
Chickens like grain, and they eat a lot of it. You get your grain from the feed store typically in 10 to 20 pound bags. Just ask for chicken feed, and yes it is mostly corn.
Your chicks of course will need a bag of “scratch” which is nothing more than finely ground corn and grain. They have to grow a little bit before they can eat whole grains.
I have always advised not to try to hold your chickens until they are very familiar with you. Especially the larger hens. They’ll let you hold them, but that doesn’t mean they like it, and too much handling can cause problems.
And my final note is to allow your poultry some space outside of the coop for foraging. They like to scratch around and look for bugs. I find pet chickens that spend all their time inside the coop are just not as vibrant as those that are allowed more freedom. It’s easy enough to fence off a portion of your yard to accomplish this, and you’re pet chickens will thank you by laying better eggs!
