how easy is it to keep chickens as pets?

Question

i would like to have some chickens in my garden but worried about how to look after them

Answer 1

Chickens still require certain things like any other pets. They need a spacious area to roam in during the day, secure dry housing which is also vermin proof. They need worming every 4 months, and louse treatment several times a year. You need to check the coop daily in summer for redmite and take action agauinst them right away or you will start to lose chickens. You need to provide proper food (not just chuck a handful of corn once a day) and clean water and also ensure that you keep the numbers of rats down. Chickens attract rats and you cannot use traps with chickens about, you need to use poison inside a bait box.
Chickens are no harder nor easier than any other pet to keep. They get sick like any other animal and you need to get them to a vet like any other animals.
If you want an easy pet to keep, get some stick insects or goldfish.
p.s. never ever use hay for them as it carried mites and mould spores, and never ever use round broomsticks to perch on as it causes bumblefoot.

Answer 2

Chickens are fairly easy to maintain birds.

They need an elevated roost and an indoor area that's bedded down with straw (nesting boxes). The indoor area can be as simple as an overly large dog house with boxes and small roosts for the birds. You need it to be large enough so that you can easily enter to clean/replace the straw every few months and collect the eggs.

There should also be a place in the indoor enclosure to keep food and water. Hanging feeders is a good way to keep the birds from tipping them over.

You'll want to have mostly hens and only one rooster. Roosters can be very aggressive, so I recommend a breed like the Buff Orphinton (spelled wrong); the BO rooster that I had was harmless, almost wimpy. Bantam birds also generally less aggressive than their full sized cousins.

You should find a local store like Tractor Supply and pick up some books about keeping chickens.

Just a warning, the chicken manure does attract a LOT of flies and stinks. Chickens will also wander anywhere that they want to, but will usually stick together in a flock.

Answer 3

I have to say that I agree with Mr. McCarthy (10th answer). He is obviously very knowledgable about chickens.
I love chickens and at the moment I have two. One is a Silkie and the other is a Silkie cross. I got them when they were just a few days old and pay attention to them daily. They come running when they hear my voice and just love the good food I bring them (I feed them very well and yes, pellets are best!).
Because we live in Northern Canada, I have built a large cage that we keep in the basement until spring and it is warm enough for them to roam the garden. We will also have a coop to keep them safe and dry at night.
I personally think chickens are a beautiful addition to any family. They are sweet (mostly) and oh so beautiful!
You do however have to care for them. They "need" just any other creature we humans bring into our lives and we must be responsible.
We had a Rooster that my husband, my youngest son and I loved very much but out two older kids found his loud crowing a bit annoying. When he met his death however...our neighbours all came to see what happened to him. They missed that ****-a-doodle-do throughout the day.
Have chickens and enjoy!!!
All of mine have been the smaller Bantams...if that makes a differance???

Answer 4

Chicken are good as pet especially if you're thinking about your garden. Get the smaller breed (about 2 or depending how big is your garden) and only female. If you have to get a male (for company purposes) ask seller one that doesn't cockadodoolllll in the morning. 2 female, 1 male. They eat most live garden pest, (dropping is good fertilizer, chickens are good insecticide replacement, fresh eggs soon too) and there's also chicken feed at most pet store. (splint corn, sorghum and other ingredients)

Answer 5

Chickens are scavengers. If you put them in a garden, you wont get much in the produce. They eat anything that moves, is shiny, or a pretty color. Also, roosters are annoyingly loud, and chickens can really stink up an area quick! There are better pets.

Answer 6

I've had chickens for years, and they do just fine in my yard. Plenty of water, food, don't have to worry about wet food waste with them. I also have a Chicken coop that is raised and easy to clean, keeps them warm in the winter. Besides watching them, eggs are a good benefit. I did have one chicken that acted like my dogs, always wanted her head scratched.

Answer 7

Its easy peasy! Get yourself a nice run to put them in overnight (safe from foxes) and then enclose the run in chicken wire so as you can let them have natural light and a bit of a roam in the daytime. Remove the eggs once a day, best at night when your putting the chickens to bed. Feed them on scraps or proper chicken feed. If you get a cockeral, make sure you keep him somewhere where he can't stretch his neck, this will prevent him from going COCKADOODLEDOOOOOOO!!! in the early hours of the morning. They do that at any time of the day though but its mre acceptable to neighburs during 'awake' hours LOL.
Good luck, I hope this helps. Oh yes, make sure you keep them clean to avoid rats.

Answer 8

We have 12 hens and they are lovely. We raised our coop up high as seen in Hugh FW's river cottage cookbook, that way you do not need to shut them in every night to keep the foxes at bay, and they can come out as soon as it is light.

Chickens have lots of personality and we enjoy watching them. Keep the coop dry and ensure they have water and a bit of food - layers pellets are best and a sack is only about £6. Good luck.

Answer 9

I kept up to 14 hens in a coop and most of the time things were fine but I stopped when rats started to burrow under. I live next to allotments and they must live there and were coming for food. But you're never too far from a rat!

Answer 10

My girlfriend and i have 5 hens and a rooster. They constantly need to be checked that they have enough food, enough water, check their wings are clipped, rooster's spurs are clipped, pen needs constantly cleaning out or it's absolutely appaling smell that wafts for about 100 feet! They need checking for bugs, worms etc, i had to build a pen from scratch which took ages and they try and peck through!! I won't go on anymore, just bear in mind they're not easy animals to domesticate! Choose a Cat, Dog or Hamster instead!!