Why do you guys choose to have backyard chickens?

Originally I got chickens to save money on eggs.

Now I have a greater respect of how efficient egg farmers are. It is a lot of work and I can't come close to their cost of doing business. . . . . and some of them are doing such with 5 birds in a cage. I'm not going to pack mine like that and it will cost me more.

I'm now looking for a better reason to raise chickens.

Best I got now is that sometimes they are just stupid funny to watch.

(Oh, my eggs seem to be much higher quality and I have no concerns about salmonella in runny (or raw) eggs.)

Other than the initial $400 investment to build our coop, the eggs I sell pay for the feed/bedding/etc.. so the eggs we eat are "free". So for me it's a cost-savings (I don't put a value on the time I spend, since I have to be around to take care of our kids) as well as I KNOW what my chickens do and don't eat.

Watching a kiddo haul around a fluffy peeping chicken is another benefit. As well as if I ever get lonely, all I have to do is open the shed we have a bag of cracked corn in and BOOM and instantly stampeded with lots of "friends"!

Ive just always liked them. Walk into a coop at night and listen to the sounds of content birds. Its almost zen. I set up a picnic table by the run so I can watch thier antics. When sping come around and I start preparing the garden, they are there helping and snagging any bugs I stir up. For me its not about money. Its about enjoyment of life. They give me just one more thing to look foward to during each day.

We couldn't resist the idea of having large birds as companions who were capable of, not only providing companionship but food, irresistible! Unless you can keep 30+ birds, you're almost never going to turn any kind of a profit....or even break even when you account for the start-up costs. So unless you're planning for a business, the only reason to do it was because you loved it.

I believe there is a large disconnect in our society between our food's source and our plates. People think eggs come from the store in little cartons. Meat comes in nice little inoffensive packages. I don't want my children to grow up not knowing where their food comes from.
We are not into sustainable living, nor are we 'homesteaders', we are city folk who like fresh eggs and like garden fresh produce. That is all.
The cost is not an issue. I figure the cost is just part of having a pet. I feed my cats and dogs, and don't calculate how much each cuddle costs me.

I love my chickens! Like everyone has said, they have their own, unique personalities, and like people, some are mean, some are funny, some are friendly, and some are crazy, My oldest grand-daughter (16) is fascinated by them and will spend hours 'hangin' with her peeps' when she's here. As for dogs, we own 9 and have only had real trouble out of one of them. If a dog kills a chicken, all is not lost, as they CAN be broken of this behavior, although the method I have used and seen as most effective, is not for the faint of heart or the squeamish. This same dog had left the chickens alone, but then went after the 1/2 grown ducks and killed 5. She is now chained, and sporting a wired-on dead duck collar. Some dogs take a bit more convincing that the birds are part of his or her pack, but once convinced, they will protect them. Financial Cost v. Gain is not really why most go into keeping fowl, although if one free-ranges, and is somewhat handy, these costs can certainly be mitigated. We built a very nice coop with 7 nest boxes (danged old biddies prefer just 2 of them!) with 2 week-ends of work and less than $200. Our cost was only about $75, but that's because we already had a good deal of the material. I am currently sitting here typing this with a 12 hour old peep under my shirt that we hatched using an electric frying pan, a heating pad, and a bio-therm (a restaurant thermometer). No money can take away the joy and satisfaction of watching a pip come struggling out of a shell! I grew up on a farm and can't believe I went as long as I did WITHOUT having chickens!

Completely Flocked! and thanks for posting and welcome back to flock raising.

I keep Backyard chickens because I cant keep them in the front yard

kizanne said:

Why I keep chickens...

Click to expand...

x2 My reasons are the same, and I enjoy husbandry as a hobby. I eat gourmet eggs, watch beautiful birds graze in my yard, produce my own protein in a humane and healthy manner, and avoid supporting industries and philosophies which are incongruent with my ethics and worldview.

I'm new to keeping chickens but since I've had them they're some of the best pets I've ever owned. From cute fuzzy butts in the brooder to my 7 week old pullets I've been amazed, impressed and entertained!
Today my Barred Rock came right up to me and "asked" me to pet her- amazing feeling!
I wont get eggs for awhile yet but so far I've completely fallen in love with these chickens! I only have 2 pullets in the coop now and 2 chicks in the brooder. That's all we can have as we live in the city. But after adding in the fact we will have fresh eggs - up to 4 daily- soon they're a pet that gives back! That's more than my dogs do!
So all in all I think you have to be somewhat of an animal lover to own chickens.
It's not just for eggs, it's because you really like them!