City Chickens - Backyard wear and tear

[Glenn]

I am trying to convince my wife to get chickens. Her concern is a filthy backyard. Can anyone send me pictures of chickens in typical suburban backyard.

 

[HorseFeathers]

Here ya go!

We usually have little 2' flimsy fences around the shrubs. They have a spot for dust bathing under a bush with trailing branches (over to the right, by the compost bin) and no one can see it. It's very nice and our yard doesn't get scratched up. Tip: Spraying the poops into the ground using a hose gets rid of it quick. The coop is to the left.

 

[coffeemama]

Do they need to be free ranged in the yard all of the time? I let my girls out about half the days of the week, and they have a nice big run for the other days. This cuts down on poop in the yard. Is her concern poop or damage to plants?

 

[Dixiedoodle]

I think a lot would be determined by how large your lot it and how many chickens you plan on having!

Envirogirl should do a commerical PRO chickens!! Dixie

 

[ChickenToes]

If she's worried about poo everywhere, you can just spray it with a hose until it's gone. That's what my neighbor does and it works pretty well.

 

[newchickenfamily]

We have 3 hens that free range. NOBODY would ever know that we kept chickens in our professionally landscaped suburban backyard, except that you can see our coop from inside the house (it's a bit bigger than a dog house).

The only thing is the chicken poop on the patio. They like to hang out at our back door and on the patio. I go out 2-3x a week and sweep/hose down the patio.

DH was NOT in favor of getting chickens because he thought they would ruin our yard. NOT SO. Our Beagle does way more damage than the girls.

 

[Glenn]

Thank you, all. It is as I would have guessed, a none issue. and that a dog is far worse.

Cheers,

 

[dangerouschicken]

The poo is also the best fertilizer in the world. Who can not love a beautiful, all natural yard? Just rotate them so there are no bald spots in the grass.

 

[Rhett&SarahsMom]

Oh yes, dogs are far harder on grass than a chicken, or 6.

Granted mine are all in a run for their safety. BUt our dog, our cats, and the neighbors cats are awful. And the pool. I have a big round patch of dirt in the middle of the yard. Chickens are harmless compared to the rest of it

 

[banter]

Here is my "messy pic" but these are slob geese-the chickens will scratch a little. We have 4 acres, so we don't care if some is not perfect. The grubs do more damage! That is the missing grass.