Cost of keeping chickens

[Duck mommy 2019]

they cannot be fed on scraps. just like people, they need healthy food. would you feed your dog on just scraps? no, so don’t do it for chickens. they aren’t any less important.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

If someone wants to spend stupid money on toys and treats, then good for them but the chickens don't need it. And don't get me started on those who dress them up!

what’s wrong with dressing them up? mine love to get their harnesses and bandanas on and go for adventures

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

(How much do you guys give your ducks in feed per day? And how much for greens? I want to improve on this, just like the topic of the thread to have the best efficiency.)

my four usually go through about 2 bowls depending on the weather (they have food available whenever they want, but seem to eat more in the winter)

for greens i do one salad a day but around lunch so that they have already eaten some normal feed and don’t fill up on just salad

 

[CluckerFamily]

I love my chickens. They all know their names and respond to their names. If it every came to the point where I can't afford to feed them, I shouldn't buy any more.
I live in an area where vets are not for poultry. Poultry is livestock.
If my chickens are at that point where they are suffering and nothing can help, I can not let them suffer. I personally could never eat any of my chickens.
I also have house dogs, if they were sick or injured I would take them to the vet and if it would be necessary so that they don't suffer depending on the situation (cancer, etc.) the vet could take the necessary measures. Also in my area, you can not legally euthanize a dog unless you are a vet.
We also have a local Country Store that has very experienced livestock and pet employees. They are always one of my stops or a call away if the vet is too busy or no one is answering at the 24hour Vet Service.
For me personally, I am not a fan of doctors for myself. Many family members have gone to the local hospital, died a few days after being admitted, or turned away stating it was something minor, 2-3 more days they would've internally bleed to death if we didn't contact the Nun that was in charge of the staff. I haven't been to a doctor in about 20 years.

Everyone is in a different situation and different part of the country, how they provide shelter is up to them. Most chickens would be happy in the rafters of a shed as long as they were out of the elements.

 

[nao57]

I love my chickens. They all know their names and respond to their names. If it every came to the point where I can't afford to feed them, I shouldn't buy any more.
I live in an area where vets are not for poultry. Poultry is livestock.
If my chickens are at that point where they are suffering and nothing can help, I can not let them suffer. I personally could never eat any of my chickens.
I also have house dogs, if they were sick or injured I would take them to the vet and if it would be necessary so that they don't suffer depending on the situation (cancer, etc.) the vet could take the necessary measures. Also in my area, you can not legally euthanize a dog unless you are a vet.
We also have a local Country Store that has very experienced livestock and pet employees. They are always one of my stops or a call away if the vet is too busy or no one is answering at the 24hour Vet Service.
For me personally, I am not a fan of doctors for myself. Many family members have gone to the local hospital, died a few days after being admitted, or turned away stating it was something minor, 2-3 more days they would've internally bleed to death if we didn't contact the Nun that was in charge of the staff. I haven't been to a doctor in about 20 years.

Everyone is in a different situation and different part of the country, how they provide shelter is up to them. Most chickens would be happy in the rafters of a shed as long as they were out of the elements.

I've had trouble with doctors like that also.

A lot of them use it as a shell game to do only things they want to treat to build up a money farm. I have seen this also, where in waiting rooms I saw 5 people go ahead of me and then they come out and are ll being treated and sold the same thing, sold medical devices that won't help.

And a law that says only vets can euthanize livestock is obviously been paid for to get through legislation by vets themselves.

In my state, one year there was a law that was being sold to go through legislature where the existing accountants were doing some weird crazy law to make it so only they could be bean counters and were trying to cut off the next generation of bean counters.

Stuff like this really happens.

Money farm...basically.

Their behavior also shows how bias they are.

 

[Ihavesomechickens]

Here are my two cents:

If you can’t afford a decent shelter, some sort of food, and water for your chickens, you shouldn’t have them. Shelter doesn’t need to be fancy, it could just be a roofed area they could go if the weather got too bad. They NEED some sort of food. Whether that be chicken feed, scraps, or forage, they need SOMETHING to sustain themselves. And they need water, preferably clean and from a well, or a tap, or something like that. Those are the three essentials in my book. If you can’t give your chickens that, you shouldn’t have them. End of story.

I’m not rich, about 4K a month to pay for bills, my dog, me, and my now eight chickens. That may be rich to some, but around here that is basically on the brink of poverty. I am lucky enough to have a very kind father who sends me a little cash every once in a while, if I really need it. Never more than $100 though, he makes sure I am working for most of my income. I’m also in a lot of debt, so I have to work on paying all that off too. But, I still buy good quality feed for my chickens, I still have a large coop and run for them ( since free ranging around here is very risky), and if need be I’ll take them to the vet. I’m lucky enough, and I mean incredibly lucky, to have not one, not two, but THREE exotic/poultry vets less than half an hour from me. I can pick and choose if I really want to, it’s amazing, and they are all relatively cheap. I haven’t had to take a chicken to the vet yet, but I will. Of course, not everyone can/ wants to take a chicken to the vet, and that’s fine. My chickens are pets, and I know many people’s aren’t.

But, EVERYONE needs to give their chickens shelter, food, and water, or else it is literal animal abuse. It doesn’t have to be fancy, just something to keep them alive and not suffering. If you can’t/won’t buy medicine for your chickens, at least cull the sick ones if it gets bad. And, very important, GIVE YOUR BIRDS A ROOST PEOPLE. Mine was free, just a stick from my backyard. I bet everyone can find something that could work as a roost, for little to no money whatsoever.

So yes, there are minimums you have to meet if you are raising chickens, but they aren’t very fancy nor expensive. An old tarp over some buckets would work as a shelter, free ranging them could work as food, and a creek could work as water. If you can’t give your chickens that, DONT HAVE CHICKENS. End of story.

 

[bluecattlemutt]

I certainly can understand your feelings, you obviously view your chickens as pets and part of your family. Not everyone views them this way. While I do believe it's our responsibility to ensure the animals in our care are free from pain and suffering, I don't think taking them to the Vet is the right answer for everyone. However I don't believe in leaving an animal to suffer, if I am able to heal a chicken on my own, then very well. If I can't, I will take that chickens life. I view this as compassion, you may not agree, and that's okay. If we all agreed the world would be a boring place, but please try to be understanding of others. Vets are expensive, some parts of the country more so then others, I currently reside in Maryland. My Vet here cost $75 just to walk into the office, that's before any tests or medication. I've never walked out of the Vet office for less then $100. That's expensive, I choose to spend this money on my dogs but not my chickens. Does that mean I shouldn't own chickens? I think it's a very privaliged thing to say that I can't. It implies only those that make a certain amount of money should be allowed to own them. I disagree.

 

[Shadrach]

I find it strange how people can so easily differentiate between the care deserved for a dog and a chicken. A chicken here is worth more than most dogs. Dogs don't lay eggs for a start.
I take both to a vet if needed, but then a vet visit here is very cheap compared to the prices mentioned above.
One of the reasons people kept chickens long before the backyard craze became popular is they were, given the right breed and provenance, pretty much self sufficient.
People didn't build thousands of dollars worth of coops and often the chickens ate what was left after the humans had taken their 'share' and thrived on it. Here in the rural areas chickens live in old out houses, in the open third floors used for crop storage and even in empty rooms in the old style farm houses and in the trees.
I can't help thinking the backyard chicken keeping model commonly seen on this site is a bit of a nonsense. It seems an extraordinarily expensive way of keeping what should be, and is in other parts of the world, an extremely hardy and self sufficient fowl. They reproduce without any assistance given the opportunity and this correctly managed will provide you with flock replacements and a small quantity of meat.
Perhaps part of the problem is the quantities of eggs and meat demanded by some. Here, not quite so much now but not that long ago, meat once or twice a week was considered adequate.
It's my belief that a great deal of the advantages of chicken keeping, both for the fowl and the human have been undermined by the backyard movement model often seen on these forums.
There is now a vast group of commercial 'enterprises' from chicken feed to coops, from hatcheries to intensive barns, that will in the long run do irreversible harm and negate everything that was so appealing about the humble chicken.

 

[LilRedmamma]

I agree with you. We'll get flamed together.
Chickens do not have to be expensive. They don't know "the Jones" and aren't worried about "keeping up with the Jones'es".
My coop is not the best, my feeders and waterers are repurposed and yes old. They work. Which is better a $100 feeder or a 5 yr old butter bowl? To the chicken it doesn't matter-as long as it has food in it. The only time I would stress on something "good" is security. Make sure the coop/run/box you got the birds in-is secure and safe. Hardware cloth-don't go cheap here-but there are cheaper options. Friends, friends of friends-ask around-I bet someone has extra. I am looking for a 4ft x 4ft piece of hardware cloth to cover a window. Someone will know of it, or have an alternate idea.

I hear ya! I’ll post pics soon but my entire coop is out of recycled stuff. E.g. I screwed on a discarded oven rack as a window screen. It kept my ‘babies’ safe from the raccoons we trapped that had torn stuff up in the shed!
Anyway, vet TV shows lead folks to believe they all do it, normally I can’t see taking a chicken to an office and now, with Covid19, they don’t even open the office for my dog. Sooo I look up a lot online to know what they really need for the best I can provide. And some folks don’t be concerned about culling the flock than medicine.

 

[LilRedmamma]

@Chicalina, you may be biased towards your feelings about chickens, so what bothers you stands out...

....when something is top of mind, we humans tend to notice that thing more.

....try reading some of the positive posts to balance this out. Don’t focus on the feeding your flock, or disease forum....instead, read “stories of my flock” or similar.

vets are few and far between for chickens. It would be cost prohibitive for the vast majority to use, not to mention logistically difficult when the nearest avian vet might be 2+ hours away, if one is even within driving distance.

Chickens are first, and foremost, livestock. They provide food for humans. They are prey animals and, generally, are not cuddly pets for the vast majority of keeps (even if we have a favorite one or two).

I wondered why the frustration, but these past months that’s been an overwhelming thing for everyone.🌦