Official BYC Poll: Why Do You Have Chickens?

[It was the bantam]

One of the main reasons I have chickens is that they are really interesting birds.Each one has a personality all of its own and it's very enjoyable to watch them interact with each other.No two birds are alike.I had one hen that used to come in the house and sit up on a chair and at the same time had one rooster that would murder you if you even came near his girls.Anyone who has space should have chickens in my opinion.The eggs are just an added bonus on top if the joy they bring.

 

[BlackArtCreations]

I have a major love for genetics and it's like Christmas watching them hatch and grow!!

 

[ThreeWillows]

Besides keeping chickens for eggs, I keep two pure breeds of heritage dual purpose large fowl. Part of the reason is love for the breeds.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Chickens are so versatile and have so many uses, don't they? I'd had chickens years ago in another state, so when I moved to SE MO and learned that ticks are a fact of life here, I determined that chickens were a necessity! Eggs were a happy bonus, of course. We experimented with a couple different breeds to add color to the egg basket and determine which are least attractive to predators (coyotes picked off the white and buff birds pretty quickly). We love our EEs; this year we added some BA, a dual-purpose, to put a little meat in the freezer as well. But more than anything, I agree with folks who say what good therapy they are, especially now. They're such nice people! Chickens just make a place feel like home.

 

[Mom 2em All]

because Im an adult and I can do what I want..

 

[Sapphire Sebright]

because Im an adult and I can do what I want..

Yep, that works! And that flight of fancy will also be useful to you!
Unlike some other flights of fancy.
(Who needs a sportscar? I'm fine with a functioning car that has a radio, CD player, and air conditioning. I like square cars, too -- I think that they look better than the sleek ones...).
(Oh, and it'd better have enough trunk space space for my groceries!).

 

[Avian Allie]

Rooster crowing helps me sleep? Why isn't that on the list? Chicken vocalization really tells me so much about my local environment.

Who here hasn't run out of the house in their undies at 3AM because the chicken told them to do it?

I can sleep through anything, but if my one duck quacks you better believe I’m up and out there at 3 AM!

 

[AquaDuck]

I have a major love for genetics and it's like Christmas watching them hatch and grow!!

Oh yes, me too! Love putting together parent pairs and see how the offspring turn out, both physically and behaviorally. Luckily there's a huge market for both chickens and ducks where I live, so I'm able to hatch several batches a year, experimenting with different parents.

 

[CreveChris]

x2. I wouldn't keep them strictly to poop (boy that sounds weird, can you imagine saying "I have dogs because I like to bag their poop!") but it's a nice side effect for gardeners. My mother in law even comes to ask for buckets of poop.

I mainly got chickens because I had pet birds throughout childhood and teens, and I wanted to have pet birds again, but not in the house (hubby is mildly allergic to their dander). Figured it was easy to justify chickens because you get eggs out of it too, and they don't take up the space that something like a herd of emus would. Hubby was agreeable at first but not enthusiastic... skip ahead 4 years, and he was the one pestering me to consider getting more chicks!

Yes! I knowhow to raise pet birds from previous love bird and parakeets, and biosecurity from raising butterflies and maintaining native habitat, so on the farm side of our property, chicken tractors are a good fit.

Chickens make Fertilizer, mow the side yard, and produce eggs.

Also, growing and showing a heritage breed can lead to occasional live sales. I don't think Crèvecœurs are numerous enough to sell as meat birds yet. Perhaps when they recover from critically endangered, but I probably won't be into it as an important part of the farm.

Fun survey! Love reading the why's.

 

[CreveChris]

Pets, eggs, and sustainability.
We all know that this year has been rough. And my family? My family is always paranoid. Politics are a big reason, but I won't get into that. That's my dad's thing.

We decided to get chickens because we think supply chains are going to be severely damaged thanks to covid.
Which is already sort of true? Meat prices are going up. But our family needs protein if all goes down. And what's a great mobile source of protien?
(I know you're going to say a cow or a goat, but our backyard isn't that big, and I don't think our city would be very happy with us having a cow)
Eggs!
Most of our reason for getting chickens is a mobile self-sustainable food source. 5 chickens should supply enough eggs to feed our whole family at their peak years.
If we really end up needing to? We can put our chickens into the back of our car and hit the road with them. And they're perfectly capable animals- if everything goes poorly, they can eat grass and bugs and worms instead of feed in the absolute worst of situations.

I know when people think of an apocalypse, they think of zombies and guns.
My family thinks of chickens and mountains and farming.

Whatever happens, I'm happy we have them. They make us happy.

I love how your bug-out plan involves bringing the chickens! Our family bugs out to our place, so we have to be able to feed everyone like Christmas if that happens