Official BYC POLL: Chicken Keeping - Easier, same or harder than dogs/cats?

[Mrs. K]

The set up for chickens is pretty pricey.

And predators are very hard on mine. Refencing AGAIN.

 

[MIchickenlady]

I don't have cats, but I voted harder than keeping cats because we use sand in our coop and my cleaning method is to put on rubber gloves and go pick out the poops and feathers and put in a bucket-takes me 2 minutes daily,like cleaning a really big cat box, then checking feed, water...so it does take a little more effort, but its worth it...love when my girls run to see me

 

[Eggscoozme]

We have 1 mostly outside dog, a barn cat, and 44 chickens and 3 turkeys. The dog and cat are alot less time consuming. Our chickens/turkeys free range and get locked up at night. Work per week, we spend more time cleaning/feeding/watering the chickens than we do with our dog and cat combined. Using the deep litter has helped, and larger waterers/feeders, but still .....just saying. Additionally, I use the term "cleaning" loosely. Meaning, they don't live in a palace.

 

[bruceha2000]

I think easier than both dogs and cats. Set them up with auto waterers and an auto door on the coop and a feeder that can hold several days of feed and they are good to go if you don't happen to have time every now and then. Not so with dogs and cats. My cat routine (4 indoor cats) is:

• feed them every morning around 6:15, wet and dry food
• clean the 3 litter boxes
• top off the water
• repeat at night about 6:15
• wake up several times at night when DD2's cat (the ~ 1 Y/O) decides to wander through the house meowing plaintively

That doesn't count the glucose test and insulin shot morning and evening for the oldest cat. Sometimes I think that cat has no blood left in her ear, takes more than a couple of tries. The "process" takes 5 to 10 minutes.

Chickens:

• Wander down in the morning whenever and give them whatever kitchen scraps we have, toss them some BOSS, rake through the shavings in the coop.
• At night, toss them some scratch and collect the eggs.
• Winter does add a few mid day egg checks but I still spend less time total on the chickens than I do on the cats for either the morning or evening "chore", exclusive of the added insulin part.

 

[Beer can]

Chickens, easier, chickens, cheaper, sorta kinda
Cats, well they just do their own thing so not much bother.
With deep litter coops I don't scoop the poop, and on rare occasions that I do clean out it's fertilizer for the garden so $$ earned and gained. I have big waterer's, a 15gal and a 5 and 5, so not much water hauling. I could put in big self feeder also, have one, but I don't mind feeding them daily, have to gather the eggs anyway, EGGS! Dogs and cats don't lay eggs, do not provide meat, we love chicken, eggs and meat.
Not only are chickens easier, but they pay back more than just companionship.

 

[Chikkiepoo]

I live in suburbia and have a small flock in a fenced yard and with secure coop/run, a Labrador, a Cavalier spaniel, and an in/out cat. Definitely my chickens are easier than the others.

As folks have mentioned, with some preparation they can be left alone for days, they don't shed in the house, no litter box, no using furniture as a scratch pad, no hacking up a hairball on your bed, no barking at 2 a.m., no jumping on visitors, no baths or grooming bills, or hundreds in vet checkups for annual vaccines....shall I go on?

I collect their eggs and let them out to free range in the afternoon and they put themselves to bed at nightfall. I just have to latch their run. (Can't let them out more because of the Lab, who wants to "play" with them, so we split time.) I change their bedding about monthly and am making great compost. (Can't do that with dog doo!) I fill their food as needed and give fresh water. And of course treats like left over vegetables or fruit. Much lower maintenance.

But perhaps the most surprising thing is that I have grown as attached to the ladies as I am to the others. They follow me around, love to be petted and talked to, and do indeed come to my back door looking for me. My grandchildren adore them, carrying them around or just sitting and taking to them. Perhaps this is different with farm chickens or large flocks, but I can very much endorse backyard chickens if you live in a neighborhood but dream of having a little bit of country life!

 

[bruceha2000]

no hacking up a hairball on your bed,

Not to mention leaving partially eaten mice on the floor somewhere ... and the barfed up remains of the rest of it somewhere else!

 

[Ashria]

I think dogs are the hardest, they depend upon the owner for everything. Cats and chickens are a pretty close second in my opinion. They kind of take care of themselves and look to us for the basics! I love them all ~ I'm so confused, LOL!

 

[Aerliss]

I think chickens are much more work than a dog simply because caring for a dog doesn't feel like work to me. I haven't had a dog in years though. I'd love another one, but the rabbits would not approve...

I'm going to add that my house rabbits are way more work than any other animal I've ever cared for. Keep a chicken mentally stimulated; let it range for a couple of hours, throw some treats in the run. Keep a rabbit mentally stimulated; lots of toys, cardboard boxes, dig box, newspaper, food puzzles...

 

[swamphiker]

As someone who has all three right now (1 dog, 2 cats, and 7 chickens), the chickens are the easiest, but that is also because I have created a low-maintenance chicken setup for myself, including an automatic coop door and feeders/waterers that hold enough for at least a week. Raising chicks is definitely more labor intensive, but so are kittens or puppies. My chickens like to see me since they know I have treats, but they don't need me emotionally in the same way as dogs and (to a lesser extent) cats do.

Yes, if I had a larger flock, it would be more work, but so would more cats or dogs. I also view chickens mainly as livestock and pets secondarily. I enjoy their personalities and antics, but they go into the soup pot once they are no longer producing. I also don't bring my chickens to the vet, though I've done a good bit of home vet care for them when it makes sense.