So I'm curious, are "chicken people" birds of a feather, or are we various? What are your passions o

[NikkiBoyce 2012]

I homeschool and working to not so much as living off the grid, but providing as much as my own food and supplies as I can. I make my own soaps, lotions, toothpaste, cleaning supplies, etc.. I sew, am crafty, and I can every year. We bought a rural home with small acreage to add chickens. I am wondering if most other people here on BYC do pretty much the same thing, or are there others who.. I dunno.. like live in studio apts in a big city and keep a hen as a pet who makes them breakfast?

 

[Baymule]

I live on a small lot in the middle of a small town. I have a garden in the front yard and a chicken coop in the back yard. I was given figs and pears this year and made preserves from the figs and canned the pears in light syrup. I freeze and can the excess from the garden. I sell enough eggs to cover feed costs for the hens. I bought a straight run batch of chicks and butchered the roosters. I have 7 old hens to butcher and did 2 of them this morning. We are seasonal eaters in that we eat what is ready in the garden now. I buy okra and peas to put in the freezer.

I bought a Excalibur dehydrator and I love it. Dehydrating saves a lot of room. I bought a Family Grain Mill and make flour and corn meal. I bought the wheat and grew the corn. I make bread, but still buy bread too. I cook from scratch and try to stay away from processed foods.

My kids are grown, so I don't home school LOL. I don't make soap, I buy Dove soap. I can't use store bought cleaners, but mix vinegar and water. I have a chemical sensitivity so can't use any thing scented or strong cleaners.

In answer to your wonderings, I think there are people here that are doing what they can to take better care of their families.

 

[JetR]

I grew up in the country on a small farm, but current live in the city of Las Vegas and now have 2 hens.

I am teaching myself to crochet and sew. Married with no kids. We are planning to save up to move back to my homestate and live on land in Washington. We would prefer to live "off the grid" but at the moment it is not the best option. We do what we can in terms of gardening and such.

 

[TXchickmum]

I have been married for 23 years this coming January. -have two (brilliant, unconventional, and eccentric) children, 15 and 20. -retired from the "formal" workplace upon the birth of my first child. -preferred a very traditional lifestyle.

-reside in the 'burbs of North Texas and keep a small flock of ten hens in the (back) yard. -too, have a vegetable garden and grow blueberries and blackberries. -love flower and herb gardening, as well! Most all of our meals are prepared at home. -prefer that the family (and hens) consume organic, non-processed foods.

The hubby and I hope to retire to Colorado, as this is our favorite "home away from home". -love nature, wildlife, and hiking in the Rocky Mountains!

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

I got chickens when I was about 12 and participated in 4-H with them. I did quite a bit of raising and breeding and then after 4-H I was a leader for my poultry club with my mom. I didn't do as much breeding, but still kept a laying flock. Throughout college, my parents kept a small flock. When I graduated, I increased the number of my flock to about 30 and my dad and I built a new coop. Then I got accepted to vet school and had to leave them behind again

. Right now I'm studying to be an avian vet, with a potential interest in poultry vet med. Hopefully, someday I will be able to have some chickens again! They are really quite relaxing to be around!

 

[farmgirlroots]

My family (we have two boys ages 3 and 6) live on a small plot smack dab in the middle of Oregon's Capitol city. Both my husband and I grew up on 10 acres that we had the run of. My childhood was spent on a family farm complete with chickens. My husbands childhood was not spent tending animals as they had none, but just running around creating adventure. We both plan to move back to his childhood home when his parents can no longer handle it, which I anticipate will be within the next 5 years or less. Until then, we do what we can to supply a lot of our food, or at least seek out safe suppliers that treat their animals well. I also believe it is important our kids understand where their food comes from. Our 5 chickens allow a sneak peek into that. The kids help out in our garden during harvesting time, etc. They understand a beef cow raised by their grandparents or family friends that we purchase every year is raised for our food. Eventually we would like to raise our own beef, meat birds, and pork when that move to the acreage happens, but until then we are plugging right along with our little flock of chickens. The 5 layers we have are absolutely pets to my kids, but we have had many conversations about having meat birds and how those would be food and not pets. I'd love to have a full fledged mostly self sustaining farm in the future but I'm learning to introduce such ideas slowly to my hubby. Not having lived on a true farm he is hesitant to dive in, but I know he'll get there. For me, it would be like things coming full circle.

 

[Tiller]

I live out in the country, we own about an acre and a half, and lease a few more (I'd love to end up owning 10 or so acres someday). We live the country life, gardening, canning, preserving, butchering our own farm animals, hunting, fishing etc, camping, etc. My little acre and a half holds fruit trees a large garden a 1/2 acre pasture, a few sheds, a stream, and our tiny house. We're crafty, my wife can sew well, cook well, and is a proud stay at home mom of our daughter. We both work hard to provide for our daughter and family in our own ways. But we cover at least 80% of our food intake with home grown, butchered or harvested food.
My real passion right now is the great outdoors, whether its walking in the woods, working with animals or whatever, as long as I'm outside I enjoy it. My pipe dream, what I'd be ultimately passionate about is being able to run a self sufficient small farm someday even if it would be after I retire from working in 25+ years I'd be happy with it.

 

[Peaches Lee]

I am the fourth generation to own the family farm. I love the farm life. I try hard to eat my own food/healthy food, but sometimes, especially at work, that can be difficult. My chickens are my pets and I love to use their eggs for baking (can't wait for Christmas cookie time!), I have 50+. I have horses, and someday hope to board horses for others (equines are my strong point) I would love some mini cows for milk, and to do a deal with my hay supplier for beef. Anyway, that's my story very condensed.

 

[akelley]

My husband and I have been married three years, and have been working hard to simplify our lives. We've gone from living in the 'burbs, to renting an acre outside of our small (ish) town. DH hunts and I am just starting our dual purpose backyard flock. We're looking into meat rabbits, and DH has promised to build me a few raised beds this winter. When we have kids I will homeschool.

I do enjoy shopping, and some "citified" pursuits, but if I had to choose city-living or going completely "off-grid", I'd choose a self-sustainable lifestyle every time.

 

[HRHDi]

My husband and I have been married for 23 years. We have 3 grown children - 26, 24 & 20 - and one adorable grandson - 15 months. We are recent empty nesters and in 3 weeks will be leaving the Dallas, TX area after 19 years for our very own 10 acres just outside Burlington, VT. We hope to be as self-sufficient as possible with chickens and rabbits and seasonal hunting. I've tried gardening and found that I really hate it, so the plan is to buy farm fresh produce or barter for it so I do the canning. I was basically raised on my grandparents' farm. I didn't live with them, but we lived in the same little bitty town in Montana so I spent probably half my growning up years on it.

My husband hunts, fishes and makes as many of the things he needs for that as he can. I can sew, knit, crochet, needle-felt, tat, can, bake and cook. I tease that I'm going to clear some of our wooded area and raise alpaca so I can harvest and spin the fibers. I'd love to learn to spin and weave, but we need to get our little place set up first. Our land reportedly has sugar maples and berries as well as an abundance of wildlife.

I can't wait to get there and start all of this. I know it's going to take work and we have a lot of learning to do, but this is something we've wanted to do for years.