The cons of chickens

[Jballs918]

Thank you all for the responses. Alot of good information. I have a screened in sun porch so I don't have to worry about patio items. We do have some flower beds in the back but its not an issue if they get into them. I will have to measure the backyard. I'm thinking it is atleast 50x50. but I will get some measurements. My wife and I are thinking alot as it seems that there are alot of issues that can be taken care of by some proper planning and learning from others

 

[Jballs918]

I have no HOA and hens are allowed in city limits. I have to have a permit and we get inspected once a year by the city we live in.

 

[Nardo]

OK so I am learning about chickens and it seems that there is alot of information out there. As I have learned more and getting excited about doing this, I have mentioned it to people and seemed to have gotten alot of negative responses about having chickens. I guess I have a few questions about the cons of chickens. Let me give you a little information and maybe you guys can shed some light on this. I have a rather large back yard that has a wooden privacy fence. We are looking to have chickens as pets not as production birds. Eggs are just a side benefit. I live in a neighborhood and fence goes to my property line. We would like to free range them but this is where my first question comes from. We are looking at most likely about 4 birds and I was wondering how destructive will they be to the lawn. From what I have read and been told that chicken will burn my lawn. Will this become a problem or is this only an issue with several birds. And while talking about poop since they are going to be free ranging during the day will smell become an issue. We want to raise chickens but also don't want to have the neighbors hating us. I guess I will stop here and see where this goes as I'm sure I will have more questions or need to provide some information as this gets talked about. Again thank you for all your time.

What everyone said. I have temporary runs that I let get de-weeded by the hens. They decimate everything and do a spectacular job of clearing the ground for next years veggie plot. This way, I don't have to fight weeds or grass when I put in a new bed. Then in a couple of years I switch some fence panels back and the cycle repeats. They will TEAR APART flower beds and lilies and blooming anything that you have landscaped so that is a bad idea. . .

 

[Jballs918]

All the beds were done before I moved into the house. So I guess if we have an issue with them we could just fence it off.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

How big is your backyard? I gave my chickens access to a 16x16 section only part of the day - it is dirt now. We have had them since Oct. Barely any grass what so ever. I know most yards are bigger than that, but some are just barely. If they have more room, they probably won't do as much damage, but they will also damage plants in your landscaping.
I don't let mine free range because we have hawks and I only have 4 chickens. So, I like to keep them as safe as I can.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I have temporary runs that I let get de-weeded by the hens. They decimate everything and do a spectacular job of clearing the ground for next years veggie plot. This way, I don't have to fight weeds or grass when I put in a new bed.

... I don't know why I didn't think of doing this before. I just manually cleared space on the side lawn for 3 garden beds, and wasn't looking forward to having to clear more in the future. I should've just fenced the chickens into the area and let them destroy it!

Definitely going to have to remember to do that next year.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Well my 3 chickens have decimated most of their run space, which was previously lawn (approx 20x25 total, one side has been barren for over a year, the other side still has a little grass in it). So if your backyard is 50x50 it shouldn't won't get torn up too fast since that's 4x the amount of space.

Smell shouldn't be an issue. If there's a problem with a stinky chicken run/yard it's generally an issue of way too many birds for the amount of space, which wouldn't apply to you, or bad sanitary conditions (i.e. a poorly ventilated coop that doesn't get cleaned out).

 

[Peppercorngal]

If you want to have chickens as pets I would suggest only two or three at most. It's easier to bond with fewer birds and the impact on the yard and neighbors and plants would be less. Just my thought. Welcome here!

 

[Hensndoes]

Thank you all for the responses. Alot of good information. I have a screened in sun porch so I don't have to worry about patio items. We do have some flower beds in the back but its not an issue if they get into them. I will have to measure the backyard. I'm thinking it is atleast 50x50. but I will get some measurements. My wife and I are thinking alot as it seems that there are alot of issues that can be taken care of by some proper planning and learning from others

Welcome! One thing you need to account for is chicken math. You say 4 birds. Great. But in 2 years you will add 2 more. Then someone will go broody and... happens to all of us. Also- you can try making a nice dustbathing box to save them digging up the yard. They need to dustbath to keep mites in check and you will never be able to stop it. But you may be able to contain it.

If your backyard is small put some time into researching breeds. Some do much better with less space. Also: I started with hatchery birds from the feed store with little knowledge. Well 2 of them had reproductive issues and I had to cull them shortly after a year old. Sucked as I loved their personalities. Then my 2 sexlinks had the same issues just before they turned 2 - common for sexlinks and I didn't know. Now I buy from a breeder that focuses on the health of the bird.

 

[Akrnaf2]

OK so I am learning about chickens and it seems that there is alot of information out there. As I have learned more and getting excited about doing this, I have mentioned it to people and seemed to have gotten alot of negative responses about having chickens. I guess I have a few questions about the cons of chickens. Let me give you a little information and maybe you guys can shed some light on this. I have a rather large back yard that has a wooden privacy fence. We are looking to have chickens as pets not as production birds. Eggs are just a side benefit. I live in a neighborhood and fence goes to my property line. We would like to free range them but this is where my first question comes from. We are looking at most likely about 4 birds and I was wondering how destructive will they be to the lawn. From what I have read and been told that chicken will burn my lawn. Will this become a problem or is this only an issue with several birds. And while talking about poop since they are going to be free ranging during the day will smell become an issue. We want to raise chickens but also don't want to have the neighbors hating us. I guess I will stop here and see where this goes as I'm sure I will have more questions or need to provide some information as this gets talked about. Again thank you for all your time.

1. They can be noisy, and sometimes can be extremely noisy.
2. They will destroy your lawn and will turn it to barren land.
3. They will poop everywhere .
4. You will start with 4 and will end with 15, chicken math is working!
5. You will need someone to tend for them while you are away from home.