Comments on: The New Urban Hens are Often Pets with Benefits

By: Steve

Steve — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 00:58:28 +0000

Sometimes it’s easier to start with males (although, of course, they won’t produce eggs), because when they start crowing incessantly, you’ll definitely not want to hesitate in harvesting them!

For a start, definitely read the book “Chicken Tractor” and ATTRA’s online articles on sustainable chicken raising if you do get into chickens.

By: Down On The Urban Farm » Blog Archive » Chickens: Brigid’s Dilemma

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 19:50:07 +0000

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By: Thomas Kriese

Thomas Kriese — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 19:44:46 +0000

Follow your heart and get some urban chickens for your back yard! We've got a couple hens (as pets) down the peninsula in Redwood City and they supply us with about a dozen delicious eggs a week. If you've ever had a cat (or had to take care of one), you'll find that keeping chickens is even easier than caring for a cat. You can check out our instructions for the chicken sitter to see the daily requirements our neighbors see to when we're out of town. They get to keep the eggs, of course.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 21:45:18 +0000

Durham, North Carolina just legalized hens in the city and I’m so happy. My three provide me with eggs and are a joy to watch. I will probably kill and eat them when they are no longer laying, but I’ve not completely made up my mind. I did have the rooster who slipped into my flock killed and had chicken and dumplings. I didn’t want to, but he had to go and couldn’t be moved. As it was pointed out to me–to just kill him and not eat him would have been very wasteful.

By: Taste T.O. - Food & Drink In Toronto » Food For Thought - Friday, February 27th

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 01:51:37 +0000

[...] of urban hens need to decide whether to treat their birds like pets or [...]

By: Fabienne

Fabienne — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 05:19:24 +0000

Great article! Keep us posted on whether you decide to build your coop or not …

By: Brigid Gaffikin

Brigid Gaffikin — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 02:08:08 +0000

@Sonya, thanks for the kind comments! Hope your birds work out well!

@Jennifer, good to hear that not only hens but also ducks do well in a suburban backyard. Your mention of your family’s fertilizer supply is a nice reminder that hens (and ducks) are more than mere egg providers, too. It also reminded me that a few people I spoke with talked about raising hens being just one step on a “path” toward producing more and more of their food at home.

By: Sonya

Sonya — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 17:43:15 +0000

Thank you for this enlightening and well-written article. I am planning to buy a house (in the city) this year and have been thinking of getting some chickens.

By: Jennifer Wilkerson

Jennifer Wilkerson — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 14:21:46 +0000

We grew up with chickens in a suburban subdivision. While it wasn’t the city it was a tony NYC suburb. On our less than 1 acre plot we had six chickens and six ducks (the maximum allowed by zoning). We never slaughtered our poultry. However, we benefited from their existence in many ways. We had enough eggs to share with eager neighbors and friends and we had the most amazing vegetable garden on the street–all because of the free fertilizer. The wiley ducks had occasional ducklings which were given to a local farmer. It was a wonderful, worthwhile experience for all. Today my older sister is an organic dairy farmer with her own large flock of free-range chickens. And I am on the board of a new year-round producer-only farmers market.