Took your survey! :)

To add to it--we keep our mixed flock of chickens as pets who happen to give eggs, and also they are great as little garbage disposals for table & garden scraps--which in turn gives us better eggs and chicken poop for the garden, which they also get a chance to 'till' at the end of the growing season. :) While ours are for entertainment/pets/eggs, when I was growing up we also had some for meat, which we killed & processed ourselves. Plucking chickens isn't high on my list of 'fun things to do' but I'm glad I know how--and home-grown meat tastes awesome and is far and away better for you. I admire people who raise their own animals for table.

Our daughter is now 12 and has been around chickens her whole life, her observing and participating in the life cycle (we hatch chicks every year and do our annual 'Chickam' webcast of the hatch & next 8 weeks of life 24/7 which has been VERY popular) has really helped her understand and better mesh with the world around her. As a side benefit it's also helped her with science projects and simplified 'Facts of Life' talks! Yay, roosters! :)

Velvet ~:>

I'm surprised there wasn't a bigger response to the original Query about backyard chickens. One thing I know the eggs are superior to any you can buy, and my chickens are easy to keep and are relatively quiet and clean (keep them off your porch). They wander the property during the day and kept in their coop at night(which they return to at dusk). They are smarter than one would think they would be. I have one who fully recognizes her name when called. All that is in question now is how they will get along with the young ducks I have when it's time for them to leave the adjacent coop and go out and about. One of my chickens actually hatched out one of the ducks but she couldn't keep up with it so I took it away and bought it a companion duckling at the feed store. Chickens are easy, just if you are going to let them out make sure it's a safe environment and if you or your neighbors have dogs,that will be a potential hazard you will have to factor in. Always lock the birds up safely at dusk (I learned the hard way).