Reasons to get Chickens

Eggs are the number one reason people get into the backyard chicken-keeping business. And since 2020 more people got into it, though their reasons weren’t necessarily the same. However, there are many reasons to get chickens.

Eggs

Even so, eggs are a great reason to get chickens. And a good egg laying hen will produce ~ one egg per day. So if you want a dozen eggs a week, you need 3 or 4 hens. Which means, you don’t need a whole lot of space for only 3 or 4 backyard birds.

Healthier Living

Due to shelter-in-place restrictions and then supply shortages, many people started raising their own chickens. A lot of backyard birds are dual-purpose birds. That means you can have hens for eggs. And if you have extra roosters, they can make good meals. In addition, knowing where your food is, and what goes into it somehow makes it taste more amazing.

We’re pretty blessed living where we do; however I know that bare shelves prompted a lot of people to buy chickens. And having backyard birds allows people to be somewhat self-sufficient, by providing a fresh source of eggs and chicken.

Sustainable Living

Rather than supporting factory produced eggs and their big carbon footprint, when you raise your own eggs, there’s less manure. So you have less of a carbon footprint.

Also, the chicken manure can be used for fertilizer or composted. Therefore, the result is less carbon emissions. And the birds help you with gardening.

Pets

Another reason to get chickens is that they make great pets. And when they’re chicks, they come on the cheap side; no pun intended. Furthermore, they come in many different breeds, colors, and sizes. And you can name them, if you so choose. We’ve named all of ours–after Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Marvel, Transformers, and anime characters.

Additionally, they all have personality. And they’re mostly easy to take care of: feed and water them, provide good, predator-proof shelter, and remember to clean their coop. Other than that, they do their chicken thing, providing you with food.

Chicken TV

Have I mentioned chicken TV? Keeping backyard chickens also provides free entertainment without the use of electricity. Just step outside, pull up a chair, and sit a spell. It’ll only take a moment before you see one of the members of your flock doing something adorable or hilarious.

And if you can, I highly recommend getting a rooster to complement any flock of hens, because that’s the best entertainment. You’ll get drama, suspense, romance, and comedy when you add a rooster.

Education

Having chickens is also educating. I can’t express to you how much I’ve learned just in the 7 or so years we’ve kept backyard birds. For most people, this might be considered useless. However, if you have children or grandchildren, it will be fascinating, especially when they see their first egg hatch. And they’ll learn to take care of animals.

Backyard Therapy

The biggest benefit I personally receive, from taking care of chickens, is backyard therapy. And I’m not the only person to have experienced this. Other people, who either have kept chickens, or still keep birds, are familiar with this phenomena. I don’t know if it’s just the birds, or a combination of being outdoors, watching the birds, or what. But things that were troubling eventually fade away.

I don’t know that I would say the chickens are empathetic, and that’s the reason having them helps. It’s just that after I’m outside watching them for a while, I start to feel better.

To Conclude

I’ve listed 7 reasons to get chickens, but ultimately the decision is yours. Backyard chickens make amazing pets and are a great supply of food. But I’m sure that whatever the reason you decide to get chickens, you’ll enjoy them.

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