Photo by thomas pix
You might think that being a country gardener and all, that I should be raising a few chickens here and gathering up my own eggs. We certainly don’t lack the space.
But as I lay in bed last night listening to the coyotes yammer and howl, I was thankful that I don’t have to fret about the health and welfare of flock of chickens.
Backyard chickens are much in vogue these days. Even New Yorker writers are getting into it. Susan Orlean’s piece in the current issue called “The It Bird” is an amusing account of her own foray into raising chickens at her country house 100 miles north of Manhattan. The magazine’s web site even has a video of Orlean and her flock.
As well as being as something of recession fad, Orlean sees small scale chicken-raising not as a Green Acres throwback, but rather as a trend—possibly Martha Stewart inspired—that goes “hand in glove with the post-feminist reclamation of other farmwife domestic arts—knitting, canning, quilting.” Perhaps, as she suspects, doing it yourself is “newly appreciated as a declaration of self-sufficiency, a celebration of handwork, and a push-back from a numbing and disconnected big-box life.”
The article makes me think it could be fun to have chickens here, kind of, but the threat of coyotes keeps me grounded firmly in reality. And I can always drive a couple of miles to my local chicken farm and get worry-free and work-free farm eggs from there. In any case, I don’t think I could trust my dog Toby to be nice to chickens because he’s fanatical about chasing wild ducks and geese off our property.
If you’re really turned on by the idea of raising chickens in your backyard, be sure to read Rebecca Sweet’s post The Flip Side of Suburban Chickens at Garden Rant. Orlean makes the whole business seem romantic, but Sweet tells it like it is: “Here’s the problem: Chickens poop – a LOT. And they don’t go in one spot either (like a dog). They go all OVER the place, about once every 5 minutes or so. And it isn’t cute little poop either (like a rabbit’s). They’re golf-ball sized bombs just waiting for you to step on them.”
Sweet’s post spawned a lot of interesting comments that are worth reading, so if you’re at all tempted, you can go into it with your eyes open.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
Ha-ha. It’s been suggested a couple of times that I could have a few chickens too!
Sounds innocent (and romantic maybe), but aside from the coyote scare – being the daughter of a butcher – who is going to make those feathery beings into clean refrigerator-worthy dinner ingredients? Eggs are good, but I love my meat too.
Lene
-Good point, and who would babysit the chickens when you go on holiday? I know there are dog-sitters, but chicken-sitters??? Cheers/Yvonne
Great post, Yvonne! I love when both sides of an issue are presented – and so eloquently, too! One thing I forgot to mention in my chicken rant was the rats! LOTS of rats! Suburban neighbors aren’t too thrilled when you bring rats into their gardens…definitely not a great way to make friends!
Hello, my name is Ava Koo, and I’m trying to legalize backyard ducks as pets in residential areas in Huntington and Huntington Station, NY. I started raising ducklings in my backyard because my mother is allergic to chicken eggs, and duck eggs would allow her to eat eggs again. Unfortunately, the town found out about my backyard ducks and are trying to make me get rid of them. Currently, only chickens are allowed, but I’m trying to change that! If you have any advice that would be amazing. I’ve also created a facebook group that I’ll be updating as things progress and an online petition. Thank you!
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=147806406185
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/ducks/
Hi Ava: It seems crazy that they would allow chickens and then give you grief over ducks. Good luck to you.
Yeah but that chicken poop is worth it’s weight in gold in the garden…isn’t it???
I do miss my Guinea Fowl Yvonne…no coop, so no birds. I too don’t want to lose them to the wild critters. But Hey! I’ve got home grown tomatoes this year and the bugs didn’t eat them!!!
Thanks Yvonne