What is a hen? How it is helpful to humans. What are the advantages and disadvantages of keeping a hen?
Answers
Answer: Chickens lay eggs. These eggs are fresh, taste great, and are full of nutrition because you control what goes into egg production with the food you give your chickens.
Chickens create excellent fertilizer. Chicken manure contains a good deal of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium – the primary ingredients in lawn and garden fertilizers.
Chickens make great pets. Believe it or not, chickens have their own individual personalities and are affectionate toward humans.
Chickens help clean your yard. These hard-working birds will clear harvested garden beds of weeds, and eat fallen fruit from trees before they start rotting and attract bugs.
Chickens are like a natural garbage disposal. Chickens can eat many of the food items we would normally throw away, including food scraps from salads, vegetable peelings, rice, fruits, nuts, and seeds.
Chickens are fairly easy to take care of. A low-maintenance animal, chickens basically need to be fed, watered, and given a coop to nest in.
Chickens help control bugs and weeds naturally. Without the use of chemicals and insecticides, you can control over-population of crickets, grasshoppers, snails, slugs and other pests in your garden as chickens eat them up.
Fresh, home-grown meat. If raising your chickens for meat, home-grown chickens taste better and are healthier than factory farmed poultry.
Get used to a little more noise. Chickens can be noisy but they can also provide quieter sounds of cooing and clucking that many find relaxing and even enjoyable.
Chicken fertilizer comes from chicken poop, which means that chickens will poop a lot. As stated in the above benefits, chicken poop is a wonderful fertilizer, but it will require some work to clean up and utilize.
Chickens will really dig living with you, which is to say that they will dig a lot in your yard. Chickens scratch when they dig for bugs and can really tear up their space.
Chickens can carry Salmonella. Chickens have the potential of carrying Salmonella germs in their droppings and on their feathers, feet, and beaks.
Is it legal? If you’re raising chickens in town, check your local ordinances and zoning code regulations to make sure you can keep chickens legally.
Chickens require health care. Just like other pets or farm animals, chickens can get sick or injured, which may require professional pet care.
Chickens do grow old and die. As they grow older (the lifespan is generally 8 to 10 years), egg production decreases and you will need to continue caring for them responsibly, or decide whether or not to use the chicken for meat production. (Generally peak egg production will start when the chicken is 1 year old and last for 2 to 3 years)
Chickens can be mean to each other. Unfortunately, you will have to deal with some chickens bullying each other. They will peck at each other and even draw blood, which can make them peck more until one dies.
Chickens need cleanup. Chickens can be dirty and also create messes, so you will need to regularly clean chickens, coops, and bedding material. Pine bedding and straw are ideal, never use cedar shavings as the cedar oils and scent can be toxic to chickens.
Dealing with predators. If your yard is accessible to predators such as foxes, raccoons, skunks, possums, coyotes, or other animals who pose a threat to the safety of your chickens, you may consider making it a mandatory part of your routine by bringing them in each night for their safety.
Chickens require basic maintenance. You’ll need to make sure your chickens have enough chicken feed, water and grit (small rocks to help them digest their food). These tasks are not difficult and often a perfect set of simple chores for kids raising chickens.
Chickens need shelter, called a chicken coop. You can order a coop on our website, or pick up in-store at your local Grange Co-op. Chickens don’t need a lot of space, but they need room to stretch their legs.
You can’t have just one chicken. Chickens are social animals and need other chickens for companionship. One chicken by itself can die of loneliness so we always encourage a small flock for the happiest, healthiest backyard chickens.
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