Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
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There are many different benefits to raising chickens, including the satisfaction of raising
the animals yourself, the fresh eggs every day, the fresh chicken dinners every so often, and
the knowledge that by raising them yourself you are not only that much closer to being a
self-sustaining household, but that you have decreased the amount you spend per month on
certain foodstuffs as you are providing them for your family yourself instead of relying on
someone else to raise them for you, clean them, and transport them to the grocery store for
you where you not only pay for the cost of the poultry products but the cost of getting them
there as well.
The amount of time it takes to raise chickens is minimal, and they require far less interaction
than other animals that may be purchased for similar reasons. In addition, they are one of
the few animals that can be purchased for sustenance that provide dual sustenance methods,
making them far more cost efficient than, say, getting a pig. They cost less per month than
taking care of a cat and require less care than a cat does.
While it is true that you could simply purchase a premade coop or find a kit that allows you
to purchase all the components, have them shipped to you, and then simply assemble it, it is,
in many ways, far more rewarding, not to mention cheaper, to obtain the blue prints and the
materials and then build the coop yourself. Once you are finished, you are then able to look
out and see each and every day that you have made something with your own hands, which
is a great feeling that stays with you, no matter what.
Chickens require daily care, it is true; however, they are able to be left alone, given proper
planning, for days at a time, something other animals are not as capable of. This means that
even if you do have chickens, you are not prevented from taking that weekend getaway with
your sweetie or running out of town on that business trip.
Chickens give you many different feeding options as well: everything from store bought
food, scrounging about in the yard if they are free range, table scraps, to homemade corn
meal or mush. Some of the different foods you may feed your chickens will even allow you
to change the flavor of the eggs that you are eating, providing a variety of ways to experi-
ment with your foods; although, again, that could backfire.
Another benefit to chickens is that almost every aspect of the chickens themselves can be
used for one thing or another. They can be eaten, their eggs can be consumed, their poo can
be turned into fertilizer for your garden, and their feathers can even be used as stuffing, and
so on and so forth, depending on how much in depth into using all parts of the chicken that
you would really like to get into. Though it is true that all parts could literally be used for
one thing or another, most people will not go this route.
