If you were around in 1960, you may remember almost every backyard having a chicken pen and a vege garden. Neighbours swapped veges, fruit, eggs and gossip over back fences as often as we had meat and three veg for dinner. In fact, in 1960, around 95% of homes had a vege patch and chooks (chook is Aussie slang for chicken, in case you’re outside Australia.) So what’s happened to us? Why have we moved away from growing our own and settling for non-organic, toxic veges and plastic eggs from the big supermarket chains?
Fortunately, there is a comeback. More and more people are opting for backyard chooks for fresh eggs. Livestock centres and produce stores report selling increasing numbers of chickens each season. Personally, I get excited when I visit someone’s house and discover they have a chicken pen and some chooks. It always starts up interesting conversations and stories about how and why they chose to keep chickens. I wish more people, especially with children, would do it.
Chickens are actually amazing birds. They not only give us eggs, fertilizer and are great composters, they can also be loveable company and good alarms. They are easy and cheap to look after, loyal, highly predictable and very friendly. All your kitchen scraps can go to feed chickens, as well as a few supplements you’ll need to ensure they lay eggs and stay healthy. Free-range, home chickens produce amazing eggs – real yellow colour, thick and creamy yolks and healthy!
To keep chickens, you’ll need a reasonably strong, stable and safe chicken house, to protect them from weather and predators. We have 2 dogs, so we’ve never had challenges with foxes, so we don’t need to lock our chooks up at night. They have free run around the house a few days each week, and other times are confined to their chicken run, an area about two-thirds the size of an average front yard. They have plenty of tall tree cover, wind protection and a solid house to roost in at night. Some even sleep in the trees. I’m sure the possums are impressed.
When I help people set up chicken runs and houses, I always recommend an area under a tree or trees, usually in a backyard corner, away from the house. Unless you have a large backyard, I recommend most families to keep 3 chickens for fresh eggs. Three chooks are easy on the budget and cleaning, and provide enough eggs daily for a family. In Brisbane, you can keep up to 6 chickens if your block size is under 800m2, and up to 20 chickens if over 800m2, but no roosters. You don’t need a license or to register them. You just need to keep them out of any special gardens you have, and of course out of your neighbour’s yard.
Chicken houses can be homemade or bought. Special chicken pens are available from produce stores, livestock centres and Bunnings. Some are quite elaborate and some quite simple. It’s up to you what style you’d like. Some are like quality cubby houses, while others are just tin sheds or teepees. Whatever you choose, make sure it has a lockable gate/door, plenty of protection from rain and wind, but also plenty of ventilation, a suitable feeder and water container, adequate bedding – straw, shredded newspaper (which can be composted on your garden later) – and place the rear of the pen facing south if possible, to shield the chickens from colder southerly winds.
Chickens are very resilient, relaxed and inquisitive birds. They will usually follow you around the garden, especially if you’re making compost, mulching, digging soil, raking up or pruning – looking for insects and worms. We have 15 chickens who are incredible sticky-beaks (pun intended), constantly following me everywhere I walk around our house, pecking at my feet or hands as I dig, rake or move things. They are also quite relaxing and humorous to just sit and watch doing their thing.
If you’re in Brisbane or SE Qld and would like to learn more about chickens, hands on, please join one of our Fearthered Friends chicken keeping workshops soon.