You won’t only find chickens on farms; they can also thrive in your own backyard. If you are willing to take the plunge, the benefits of keeping backyard chickens include a source for fresh food and help to keep your yard clean and orderly. Despite the unique challenges that come with raising chickens, they can bring valuable improvements to your life and home.
Fresh, Natural Food
By maintaining your own chicken coop, you can guarantee you’ll get some fresh eggs. You don’t have to worry about purchasing factory-farmed eggs or concern yourself with the chemicals used to provide such food. You are in control of the health and well-being of your chickens, which will, in turn, improve the quality of the eggs they lay—or, if you decide, the meat that they can provide.
A Source of Fertilizer
Chicken manure is a great source of fertilizer that you can use throughout your yard. This is due to the fact that chicken manure contains nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium—the main ingredients that you’ll find in lawn fertilizer. You can even compost the manure with soil to bring life to your garden and save you money on purchasing some from the store.
Help With Keeping the Yard Clean
While chickens do provide their own messes that may need cleaning up, there is some give and take. While you do need to clean their coops, chickens can help with the general upkeep of the yard on their own. The best way they can aid in garden maintenance is by eating harmful insects that can gather in your yard and destroy plants. Chickens will also eat fallen fruits before they have a chance to rot on the ground and attract unwanted critters.
General Waste Disposal
If there is some risk of food wastage in your home, you can simply just convert that to food for your chickens. They love table scraps and will eat just about anything that you give them. Make sure food doesn’t go to waste by giving it to your chickens to finish up.
Attention and Care
With the advantages of keeping backyard chickens comes the cost of upkeep. You must know how to properly take care of them throughout the year. It can be easy to forget their needs when they reside in their own coop outside, but they require attention and care if they are going to thrive. Ensure you have the necessary space and can adequately provide for them.
