Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't chickens draw rats?

Chicken feed will attract rodents.

Don't they also attract mountain lions, foxes and other wild predators?

Maybe but (a) mountain lions are really unlikely here, and (b) you won't see these predators. They get in, take your chickens, and get out. Ask any farmer, they would love to shoot them but it's rare to encounter them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree that chickens are effing dumb. But that makes them wicked fun to terrorize.

In my late 20's, I moved to a tropical island that was overrun with feral chickens. My next-door neighbor would feed them. I loved pulling in the drive and seeing them in my yard. I would run at them while flapping my arms and corner them as they tried to ram their fat bodies through the holes in a chain-link fence. Once I chased a chicken into the path of an oncoming car driven by a speeding teen.

Now I have sons. Oh the fun we'd have if our neighbors started raising chickens.

Are you a dog who can type, and you just got access to your master's computer???

[b]
I literally laughed so hard at this. Thank you PP!

Anonymous wrote:http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dpz/faqs/zoning.htm

The keeping of livestock or domestic fowl is allowed as an accessory use on any lot of two (2) acres or more in size.

This is correct - it is illegal in FFx Co. and Arlington (although Arlington is trying to pass an ordinance, but it won't be likely since housing is too close), so, NO, I don't have any chickens.

It isn't "illegal to keep chickens on less than four acres."

Unfortunately, it is illegal to keep them in DC. Baltimore allows up to four hens.

I've got a whole bunch of them. I also have a small farm in Fairfax as well as my place in the city, so it makes some amount more sense. As long as you are cleaning up after them, they don't smell much, but you do need to keep after it.

I have, however, been known to start the babies in the house. And the eggs are undoubtedly superior to store bought.

In the Great Depression, having chickens was a sign that you were on hard times.

Not in the agriculture area where I grew up. Pretty much everyone had chickens, even those who didn't live on a farm. They had small coops like a PP posted.

The PP is correct that there is a lot of misinformation on this thread about chickens - however, they are f'ing stupid and when you have 50-75 like we did, they do stink, especially when it's wet/humid. But, they're not any worse than the big hunting dogs we had which also stunk when wet. If you're taking good care of your dogs and clean up the dog poop in your yard, you probably can raise chickens just fine. But, if you live in a close-in suburb, the noise is likely to annoy your neighbors and they'll report you to the county.

Plus, you can turn the poop into whitewash and paint your house.

Anonymous wrote:chickens stink especially after it rains because they tear up the grass into bare dirt and poop all over it

You mean, kind of like dogs do?

A single chicken produces about half the amount of poop that a medium size dog does in one day. Also, chickens occasionally produce a smelly poop (about once or twice a week - it's called 'ceacal' and is smelly like dog poop ) but the rest of their poop is mild and not offensive.

Yes, they definitely dig up the grass. They do this to eat all the bugs, including ticks, so some people see this as a good thing. Also, if the chickens are contained in a run, then the spot where the run was sitting makes an excellent place for a garden the following year, because all the grass and weeds have been eaten and the ground has been tilled, and the poop has fertilized the earth.

Chickens are all around great for an eco-friendly yard. Unlike dogs, whose poop does not make good fertilizer, and must be thrown into the city trash dump.

chickens stink especially after it rains because they tear up the grass into bare dirt and poop all over it

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree that chickens are effing dumb. But that makes them wicked fun to terrorize.

In my late 20's, I moved to a tropical island that was overrun with feral chickens. My next-door neighbor would feed them. I loved pulling in the drive and seeing them in my yard. I would run at them while flapping my arms and corner them as they tried to ram their fat bodies through the holes in a chain-link fence. Once I chased a chicken into the path of an oncoming car driven by a speeding teen.

Now I have sons. Oh the fun we'd have if our neighbors started raising chickens.

Are you a dog who can type, and you just got access to your master's computer???

It takes a lot to make me laugh, so thanks!!

Can't live chickens harbor salmonella? I thought I had read an article to this effect recently.

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dpz/faqs/zoning.htm

The keeping of livestock or domestic fowl is allowed as an accessory use on any lot of two (2) acres or more in size.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone have chickens on your property?
Are they hard or easy to maintain?
How much time a day do you spend caring for them?
How many do you have and how many eggs do you get a week?
Do you have them for the eggs or another reason?

TIA

Urban chickens are becoming super popular in cities across the country. Lots of blogs and articles written about it -- do some research and you will come up with all the info you could possibly want.

We have two hens and they lay about a dozen eggs a week (they each lay one egg most days.) They need very little attention -- take them food and water once a day. It takes about three minutes. Then, rake out their house about once every 2-4 weeks. Mine have a small house with an attached run, and it is filled with hay so it doesn't really even smell bad. When I clean it out, the hay goes into the compost pile.

Why do we have chickens? 1) organic, soy-free eggs from pastured chickens (we move the run or allow them to roam the yard), 2) good compost material (we also have a small garden so we love to have great compost each spring) and 3) they eat all of our food scraps and 4) I like having pets, but not needy ones, so chickens are a great fit. It's kind of peaceful to watch them scratching in the earth and running around.

Are you the DC area? If so, where do you keep them in the winter?

No, I am not in the DC area, although the winter is fairly similar. Chickens do fine in cold weather as long as they have a house with some hay in it - they nest down at night and snuggle up to each other (assuming you have more than one, which you should because they are social creatures). In really cold climates, some people install lamps in their hen house to add extra warmth in the winter. Someone asked -- we have an acre, although the law in my town allows 2 chickens in lots of .10 acres, and gradually increases the number you are allowed to have as your lot size increases. Two chickens on .10 acre fits just fine, and there are many cute little hen houses on the market which work well in such a small space.

By the way, this thread is rife with incorrect information about chicken keeping. Not really worth getting into as the great "urban chicken debate" can be found all over the web and in books. But just to quickly correct some misconceptions -- chickens can lay for many years, they are not particularly smelly or noisy (when comparing one-to-one, they are much less noisy and smelly than a dog), and depending on the animal they can make a nice pet. We have had chickens that we needed to kill, and we have either buried them or eaten them, depending on the situation. It's all a great learning process for the kids, too. They handle it better than me, in fact. Oh, and they don't attract rodents/coyotes/pestilence anymore than your dog, the squirrel in your yard, or the rotting trash in your can.

Its illegal to have chickens on less than 4 acres. They sink , harbor diseases and tear up lawns. Report this crap asap .

Anonymous wrote:Do you happen to know the title of it, or what year it's from? Couldn't find it just searching for "chicken"

The story I remember is about a rooster. Good luck finding it, it is hysterical.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't chickens draw rats?

Chicken feed will attract rodents.

Don't they also attract mountain lions, foxes and other wild predators?