Backyard Chickens

People in California love their backyard chickens.  This photo was taken while we were in Portland, OR.  So is the chicken thing a west coast thing or do other parts of the country embrace the coop?

Ain't Nobody Here but Us (Backyard) Chickens

"Tomorrow is a busy day
we got things to do, we got eggs to lay,
ground to dig, we've got worms to scratch,
you know it takes a lot of sittin' gettin' chicks to hatch..."

                                                                                                        Five Guys Named Mo

When I arrived in California eleven years ago, I was surprised when calling a school volunteer for information about a school event.  She couldn't take my phone call.  She had to feed the chickens.  I was a bit surprised.  We live in planned communities with home owners associations not in the rural farmlands of the Midwest.  This encounter was a sign of things to come.  Since then, raising urban and suburban chickens is the new black.

I know a number of hobbyists who now raise chickens for their egg laying capability for their own home use.  I'm not sure I am cut out to raise live chickens but I surely don't want to be left out.  My solution?  Introducing my brood of gallus domesticus cementius!  Care and feeding is a breeze.  These lovely creatures are free to roam my garden (however, they must like where they are because I never see them move from their current positions).  I think I am going to be waiting a while for the first basket of eggs.

The Chicken Whisperer