November 24, 2014

Chickens in the City

Chickens in the City
I don’t think I could imagine a backyard without chickens. Our neighbors chuckle from their yard, watching our chickens strut on our deck railing, peck at our door for food or patiently tolerate our toddler trying to hug them endlessly.   It was 3 years ago on our homestead that we got our first chickens. Built our coop, read books and blogs about how to care for them. Chased them in the woods with flashlights when they hopped the fence. We had 8 chickens and 1 rooster. Then 10 more hatched. Then another rooster showed up at doorstep, and basically told us with no uncertainty he was sticking around. So it grew. 20 chickens and 2 roosters later our 5 acres actually looked crowded. Some changes in life beckoned us to temporarily reside here in the beautiful mountains of Utah, minus the generous acreage. But we just couldn’t imagine life without chickens anymore, so now we have 3, which is just right. Any more and I think feathers might start drifting into a neighbors window anyhow. Not to mention our dog might go on strike. So again we have delicious eggs for breakfast, and a wonderful and endlessly entertaining part back in our lives, and a little piece of the country right here in the city.