Raising and breeding chickens can be very fulfilling as well as rewarding. Imagine a daily supply of freshly laid eggs, and not to mention an unending supply of fresh chicken meat, simply economical and gratifying!
So how basically do you keep your chickens? They all need somewhere dry to sleep and lay snug on well done nest boxes, although most chickens will lay anywhere if left to their own devices, they are very self sufficient. Their diet basically consists of layers pellets, that can be easily obtained from pet shops and they also like a little corn as a treat. If left to roam in the garden they will also get lots of nutrients from anything in the garden such as grass, worms, snails and even ants and insects. I find that the more natural and organic their diet is, the more richly coloured their egg yolks will be. How many chickens should you raise? Well, I would recommend having more than two otherwise one will become bossy and bully the other, as in trying to establish a pecking order. Keeping chickens is a cheap and rewarding hobby and chickens can live to a ripe old age of 15 years, although they will probably only lay well for about 4-5 years after which time their egg-laying does go into a decline. They make good pets and are much more intelligent than they are given credit for.
When you finally decide to keep chickens, bear in mind that if they are allowed to roam in the garden they do a lot of scratching with their feet and can be quite destructive, a run may be a better idea if you are having more than a few. They will always go back to their coop as soon as they sense dusk so catching them is not a problem, let them naturally go back to their coops in the early evening and then they can be shut up for the night.
These things should be carefully considered when you finally think of raising and keeping chickens. Subsequently, you should consider as well their safety, health, and overall well-being for them to live long, give you lots of eggs and fresh chicken meat to boost.
