Raising Chickens in the City

Living in the urban areas does not preclude you from raising chickens, that is if you would find out the restrictions first that apply to having poultry within your premises, first. With the current shift to home grown and organic food, city people would certainly not allow themselves to be left behind in reaping the benefits of healthy food.

Is It Permitted? Find out if the county or the neighborhood association has any ordinance against having chickens as pets before anything else. If there are restrictions, find out what they are and how you can keep your chickens without going against any local law.

No Roosters Please. Since you are in the urban areas don’t even think about getting a rooster. They are very noisy birds. You certainly do not want the police knocking on your front door to tell you that complaints have been lodged against you because of your roosters - they crow at very unholy hours of the night!

Choose the Right Breed. More than likely, your kids would like to play with your chickens as well. Get a bird that is not aggressive. Some of the recommended chicken breeds for urban settings are the Ameraucana, Australorp and Plymouth Rock. You can never go wrong with these birds, besides their eggs have a different color which your children and their friends would certainly enjoy.

Find a Support Group. Find out if there are other families in the neighborhood, county or next city who also raise chickens for pets. Check the Internet and join a group so that you would have a good resource of information, tips and techniques on urban chicken raising.

Build the Chicken Coop First. Make sure that you have a chicken coop for your chickens even before you bring them home. As we have said before, build the chicken coop in such a way that it blends into the overall landscape of your home and does not become an eyesore.

Fence Them In. Make sure that the chicken coop and the chicken run are fenced in and have overhead covering (netting would suffice) to protect them from predators like hawks. They have to be fenced in not because they may fly away but because neighborhood dogs may attack and kill them.

Make Sure They Eat the Right Chicken Feed and Food. Buy your chicken feed from agricultural supply stores or get them online. One thing you have to be careful of is when feeding your chicken table scraps. Avoid giving them food containing garlic and onion unless you want the eggs to taste funny. Never, ever give chocolates, avocados and potatoes to your chickens as their system cannot tolerate these foods and can sometimes be fatal. Always give them clean, fresh water so they don’t get dehydrated.

As a final note, if you have plans on leaving for the weekend, make sure that you have somebody looking after your birds since they need to be given water and feed two times daily.

Chicken Coop Plans
A guide on building your own coop.