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Does anyone has an henhouse ?
What is the legislation to get a henhouse in US ?
I live in a city but i believe if i would live in the country,i will build a small henhouse because it is always cool to eat delicious poultries and eggs from garden
Depending on where your live, having chickens is not an issue.
We live 3 miles outside of city limits (a small town in a rural agracultural area) and we have a chicken coop and 8 hens. We ate all the roosters because we really just wanted the eggs.
But....
In some suburbian areas, you would need a permit.
I have a henhouse. One thing I can say is chickens make a BIG mess. They poo everywhere, eat almost any fresh vegetation and DESTROY gardens. I'm repeating this because I didn't take it to heart when another poster gave her chicken advice. Chickens are MESSY and DESTROY gardens.
But they're very cute and provide yummy eggs (and meat, if you can kill them safely and humanely).
No matter what the local laws say, I suggest making sure you have a lot of grass/weeds/lawn for the chickens to roam around on and eat. My chickens have eaten ALL the vegetation in the approx 500 square feet around their coop. They also whine when I have to leave them in the run when I'm at work because they love grass so much. When they're outside the chicken run, my 5+ chickybooboos can easily and happy eat and scratch around on 1+ acres.
Their FAAVORATE places are the compost pile and garden beds. Chickens LOVE mulch and pine straw. Digging in it...trying to eat it and especially kicking it into paths. They also love digging out mommy's expensive perennials and newly-planted expensive trees. You are going to need fencing to keep them under control.
I do not have the type of fencing below, but I WISH I did. It is cheaper than the type of fencing I DO have..and a lot more effective since chickens are scared to jump on it:
what one town/city/re llows another my not...may places wont even allow you a single hen and others you can have a small barnyard in your back yard, youd have to look up your own local municiple laws reguarding poiltry.
the places within town/city limits that do alow usully have restriciotns on how may, hving a rooster and where the coop can and cant be placed in relation to not only property lines but distance from residential structures...
having chickens...
well it can be frustrating and fun all at the same time.
they are adorable to watch wandering round the yard untill they detroy your flower bed or jump your fence an raid the neighbors garden...they SCRATCH, this sint a peck here and there they will dig looking for bugs grubs and sweet roots/shoots, and they wil eat pretty much anything green within reach...
ifyou have vegatable gardens of flowering beds you want protecting chckens are NOT goingto work unless your willing to fence them out (or into a run)
keeping them sole in a run is fine assuming the run is big enough AND you provide lots of grass cuttings, stra, hy veggie craps ect to keep them busy. they get bored...
chicken poop is GREAT fertilizer but its hot, you MUST compost it for season before use...
keeping chickens for fresh meat...well most people use exess roos for meat and most in town localities dont allw roos...yes you can use old hens who stop laying but there pretty much only god for stew t that age lol.
the main reasons to keep chickens re they are cute and theres NotHING to compare to fresh hormone and antibiotic free eggs...
just keep in mind, chickens need a fairly deacent amout of room and even the girls make a deacent amount of noise...
youll bneed 4sqft of INDOOR space in the coop per hen and a MINIMUM of 10sqft of outside space per bird (i prefer at least double that)
Personally i LIKE chickens...ilbe getting some soon but i live rurally, but i actually have come to prefer duck eggs so the chickens willbe more lawn ornaments/broodies/bug patrol. my ducks are my brakfast makers lol
I wanted them at our old place but regs required an acre...which is crazy as a few miles down the road they are allowed in urban area. We recently our dream house/ property and the 11 chickens conveyed. They have never been free range but I plan to this summer but under supervision. I am into organic gardening ( which was a major reason or our move) and I can't wait to utilize the poop/garden gold. We have three big piles that the former owners had started last year.
Overall I have found it quite satisfying. I have had to learn fast but have enjoyed it. We plan to expand the run this year. My girls ( no roosters ) are all over 6 years old but still producing enough eggs for us, the neighbors, and a few family members.
What do you feed your chickens? How does the cost of feeds work out against the eggs you get? Is it break-even?
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