With just a bit of care and effort, you can have your very own farm fresh eggs every morning. And, nothing beats a farm fresh egg! So, okay, you've been bitten by the chicken keeping bug… now what? Just how many chickens should you start with? Consider first how many eggs your family typically consumes on a weekly basis.
And, will you need egg-stra eggs for baking? Will you be anxious to egg-speriment with new egg-citing egg filled recipes? Anyway, ideally, in the average suburban backyard, you will want to get three to five chickens to start. Considering the fact that a single laying hen lays an egg approximately every twenty-five hours, she may or may not lay an egg every day even under the most exemplary conditions.
Although, if this seems a bit overwhelming, be sure to egg-spect word to get around quickly and neighbours to be knocking on your door to get some of those farm fresh eggs! Are you able to let your girls out to free range, everyday? Take some time to gauge the available space you have, survey your backyard and pick the perfect spot.
The number of hens you have and the amount of time you can let them out will determine the number of hens and the size of the coop you buy. Backyard Chicken Coops have coops to suit all circumstances. For egg-ample, you can use the Penthouse to house 2 hens or 10 hen, because it has a large run area that can be used for safe foraging, and is great if you are away on the weekend!
The same can be done with the Taj Mahal and the Mansion chicken coops, they can be used just a cozy and secure hutch of an evening, or as a full time resort with a run everyday. You could also add some easily set-up poultry fencing to rotate your flock's foraging area and fertilise your lawn!
So, when it comes to deciding on how many chickens you should get, start small, and add; add; add! Gauge the space you have in your backyard and how much time you have to let them out and enjoy! For more egg-cellent info about getting started have a peck at our Complete Beginner's Guide here or make sense of all the chook breeds available here.
Deciding how many chickens you need can vary depending based on a lot of factors. And the answer may change for you depending on your goals or management styles. The first consideration is your location. A hard upper limit based on your zoning laws may make the decision for you.
In my city you can have three hens without a permit, and more birds with a permit. The second major consideration is how much space you have for your chickens. At absolute minimum, the birds will need 3 square feet of indoor space including 1 foot of roosting space , and 10 square feet of outdoor space. But more is better! If you want to free range your birds, you will need at least square feet of pasture per bird or they will eat it right down to the dirt.
Even if you have a ton of space you still may not want a huge flock depending on your goals, available time, or diet. Someone who uses a few eggs a week for baking will want fewer birds than someone who is eating a paleo or low carb diet. For them a better choice is small one that can be quickly refreshed in the evening after work. And the flock size required to breed your own replacement stock is going to be substantially smaller than if you are making a side business selling hatching eggs, chicks, or started pullets.
Different breeds of chickens lay different amounts of eggs over the course of a year. When deciding which chickens to buy, this is something you will want to check for each breed you are considering. As a basic rule of thumb you can plan on having three chickens per two members of your household.
So how many chickens do you need for a family of four? Probably around six young laying hens. A family of six? Better plan on about nine chickens. Your resources, both in cash and kind, go a long way in determining the number of chickens you raise. Chickens require constant care. You have to get the right feed and treats, give them drugs routinely, provide a conducive environment, etc. If you want to eat about 2 chickens per week from your homestead, you need to raise about 20 to 35 chickens.
Chickens usually take about 4 to 5 months to mature well enough for eating; however, broilers take 7 weeks. This ensures the cycle keeps moving. Below are some things to consider when raising chickens for meat.
Like there are egg-laying chicken breeds , there are also chicken breeds raised solely for meat. However, you can also choose to go for dual-purpose chickens. Dual-purpose chickens produce both eggs and meat. This is because they eat a lot and grow very fast to have health problems like organ failure. Meat chicken breeds eat a lot more than egg-laying hens. They can eat the food egg-laying hens will eat in a week in 2 days. Their feed and water should always be near them.
Breakfast requirements You might simply want enough hens to keep the family in eggs. However, the number of eggs a chicken lays depends on the season, breed, age, management and diet: Most chooks take a break after their annual moult, so expect egg numbers to dwindle in winter, then pick up in spring. Red hybrids such as ISAs will lay daily, but tend to burn out more quickly than purebred laying breeds, which will lay steadily over five or six years.
Dual-purpose, ornamental and meat breeds of fowl lay fewer eggs. Younger chooks lay more often, and all fowls will eventually wind down and reach retirement.
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