Urban backyard chickens???

[Conan]

Another good source for back yard is rabbits, easy to care for and great eating.

[lucylou]

Another good source for back yard is rabbits, easy to care for and great eating.

"Rabbits for Sale. Pets or Meat."



--from a Michael Moore movie---

[seagull]

It's just the latest hipster cool thing.

Not really. When I moved to the Eastern Shore, I became really aware of the chicken farms down here which produce chickens for Perdue and Tysons. I never really thought about chickens until I saw the way they are mass "produced" and then carted off to be slaughtered. The poor things never see the light of day until they are trucked off to be killed. There are always a couple that escape the trucks and make a jump for freedom, only to land on Route 50 or 113, to be run over in the end.

I'm not a PETA member, but I would rather have a chicken from a neighborhood farm than one of these pathetic Perdue or Tyson specimens. Or, even better, I would prefer to raise my own.

[JohnRandolph]

We are kind of cycling through our flock right now. Just received 100 baby chicks the other day, but only 50 of those will actually be mine. 25 will be egg layers, the other 25 will be going in the freezer as soon as they are grown. 25 are going to my daughter and the other 25 to my neighbor.

I will be having turkeys coming in later this month. The Broad Breasted Bronze Turkeys we raised last year were some damn good eating and dressed out in the 40 pound range.

Are the turkeys a big commitment, or much the same as the chickens?

[Conan]

Not really. When I moved to the Eastern Shore, I became really aware of the chicken farms down here which produce chickens for Perdue and Tysons. I never really thought about chickens until I saw the way they are mass "produced" and then carted off to be slaughtered. The poor things never see the light of day until they are trucked off to be killed. There are always a couple that escape the trucks and make a jump for freedom, only to land on Route 50 or 113, to be run over in the end.

I'm not a PETA member, but I would rather have a chicken from a neighborhood farm than one of these pathetic Perdue or Tyson specimens. Or, even better, I would prefer to raise my own.

Free range chickens has less body fat and little tougher, also the flavor is stronger.

Also never slaughter chickens in front of other chickens. Turkeys your best bet in stick them burlap bag with hole in it. Cut of the head and then hang the bag.

[JohnRandolph]

Not really. When I moved to the Eastern Shore, I became really aware of the chicken farms down here which produce chickens for Perdue and Tysons. I never really thought about chickens until I saw the way they are mass "produced" and then carted off to be slaughtered. The poor things never see the light of day until they are trucked off to be killed. There are always a couple that escape the trucks and make a jump for freedom, only to land on Route 50 or 113, to be run over in the end.

I'm not a PETA member, but I would rather have a chicken from a neighborhood farm than one of these pathetic Perdue or Tyson specimens. Or, even better, I would prefer to raise my own.

I have several friends with houses for both Tyson and Pilgrim. Personally, I have no problem with the "poor things". Chickens are dumb as rocks. BUT the quantities of antibiotics required to raise ten thousand birds in a house is staggering. Also, those full grown birds are about six weeks old. That takes a lot of hormones, which make it onto your plate.

[seagull]

I have several friends with houses for both Tyson and Pilgrim. Personally, I have no problem with the "poor things". Chickens are dumb as rocks. BUT the quantities of antibiotics required to raise ten thousand birds in a house is staggering. Also, those full grown birds are about six weeks old. That takes a lot of hormones, which make it onto your plate.

That too. There is a company in Millsboro Delaware from the Netherlands which specifically researches and produces hormones for chickens, and sells to the chicken farmers here. I was also amazed at how quickly they have a full grown bird. Also, we have the added problem of these hormones getting into our drinking water.

[Safiel]

Are the turkeys a big commitment, or much the same as the chickens?

Depending on the breed you select, they can be more or less problematic. Particularly on very large breeds like the Broadbreasted Bronze, you have to be careful on how much you are feeding the birds as they will bulk out very fast, sometimes too fast, with their weight outpacing their skeleton and muscular system, resulting in problems. Also, you have to be ready to slaughter the birds as soon as they reach the proper weight, as many of the larger turkey breeds can literally suffocate under their own weight.

Personally, if you are inexperienced, I would recommend a smaller breed, such as a Midget White, which can pretty much be left to forage and range at will and can be slaughtered at your convenience.

[Conan]

Personally, if you are inexperienced, I would recommend a smaller breed, such as a Midget White, which can pretty much be left to forage and range at will and can be slaughtered at your convenience.

Pretty much the same with Bourbon reds.

[Databyter]

Well, you would be wrong, I guess.




http://www.kpbs.org/news/2012/feb/01...ard-chickens-/

My city is lucky to be able to afford police to catch thugs.

I don't think they will be wasting any time with the chicken police in times when people are getting hungry and it makes sense.

I never got the whole liberal thing against urban gardens and animal husbandry.

I mean obviously we don't want pig sty's next door, but a few chickens and a garden in a big yard should not be any issue, especially going into the next depression with a family.

The linked story, far from making me wrong, proves my point.

All the lib regulations against people doing smart things with their own property are falling to the wayside as people attempt to survive in a dwindling economy.

[Gaetano "Tommy" Lucchese]

Urban homesteading is the new hot ****.

Apparently there are issues that liberals and conservatives can agree on, and it's chickens.

[Gaetano "Tommy" Lucchese]

[Gaetano "Tommy" Lucchese]

Are the turkeys a big commitment, or much the same as the chickens?

We have an absolute plague of wild turkeys in Pittsburgh, and they seem pretty well fed, so I guess they can't be too hard to raise.

[EnchantedFrog]

When I was in college in the 70's, I lived in a big house with three other guys.
We raised chickens, goats, and rabbits. Bought fresh whole milk from the local dairy farm.
And, supplemented this with fish, armadillo, and various other foodstuffs from our camping expeditions.
We ate pretty damn good on the cheap.

[jeepers]

I wouldn't do it on my property, the HOA would probably have a fit. But even if it didn't, I wouldn't do this sort of thing unless I lived on a large piece of ground and could cordon off that sort of 'farm activity'. My parents were raised on farms, so I have no romance regarding chickens, and would like to keep their waste in a controlled area. Bird poop when composted = great fertilizer. Bird poop all over my backyard = nasty and potentially cootie-filled. And you couldn't pay me to clean a coop. As nasty as it gets.