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Urban Chickens

Steps to Keeping Chickens in the City

Chickens are a low fuss, egg producing pet that don’t require a lot of space however there are a few things to bear in mind for keeping them in a city or non-rural area.

One - Make Sure of What You can Legally Keep

Urban areas may have restrictions on roosters, which are not generally accepted so well in non-rural areas. There can also be limits on the minimum amount of space required to be able to keep hens in most council areas.  So you should do a check with your local council on the requirements for keeping chickens in your area. 

You may need to check with your rental agency or landlord if applicable, the last thing you want is to get an angry landlord or rental agency calling you about strange chicken noises coming from your garden/property.

Depending on your situation, you may also like to check with your neighbours and see if they mind you having a chicken or two. Though chickens are usually quiet animals that likely would go unnoticed by your neighbours (they can certainly be much quieter than a barking dog) as long as they are secured well in your backyard it is unlikely your neighbours would have any concerns.

Two - Do Your Research on Breeds

Try to stick to quiet breeds that don’t require a lot of space. You will not want a noisy, large breed that tears up your garden, so research breeds that will suit the conditions of the area of land you have available.

Breeds that may be more suited to the city life include: 

  • Speckled Sussex – very sweet natured birds which make great pets, known as a great ‘starter chicken’ for children, due to their friendly placid nature. They are pretty birds and have beautiful specked plumage. They are a medium sized bird which produce good layers of light brown eggs, though they can go broody. They are very cute as chicks with a speckled brown colouration. 
  • Silkies – very cute ‘fluffy’ birds which children love. Silkies are a bantam breed, they are small and sweet. They lay smaller eggs with large bright yellow yolks. They are light birds and will not do much damage to your garden.  They don’t tend to wander far or fly – so it’s unlikely you will need to clip their wings. They can however be more prone to predators due to their size and inability to fly. They can sometimes have poor vision if their ‘top knots’ are too long and hang down in their eyes, so you must be prepared for a little grooming to maintain their lovely fluffy feathers. 

If space is limited try to keep it to 2-3 birds, they are flock animals so they don’t like being alone, however you also do not want to over crowd them and destroy your garden by having too many birds grazing and scratching around. You may even choose to have a mixed flock and try a mixture of 2 or more breeds.

Three - Find a Reputable Source From Which to Buy your Chosen Breed 

If you are after a particular breed then it is best to look at sourcing your chicks from a reputable breeder as less scrupulous breeders may try to pass hybrid chicks off as pure bred. You can also get good quality chicks from pet stores and rural supply stores. You can even get chicks or hens from animal shelters from time to time.

You will need to look at whether you prefer baby chicks, pullets (young hens) or hens (perhaps ex-battery hens). All have their advantages and disadvantages.

Wherever you buy from double check the chicks are sexed and that they are indeed females, the last thing you want is for that sweet little chick to grow into a rooster and get complaints from the neighbours from its early morning crowing. This is why it is sometimes better to buy older birds (4 months or older) as you are more easily able to tell the sex of older birds than chicks.

Four - Prepare your Garden

Protect new seedlings or younger less established plants.

Some breeds are more destructive than others but you still need to make sure the area of land you have available is prepared for the new additions. You would be sure to remove any possible hazards to the chickens, this includes any possible shard objects, poisons or things they may get tangled or caught in. You may also wish to look out for any plants in your garden that are poisonous to chickens. You should either remove such plants or prevent your chickens from foraging near them.

Common backyard plants which can be poisonous to chickens:

  • Beans - raw beans contain hemagglutinin, which can be toxic to chickens. This also means you shouldn't feed raw beans to your chickens.
  • Azaleas – all parts of these pretty plants can be toxic when digested by chickens.
  • Nightshades – there are many varieties of nightshade plant, such as eggplants and tomatoes, which can be harmful for your chickens.
  • Ferns – specifically the bracken fern is poisonous to chickens.

These are just some of the common plants on a property that may harm your chickens. You should do a thorough check of your garden and areas they will have access too, before you get your chickens. 

Five- Get housing organised

Predator proof housing is still a must. Ever though you may not see as many predators in the city, they still dwell in urban areas. Chickens in a garden area or  an unsecured coop are easy pickings to a fox, dog or cat if they can easily get in. In some countries, snakes can also be a problem predator to chickens. They will need to be housed in a secure coop with a cosy nesting box off the ground. Chickens love perching, especially at night. In the ‘wild’ chickens would naturally sleep up in trees to help protect them from nocturnal predators. So make sure you provide them with a few perch options inside their coops.

You will also need to give them a place to roam around in the day. If you have a very secure yard or garden area that they won’t easily escape from then you will find that it might be find to just let them have free range during the day, they will naturally want to return to their secure coop at night. However you might also need to give them a secure day run if your property isn't secure enough. A movable run is ideal as you can move it daily to fresh patches of grass and ground to scratch, dig and dust bathe.

Six - Find a Source a Good Quality Feed or Mash

Nutrition is one of the most important factors in keeping healthy, productive hens. Hens in smaller backyards may have less free access to a variety of natural feed sources (such as grasses, plants and insects) than hens on large properties. Therefore it’s important to make sure they are given a good quality, age appropriate feed. Fresh kitchen scraps are a good extra treat and gives them a variety of things to scratch around and peck at. You’ll quickly learn which things they enjoy the most however as a general guide they enjoy a variety of fresh fruit and vegetable scraps, such as leafy greens (lettuce, kale, spinach collards), corn, melon, berries (as a treat), banana (without the peel), broccoli and cauliflower.

Try to avoid green potato skins, citrus and foods that are too high in salt, fat or sugar as they tend to provide little nutritional value and can harm your chickens. If you are unsure about something in particular you wish to feed your chickens you may wish to look it up and make sure it is safe beforehand.

Seven – Provide a dust bath

Chickens love dust bathing, it is their version of showering or going to the day spa. It’s one of their favourite natural behaviour – along with scratching and pecking of course, it’s social and relaxing for them. Dust bathing is also a natural way for chickens to take care of their skin and feathers. They will dig a shallow ditch in soil, dirt, ash, sand even wood shavings then use their feet and wings toss it onto themselves. The dirt and soil coats their skin and feathers, and absorbs excess oil and moisture – this keeps their skin and feathers healthy and helps repels parasites that would otherwise set up home on the chicken’s skin.

It hot weather the will dig down to the cooler soil usually in the shade to rest.  You must provide your chickens with spots for them to perform this behaviour for them to stay happy and healthy.

Though be warned, even if you provide them with what you consider a great dust bathing spot they may still seek out your garden mulch beds or dig up some of your plants if given the chance.

You can give your baby chicks a little sand box for them to dust bath in while they are still small.

Eight – Introduce the birds safely to any other pets

If you are in the city or an urban area chances are you don’t have a great deal of space for a large number of animals to frolic; so if you do have a dog or cat you will need to introduce them to each other properly so they all get along in the close quarters of your garden area. Introduce them through a barrier at first, to help them get use to the smell and sight of each other. It’s better to introduce larger pullets or hens to pets as they are less defenceless than baby chicks. Introduce them over period of time and gradually get them used to each other under your supervision. Make it a positive experience for both your chickens and your pets, not stressful. A fully grown hen will usually be too big for a your average house cat to attack, however do take care with your pet dog as they can harm a chicken, even in play.

Chicken Checklist

You need to make sure you organise the following things for your new chickens:

  • Safe housing - with a dry warm, nest box.
  • Appropriate nutrition.
  • Places to perch.
  • Fresh, clean water.
  • Room to scratch and peck.
  • Dust bath.

Provide your chickens with these things and a nice sunny area to live and they will happily wander and scratch all day -giving you yummy eggs in return.

Are you thinking of keeping chickens?

If you are thinking of keeping chickens, then you should find our Poultry course a great way to build your knowledge.

Our courses are all studied by distance learning and available to start at any time.

Although you study by distance learning, we are always here to support you in your studies. Students have access to our excellent, highly knowledgeable tutors who will always provide help and guidance.

If you have any questions, or want to know more, why not get in touch with us today? Connect with our specialist tutors by submitting your questions to them.

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