6 Reasons to Raise Chickens

When we moved onto five acres and inherited the chickens that came with the house, I had no idea what was in store. But I am in LOVE! My husband keeps telling me that I need to treat them as farm animals, which they are, but they are so much more. And nothing he says will ever change how much I enjoy them. If you are thinking of getting chickens, here are 6 reasons to raise chickens to nudge you along in your decision.

6 Reasons to Raise Chickens

1-They love to eat insects, making your extermination service a lot cheaper.

2-They will eat any fallen fruit from trees before insects are attracted.

3-Chicken poop is great fertilizer.

4-Therapy & Entertainment. Plain and simple. They always love to see you and run up to you. It sure makes you feel a lot happier! Spending time with your feathered friends is just like watching ‘chicken TV’ and it’s hilarious. I was quite simply shocked how much ‘peace’ it adds to be outside with them. I had a friend over recently who also commented on how therapeutic it is to be around them.

5-Backyard hens’ eggs (assuming the chickens are free range) are also much healthier and tastier than the grocery store eggs you buy. And you know exactly what they are being fed. Ours are more of an orange yolk, rather than the typical yellow color. Mother Earth Magazine describes the difference in an article entitled: Free Range vs. Pastured: Chicken and Eggs.

They report that their tested eggs contain:

1/3 less cholesterol
1/4 less saturated fat
2/3 more vitamin A
2 times more omega-3 fatty acids
3 times more vitamin E
7 times more beta carotene

6-And in our case, it’s like Easter every day since we have multiple colors of eggs every day without the hassle of food color or dye.

Here is Red eating right out of my hand. Just a cute girl!

Do you raise chickens? I would love to hear some of your top reasons to raise chickens in the comments below?