So, fall is here and the days are getting shorter and the air is getting colder. On the farm, we prepare for winter and start to think about what we want to do on the farm next year. You may be having the same thoughts. Those thoughts may include chickens. You may have a desire to build a backyard flock.

The first step is recognizing you have a problem. The next is finding a way to manage these cravings.

I thought this would be a great time to start a series on starting a backyard flock. This should give you plenty of time to prepare before the little peepers show up on your front step.

During the spring in our area, you can’t walk into a Tractor Supply or local feed store without hearing a very specific sound. A sound that gets your heart racing, your palms sweaty, and causes you to drift off into a fantasy world of what could be. That sound is the melodious peeps of chicks.

I find it entertaining to go over to the chicken corral and see what breeds they have in stock. It is equally entertaining to watch children beg their parents to buy them one or two or a dozen. Sometimes they even beg for ducks. Baby ducklings are adorable, but don’t be deceived. They are little Tasmanian Devils that rip through a brooder dispensing fecal material like some twisted, reverse Pez dispenser. Anyway, I hear these chicken-noobs asking the staff at Tractor Supply as many questions as possible as to how to care and maintain these little balls of fluff.

Chickens are like a gateway drug for farmers. Once you get a couple, then you want more. Before you know it, you are wearing suspenders, looking at new tractors instead of new cars, and up to your eyeballs in various farm animals. It happened to me. Yes, my name is Troy and I am a farm-aholic. Everyone say, “Hi, Troy”.

So, now you think you want to start down this path of farming madness by acquiring chickens. Uncertain where to start? Much like any endeavor, there are a million opinions as to how to get started. Here is where I suggest starting:

Consider why you want chickens

Chickens are very entertaining. I sometimes find myself standing in the pasture watching them scratch, preen, and make various odd sounds. Some people make them into pets. Sure, they won’t fetch the paper in the morning, but I can see the attraction to keep them as pets. Besides, you will never see a dog lay an egg, right?

Eggs and/or Meat?

If you just want enough eggs to take care of breakfast for your family, then 4 to 6 hens will be all you need. If you eat eggs once a week or less, then 6 chickens will give you enough eggs to share with your neighbors. This is something to consider especially if you need said neighbor to feed them while you are on vacation. Egg bribe – works every time.

Want clean, chemical-free chicken meat? Then raising poultry for butchering is another viable option. Many people scrunch their noses when I suggest raising meat birds.

“I could never do that. How can you raise a cute little animal then kill it and eat it?” they say.

I usually respond by saying I like to know where my food comes from. There are a great number of products out their that claim to be chicken, but I have my doubts. For example, Burger King has chicken fries. What the heck is a chicken fry? What part of the chicken is the fry.

Or the one thing that really freaks me out is seeing the package of chicken breast at the deli. These things are the size of a grape fruit. What are these, Dolly Parton chickens? Why are they round? I have never cut a round breast from a chicken. Creepy…

Depending on which you want, eggs or meat, your should take some time to select a breed. Some breeds are best for eggs others are best for meat. There are some breeds that are considered dual purpose.

In my next installment, we will talk about breed options and I will make suggestions based upon our successes and failures with certain breeds.