chicken pros and cons

Cons:
-messy! what most people don't expect when getting chickens is how much work it is. lots of poop. a good way of dealing with the poop is to compost it. gardens love it!
-loud. whenever my girls lay an egg they are very proud and have to tell the whole world about their accomplishment. so make sure your neighbors are okay with the sounds of farm life.
-predators. chickens have many predators: foxes, dogs, coyotes, raccoons, opossums, hawks, sometimes cats, people, other pets. make sure your chickens are safe from these guys.
-roaming. chickens are natural foragers and will often escape or get lost roaming. solution: an enclosed run, or a fencing system that keeps them where you want them to be. remember chickens can fit through very small areas so make sure its chicken proof.
-flies. flies are attracted to poop and pooping is one of the best things chickens can do. solution: fly traps, ordering bugs that eat fly larva, keeping the chicken area dry, frequently cleaning the run/coop.
-money. while buying a chick costs about $4-7, taking care of them can cost hundreds. a good idea, if money is an issue, is to go thrifty and buy used products for your girls. ex: wood for the coop, fencing, old wood ladders for perching, etc. but you can't do that with food. buying in bulk organic laying pellets costs around $25 for fifty pounds, which will last around 2 months for a flock of 5-8. growing your own veggies for the chickens is another great way to save $. also if your chicken gets sick you may need to spend $ for medicine.
-naughty. if your beautiful gardens don't want to get demolished or nice outdoor furniture/patio doesn't want to be pooped on, fencing can really come in handy. put fencing around your plants that chickens have access to because it will be gone in just days. and if you don't want to scrub poop of the porch don't learn the hard way like we did and use that good ol' chicken wire! you may also need to clip their wings if they figure out that they can "fly".

Pros:
-eggs! it is always so rewarding when collecting the many chicken eggs at the end of the day. and home raised chicken eggs definitely taste a lot better!
-"the girls": while being around my girls i have noticed their many funny personalities, and how funny they look and act. it's also fun when owning many different breeds and seeing how they interact with you and each other. and its always rewarding when they run up to you wanting attention.
-healthy. raising your own chickens are a lot more healthy than buying the chicken eggs at the store. there is more nutrition and less cholesterol in the eggs. because your chickens are privileged to exercising and eating a variety of foods.
-saving chickens. having your own chickens is also helping the cause of animal rights. the eggs you get from the store are from chickens who live in dark small battery cages and often die from cannibalism, trampling, disease, and being brutally treated by the workers. just go to GoVeg.com and see how people are treating animals.
-farm starter. chickens are great farm starter pets and if you love animals you will find yourself in heaven.
-fertilizer. chicken poop is a great fertilizer for gardens and will make your veggies taste all the more better!
-helping the environment. because you are raising your own chickens in your own backyard you are saving many different earth recourse's including electricity, gas, decreasing pollution, and more! and it also brings up awareness to issues about animals and our environment.
-fun! having chickens have been a blast! they are a big hit with my friends, family, and neighbors!
-pest control. having chickens roam around your backyard is a great organic way of getting rid of unwanted bugs.