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Backyard Chickens and Thoughts on Building a Hen House

By: Ann Thompson


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Everyone is getting into this new fad of raising backyard chickens, even the celebrities on TV are starting to realize how fun and useful this new idea is. A Hen House is not only a fun long term commitment, but also can be a really exciting weekend project for you're the entire family to get involved it, it's easy to do and exciting for everyone.

No matter if you are "empty nesters" just looking for some healthier choices in your lifestyles or if you have a family of 6 that you are tired of running out to get eggs all the time for you are sure to enjoy the benefits to having your own chicken coop.

Some interesting facts about backyard chickens you maybe didn't realize:

" You will spend on average of only about 5-10 minutes caring for your chickens.
" Most chickens lay on average 3-4 eggs per week.
" Chickens can and will lay eggs without a rooster
" A hen can live 20 years but that's not likely, the average is 5-10
" Chickens can fly, but only for short distances
" It takes 24-26 hours to lay just one egg
" There are 150 different varieties of domesticated chickens
" Chickens require 14-16 hours of sunlight each day
" Chickens with red earlobes lay brown eggs, white lobes, white eggs

If you are planning on building your own coop, it's important you know what you're getting into. A well laid out plan is essential to yours and their success. Even with the best intentions you may miss some critical areas of interest in hen house building. It is highly recommended that you find a good set of plans before you begin. It isn't crucial that you follow them to a tee, but they offer so much advice and planning tips that you can't miss out on, such as building the floor with a slope for easy cleaning, making it mobile to protect the chickens from harsh weather, lighting, entrances, etc.

Also, most people often start out with the idea of raising only a few backyard chickens, only to realize how great it is and want to expand, so make sure you build your coop at least a little bit bigger than your intentions in the beginning, it will make things easier if you do decide to build on at a later date.

And remember, coops do not have to expensive; you can easily build your coop with the best products available or just as easily used recycled materials from your yard and garage to build it. It's really more about the design then the materials that go into it. But you should always keep these 3 major things in mind. Protection. Maintenance. Ventilation. These will be the most frustrating things if you don't put the time into them in the beginning.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Visit my site at Chicken Coop Plans for more information on raising backyard chickens and hen house construction.

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