Backyard Chickens

This blog has nothing to do with physical therapy but instead is a reflection on my 4 years of owning chickens. I never gave chickens much thought other than what places had the most delicious chicken tenders but that all changed in 2020. During an afternoon walk, my wife and I saw some chickens running around in a neighbor's yard! They were very funny and entertaining and soon it became a routine to see if the chickens were out. Frequently we would miss them and be disappointed. What better way to address that disappointment than to own our chickens. So a few months later we got 4 chicks and raised them to grown hens! Below is my take on 3 benefits of having backyard chickens. 

• Eggs- Many people may not know that even without a rooster, a hen typically produces an egg ~25 hours when young. These pets aren't freeloaders and after about ~30 weeks of life our 4 chickens would easily produce a dozen eggs a week. The eggs our chickens would lay were usually a blueish white color or a greenish brown. Also, one unique thing about free range chicken eggs is they don't need to be refrigerated unless washed. Initially cooking the eggs took some getting used to, since they were room temperature they would cook quicker. 

• Entertainment- As stated earlier, seeing a chicken run is quiet the treat. They look very silly with their waddle and skinny legs. The neat thing about pet chickens too is they recognize faces and voices and would quickly come to greet my wife or I. It was fun peaking out the window and seeing a chicken strut around but if eye contact was made- they would work their way to the window. A few times, curiosity got the best of the chicken. It never crossed the street but it flew over our 4 foot fence a few times. Of course chickens don't want to be caught or wrangled when they need to be so my wife had some enjoyable moments watching me struggle to catch them. 

• Ease of Care- For pets, chickens are quiet simple. They need food and water. Filling their water was the most amount of work. Typically a $20 bag of feed would last a couple months. Besides filling water, biweekly they would need their coop cleaned. Other difficulties presented themselves in the winter with the frigid temperature but once hay was packed around the coop for better insulation, they were able to stay outside even during the negative windchill days. 

These 3 "Es" were my biggest benefit and enjoyment to having pet chickens. I focused on the positives but maybe next blog I will highlight some disadvantages or short comings. Regardless, the good outweighs the bad. We miss them and will probably get more next spring!

Brian Becker PT, DPT, SFMA, Certified Functional Dry Needling L2, Certified Sportsmetrics, Blood Flow Restriction Training (BFRT)