Chickens and children go well together. Raising a few pet chickens in a backyard coop allows children to watch the chickens and become familiar with their daily routine. A good type of hen house is the chicken tractor. This is a portable coop that houses a few chickens on an upper level, leaving the lower level open for grazing. The fully fenced and enclosed hen house can be moved around the yard as needed to accommodate the chickens feeding.
Hens Make Excellent Pets Especially When They are Acquired as Chicks
Hens are interesting and fun birds, each one with her own personality. If the chicks have grown with the family from a very young age kids can learn to handle them gently and maybe even pick them up and cuddle them,
Kids can easily learn to do some of the daily tasks of caring for chickens with their parents, such as feeding or cleaning the pen. Children can bond with hens and learn about being responsible and how to give them loving care. They soon come to understand how the chickens depend on their morning and evening visits to feed and care for them.
Children Learn First Hand About Food Production
When children help to care for chickens they see the very beginnings of where food comes from. A child may see the work a hen goes through to lay an egg or get a chance to hold a newly laid egg that is still warm. And finally, if the kids have the job of collecting the eggs from the nesting area, they have the thrill of bringing a few at a time into the house to use for cooking or baking.
Backyard Eggs Give Better Nutrition
Home grown generally means better nutrition. Foods lose nutrients during storage and travel. Home grown chickens can graze on grass. Jo Robinson, author of Pasture Perfect (Vashon Island Press, 2004) and Eatwild.com has found pasture-raised eggs to have higher nutritious value than eggs from factory raised chickens.
The difference, she says, is in the feed. "Fresh grass is a very good source of omega-3 fatty acids and carotenoids.” One more reason why raising backyard chickens benefits the whole family. And the family gets better nutrition from their own home grown food.
Learn About How to Raise Backyard Hens
Raising hens in the backyard for eggs or pets is growing in popularity. More families are wanting to give their kids opportunities to get involved in producing food. One excellent website full of tips and information about caring for hens is Graeme Young and Meg Howe's website. These New Zealand farmers share their expertise about teaching children to look after chickens. They address many questions about how to set up a small chicken coop in the backyard
Not only can backyard chickens provide a family with fresh, nutritious eggs, they can also teach young children new skills. When hens are raised from chicks they make perfect pets that allow kids to experience the responsibility of looking after animals who are dependent on them.
Clara Lovatt - Clara’s passion is to provide quality child care where young children can grow and be happy in healthy, loving environments. She ...
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