I built a chicken coop, mostly as a hobby, and the eggs were a bonus.
the 1,000 in materials for the structure and 25 bucks a month in food and bedding make that amortization table go out a couple of decades before you see ROI.
I joke that they are the most expensive organic eggs you can buy. ;)
10 years back, we were getting eggs at something like 25c/egg in feed costs. But we had a bunch of birds that only laid every 2 or 3 days, so they were no where near as efficient as a first year dedicated layer. OTOH, they all had names, we had most of the egg colors, and the bantam eggs were so cute. And the one hen that basically only laid double yolkers.
Owners of coops know how different are those organic eggs. Totally diffrent color of yolks, also they have totally different smell when they are cooked.
I've noticed a fun split among people I know—those who grew up on a farm will move heaven and earth never to deal with chickens again, while people who grew up in cities or suburbs are really into the idea.
I'm married to someone who grew up on a chicken farm, have never so much as threatened to own a chicken, and still hear the litany of how awful chickens are at least a couple times a year. They're apparently really, really nasty animals.
Didn't grow up with chickens, but have had them for 8 years now. Easiest pet I've ever owned, and they provide eggs. Haven't seen a weed in the yard in years. They'll decimate a garden bed, though.
Grew up on a farm. Dealt with cows, horses, chickens. Chickens are by far the worst. Maybe bats would be worse. Happy to leave that as an exercise for someone else’s imagination
A chicken coop is a major time investment for most urban/residential owners.
Just keeping predators out alone is an ongoing effort, weather events damaging it, then the smell/near constant cleaning, sick chickens/vaccinations/health checks, and you better figure who is doing all of this if you ever want a vacation or are sick yourself.
If you're a full time farmer, this is just your normal day, and a personal chicken coop isn't even a blip. But people with no farming/livestock experience don't even have an idea of what they're signing up for. I've known two different people that didn't last two years and were out thousands.
And when the price of eggs go back down, taking it out is also work.
PS - Check local zoning/rules; for example some have size/chicken limits or require it to be XYZ feet from the property line (due to smell/noise).
My neighbor kept chickens in their backyard which caused issues in my yard with parasites and other pests. So it isn't even a PITA that you can contain to yourself.
spatley|1 year ago
I joke that they are the most expensive organic eggs you can buy. ;)
wiredfool|1 year ago
10 years back, we were getting eggs at something like 25c/egg in feed costs. But we had a bunch of birds that only laid every 2 or 3 days, so they were no where near as efficient as a first year dedicated layer. OTOH, they all had names, we had most of the egg colors, and the bantam eggs were so cute. And the one hen that basically only laid double yolkers.
_tariky|1 year ago
Owners of coops know how different are those organic eggs. Totally diffrent color of yolks, also they have totally different smell when they are cooked.
idlewords|1 year ago
bryanlarsen|1 year ago
tptacek|1 year ago
bombcar|1 year ago
kQq9oHeAz6wLLS|1 year ago
wglb|1 year ago
Fomite|1 year ago
jeffbee|1 year ago
The California Dept. of Food and Agriculture has numerous alerts on their site regarding H5N1 spreading in non-commercial backyard flocks.
Someone1234|1 year ago
Just keeping predators out alone is an ongoing effort, weather events damaging it, then the smell/near constant cleaning, sick chickens/vaccinations/health checks, and you better figure who is doing all of this if you ever want a vacation or are sick yourself.
If you're a full time farmer, this is just your normal day, and a personal chicken coop isn't even a blip. But people with no farming/livestock experience don't even have an idea of what they're signing up for. I've known two different people that didn't last two years and were out thousands.
And when the price of eggs go back down, taking it out is also work.
PS - Check local zoning/rules; for example some have size/chicken limits or require it to be XYZ feet from the property line (due to smell/noise).
shuckles|1 year ago
KaiserPro|1 year ago
16% in 2024 for the uk, but thats probably due to heating costs/the odd cull
I've personally not seen a massive spike this year
declan_roberts|1 year ago
And you can get an automatic coop door to make your life easier.