Can I Keep Chickens In My Garden?
As our bills increase and with further rises undoubtedly yet to come, we tend to think about saving money as well as utilising what we have around us which may use less utilities such as gathering wood to cook food in the fire pit or storing rain water for watering our plants. From growing your own fruit and veg for those of us with gardens to keeping chickens, there are plenty of ways in which we can use better our outside spaces.
Can I keep chickens in my garden? The good news is that in the UK the answer to this is yes though you must consider certain factors such as:
- Check the title deeds of your property, are there any restrictions / by-laws to what you can or can not do – As an example our property was built in 1908 and on the deeds are restrictions for serving alcohol as a business and not being able to store a mobile home in the front garden for prolonged periods!
- Make sure there are no restrictions via your local authority such as covenants.
- Is the property yours? If not you may have to ask what restrictions their might be with your landlord / local authority.
- DEFRA – Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will have a section dedicated to poultry and you should note that limits are set, ie how many chickens you can have, before you need to register.
Once you have made sure that you are clear to own chickens and have them on your land you should next consider the following:
- Have you really got the required space to own chickens? It is usually recommended that you have more than one chicken (ideally minimum three) and a chicken needs about three to four square feet of coop space per adult bird.
- Are you prepared to look after your chickens and provide them with the required living conditions, care and food? You will have to invest time and money when you own chickens, you can not simply hope to leave them to fend for themselves.
- Have you considered your neighbours? It is suggested to inform neighbours that you are going to keep chickens (especially if you get a rooster) as there is likely to be a touch of noise pollution as well, depending on how often you clean you pen/coop, smells also.
- Nuisances you need to try and keep to the minimum, mostly do not allow your chickens to escape to neighbouring property. Also consider that a chicken is a tasty meal for foxes so keep them locked up and safe, especially night time.
Now that we have considered everything we can go for it! Check online for the best local places to purchase hens or the breeds you are after. There are also plenty of communities on social media set up for people keeping live stock in their gardens so join them and learn from what other experiences are shared – It is said that over one million households in the UK have hens! There are many websites selling pens / coops for chickens from wooden to plastic constructions, there are also usually plenty for sale that are second hand (check Facebook marketplace and eBay). Likewise for chicken feed, online is the most convenient place to find the stock you require.
The real pleasure for many in having chickens at home are the eggs in the morning! Hens do not need to have a rooster in order to lay eggs so each morning, so long as your hens are in the mood, you are likely to have egg for breakfast.
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