Chances are, backyard chickens are kicking up dust in a yard near you. More and more people in urban and suburban areas are keeping these familiar yet exotic birds and smiling about it.

Could chickens help you be happier? Here’s a flock of ten reasons they just might.

Reason #1: Fresh Eggs Are Tasty

Philosophers can argue “which came first, the chicken or the egg?” until the cows come home, but for chicken keepers the answer’s clear: It’s the eggs.

In a recent poll at BackYard Chickens, 92% of responders said that one reason they keep chickens is for the eggs. Ron Ludlow, the owner of the site, acknowledges the growing popularity of “the pets that make you breakfast!”

Home cooks are discovering that super-fresh eggs from your yard are the secret ingredient that makes extra-special omelets, souffles, and much more. Even a simple fried egg is a delight when you know exactly where it came from.

Reason #2: Chickens Are Surprisingly Good Pets

Even for people who begin keeping chickens for the fresh eggs, these curious and quirky birds often become favorite family pets.

Darrell Schoeling and Jeff Corbin have been keeping chickens in New Paltz, NY for several years now. Although initially reluctant, Darrel has jumped into the hobby with an enthusiasm matched by his birds’ personalities.

Along the way, he’s had many “Oh, I see” moments including this one: “I had no idea they’d be so interactive,” he admits. “They come running when they see us. Our chicken Penguin loves to sit in my lap.”

Reason #3: They’re Cute or Beautiful or Weird-Looking (or Sometimes All Three)

If you think of chickens as dull, brown birds, look again. Chickens come in an astonishing variety of spectacular color combos, from the sublime to the outrageous.

The Extraordinary Chickens books and calendars by photographer Stephen Green-Armytage show off many unusual breeds. They have a devoted public, eager to gawk at the latest in poultry pulchritude.

Reason #4: Because You Can

City zoning laws permit chickens in a lot more places than you might think. For example, you can keep chickens in New York City or Las Vegas (though in both areas, as in many others, noisy roosters aren’t allowed.)

Businesses like NYC’s Victory Chicken, are helping people in big cities “bring the chicken back into everyday American life.” With an all-in-one package of coop, chickens, supplies, and training, it’s easy to get started, and services for feed delivery, coop cleaning, and chicken check-ups help out later.

You can visit BackYard Chickens to learn more about local zoning laws in your area, and there’s help on legalizing chickens at My Pet Chicken.

Reason #5: You’ll Be in Good Company

There’s an impressive and growing community waiting to welcome you once you take the poultry plunge.

When Ron Ludlow launched BackYard Chickens in 2007, its forum had about 50 members. That number jumped to 1,000 in 2008 and 25,000 in 2009. Today, the site has over 235,000 members.

Of course, you can connect with chicken celebrities, too, such as Andy Schneider, aka The Chicken Whisperer, whose internet poultry show offers advice on everything from raising chicks to showing prize-winning specimens. His guests are a veritable who’s who of chickendom.

Even the literati have gotten involved. Pulitzer-Prize winner Alice Walker joined the chicken brigade with her heart-warmingly goofy memoir The Chicken Chronicles.

Reason #6: Kids + Chickens = Learning Galore!

Keeping chickens can help children learn about responsibility, life cycles, ecology, and animal behavior, all while having fun with a flock of feathered friends.

Some kids get so involved that they begin to raise and show chickens with organizations like 4-H.

Reason #7: Super-Rich Soil is a Fantastic Freebie

Fantastic soil is yet another by-product of chicken keeping. Darrel Schoeling boasts that the soil produced by composting his flock’s litter is “the envy of the New Paltz Gardens for Nutrition.”

Feed your chickens nearly any kitchen scraps that you’d compost and they’ll turn them into luxurious, nitrogen-rich soil.

Reason #8: Bugs Away!

Another handy side effect of chickens is their voracious appetite for creepy crawlers.

Happy chickenistas report their birds chomping on grasshoppers, fleas, flies, fire ants, grubs, and pillbugs. They’ve even been seen snacking on scorpions, beginning with the troublesome stinger before getting to work on the rest of the bug.

Reason #9: Going Slow Can Keep Diversity Alive

Chickens are a simple way that many people can participate in the slow-food movement. While most people don’t have the resources to start a self-sustaining organic garden, many have the space available for a handful of egg-laying hens.

This movement to keeping backyard chickens is a move toward self-sustenance with global benefits for food production. And home farming of chickens offers another important fringe benefit—breed diversity.

For efficiency, factory farms keep a very limited number of chicken varieties. Backyard chicken fanciers, however, keep a huge number of rare, heritage breeds that might otherwise go extinct.

Reason #10: Clucking Can Cheer You Up

No matter how you look at them, chickens are kinda funny, which is a very good thing. Backyard chickens can be a natural anti-depressant. Making you laugh is just one more way these friendly fowl can help you be happier.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

$\"Backyard$

Here, chick chick chick. Come to my house!
\u00a9 sherjaca\/Shutterstock<\/p><\/div>\n

Want to Be Happier? Go to the Birds!<\/h2>\n
Chances are, backyard chickens are kicking up dust in a yard near you. More and more people in urban and suburban areas are keeping these familiar yet exotic birds and smiling about it.<\/p>\n
Could chickens help you be happier? Here’s a flock of ten reasons they just might.<\/p>\n

Reason #1: Fresh Eggs Are Tasty<\/h4>\n
Philosophers can argue “which came first, the chicken or the egg?” until the cows come home, but for chicken keepers the answer’s clear: It’s the eggs.<\/p>\n
In a recent poll at BackYard Chickens<\/a>, 92% of responders said that one reason they keep chickens is for the eggs. Ron Ludlow, the owner of the site, acknowledges the growing popularity of “the pets that make you breakfast!”<\/p>\n
$\"Fresh$
Fresh eggs will keep your sunny side up.
\u00a9 stocknadia\/Shutterstock<\/p><\/div>\n
Home cooks are discovering that super-fresh eggs from your yard are the secret ingredient that makes extra-special omelets, souffles, and much more. Even a simple fried egg is a delight when you know exactly where it came from.<\/p>\n
Reason #2: Chickens Are Surprisingly Good Pets<\/h4>\n
Even for people who begin keeping chickens for the fresh eggs, these curious and quirky birds often become favorite family pets.<\/p>\n
Darrell Schoeling and Jeff Corbin have been keeping chickens in New Paltz, NY for several years now. Although initially reluctant, Darrel has jumped into the hobby with an enthusiasm matched by his birds’ personalities.<\/p>\n
$\"Man$
Poultry pals
\u00a9 Jeff Corbin<\/p><\/div>\n
Along the way, he’s had many “Oh, I see” moments\u00a0<\/strong>including this one: “I had no idea they’d be so interactive,” he admits. “They come running when they see us. Our chicken Penguin loves to sit in my lap.”<\/p>\n
Reason #3: They’re Cute or Beautiful or Weird-Looking (or Sometimes All Three)<\/h4>\n
If you think of chickens as dull, brown birds, look again. Chickens come in an astonishing variety of spectacular color combos, from the sublime to the outrageous.<\/p>\n
$\"A$
A colorful hen party
\u00a9 Shutterstock, top row: sherjaca, Catalin Petolea, Bill Purcell
bottom row: Fotografiecor.nl, sanddebeautheil, sherjaca<\/p><\/div>\n
The Extraordinary Chickens <\/em>books and calendars by photographer Stephen Green-Armytage show off many unusual breeds. They have a devoted public, eager to gawk at the latest in poultry pulchritude.<\/p>\n
Reason #4: Because You Can<\/h4>\n
City zoning laws permit chickens in a lot more places than you might think.\u00a0For example, you can keep chickens in New York City or Las Vegas (though in both areas, as in many others, noisy roosters aren’t allowed.)<\/p>\n
Businesses like NYC’s Victory Chicken, are helping people in big cities “bring the chicken back into everyday American life.” With an all-in-one package of coop, chickens, supplies, and training, it’s easy to get started, and services for feed delivery, coop cleaning, and chicken check-ups help out later.<\/p>\n
$\"A$
Chickens are permitted in many cities
(though this rooster is probably out of bounds).
\u00a9 Dwight Smith\/Shutterstock<\/p><\/div>\n
You can visit BackYard Chickens<\/a>\u00a0to learn more about local zoning laws in your area, and there’s help on legalizing chickens at My Pet Chicken. <\/a><\/p>\n
Reason #5: You’ll Be in Good Company<\/h4>\n
There’s an impressive and growing community waiting to welcome you once you take the poultry plunge.<\/p>\n
When Ron Ludlow launched BackYard Chickens in 2007, its forum had about 50 members. That number jumped to 1,000 in 2008 and 25,000 in 2009. Today, the site has over 235,000 members.<\/p>\n
Of course, you can connect with chicken celebrities, too, such as Andy Schneider, aka The Chicken Whisperer,<\/a> whose internet poultry show offers advice on everything from raising chicks to showing prize-winning specimens. His guests are a veritable who’s who of chickendom.<\/p>\n
$\"Andy$
The Chicken Whisperer\u00ae knows his birds.
\u00a9 Andy Schneider<\/p><\/div>\n
Even the literati have gotten involved. Pulitzer-Prize winner Alice Walker joined the chicken brigade with her heart-warmingly goofy memoir The Chicken Chronicles.<\/em><\/p>\n
Reason #6: Kids + Chickens = Learning Galore!<\/h4>\n
Keeping chickens can help children learn about responsibility, life cycles, ecology, and animal behavior, all while having fun with a flock of feathered friends.<\/p>\n
$\"Girl$
Kids and chickens really click (and cluck).
\u00a9 Jeff Corbin<\/p><\/div>\n
Some kids get so involved that they begin to raise and show chickens with organizations like 4-H.<\/p>\n
Reason #7: Super-Rich Soil is a Fantastic Freebie<\/h4>\n
Fantastic soil is yet another by-product of chicken keeping. Darrel Schoeling boasts that the soil produced by composting his flock’s litter is “the envy of the New Paltz Gardens for Nutrition.”<\/p>\n
Feed your chickens nearly any kitchen scraps that you’d compost and they’ll turn them into luxurious, nitrogen-rich soil.<\/p>\n
$\"Backyard$
Kitchen scraps go in and fantastic fertilizer comes out.
\u00a9 schubbel\/Shutterstock<\/p><\/div>\n
Reason #8: Bugs Away!<\/h4>\n
Another handy side effect of chickens is their voracious appetite for creepy crawlers.<\/p>\n
$\"A$
Chickens eat almost anything that crawls.
\u00a9 Kirsanov Valeriy Vladimirovich\/Shutterstock<\/p><\/div>\n
Happy chickenistas report their birds chomping on grasshoppers, fleas, flies, fire ants, grubs, and pillbugs. They’ve even been seen snacking on scorpions, beginning with the troublesome stinger before getting to work on the rest of the bug.<\/p>\n
Reason #9: Going Slow Can Keep Diversity Alive<\/h4>\n
Chickens are a simple way that many people can participate in the slow-food movement. While most people don’t have the resources to start a self-sustaining organic garden, many have the space available for a handful of egg-laying hens.<\/p>\n
This movement to keeping backyard chickens is a move toward self-sustenance with global benefits for food production.\u00a0And home farming of chickens offers another important fringe benefit—breed diversity.<\/p>\n
$\"Two$
Two faces of chicken diversity
\u00a9 Imageman\/Shutterstock<\/p><\/div>\n
For efficiency, factory farms keep a very limited number of chicken varieties. Backyard chicken fanciers, however, keep a huge number of rare, heritage breeds that might otherwise go extinct.<\/p>\n
Reason #10: Clucking Can Cheer You Up<\/h4>\n
No matter how you look at them, chickens are kinda funny, which is a very good thing. Backyard chickens can be a natural anti-depressant. Making you laugh is just one more way these friendly fowl can help you be happier.<\/p>\n
$\"Backyard$
Could you keep a straight face around a mug like this?
\u00a9 Anna Hoychuk\/Shutterstock<\/p><\/div>\n
Comment<\/i><\/a>\u00a0<\/em>on this post below, or inspire insight with your own\u00a0OIC Moment\u00a0<\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":null,"protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":18046,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[109],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17982","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-discoveries-creative"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17982","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17982"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17982\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40930,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17982\/revisions\/40930"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18046"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17982"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17982"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.oh-i-see.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17982"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}