The Benefits of Having Chickens

OK, this is going to be another chicken post, so feel free to skip it if you are sick of my chicken obsession. LOL!

But we have had so many unexpected benefits from raising chickens, and I was just thinking about this today. When we started this, we really had no idea what we were getting in to - it seemed like a fun thing to do and we were just hoping it was as easy as the people we spoke with told us it was.

We have reaped SO many benefits from this process though! Here are some of the unexpected rewards I've seen from our chicken venture:

1. It has *really* instilled a sense of responsibility and re-enforced a strong work ethic in my children. They are involved in the process of caring for the chickens - from helping me incubate the eggs to feeding every day and helping with watering... they really care for these birds and have been amazingly responsible and enthusiastic about it - even on days when we've been out there caring for the chickens in the pouring rain!

2. It has brought our family closer together and given us a joint venture that we all enjoy - from the 18 month old all the way to my husband - we ALL love caring for the chickens and watching them grow and prosper. Every evening at "chicken time", our whole family goes out there and we feed and water the chickens, check on them, make sure everyone is doing well, and then often we sit and watch them for a while and talk and plan. [If only the mosquitos weren't so accursedly prosperous around here we'd sit and watch them every night].

3. It has been extremely educational, for all of us. From the process of incubating and hatching eggs to raising newborn chicks, to caring for adolescent and adult birds - we have all learned a tremendous amount. In addition, it has been a HUGE teaching opportunity with our kids as they gear up to sell eggs - they have been involved in every step of the process - from helping to decide which hens would be best to raise for eggs, to discussions on feed costs vs profits and achieving maximum feed efficiency, to helping make decisions on how money is spent for construction and buying new birds - they have established their own little business now and they have learned TONS about business and finance. It has been irreplaceable experience that I never expected to get from a few birds!

4. It has also increased their understanding and knowledge about food - the quality of food, where food comes from, why some food is better than other food. Now, we have always done this to some extent through using and discussing organics vs non-organics, etc. But this has taught them in a way far beyond that. It has spurred discussions on the ethics of raising meat and eggs, the potential dangers of "factory farms", the benefits of raising one's own animals and treating them well. It has helped them understand their food choices in a way that I don't think they would have gotten otherwise.

5. It has helped them have a more accurate historical perspective. They understand the work that goes in to maintaining their food animals and that gives them a connection to the past that they would not have otherwise. When we read in "Shades of Gray" about a Virginia family that was facing near starvation in the months after the Civil War [after the soldiers took all their livestock and burned all their fields], my children understand *exactly* how amazing the gift of a basket full of chicks from one neighbor to another was - they know what that really means for the family who received such a gift! I like that.

6) It has given them an opportunity to share the fruits of their labors with others. They feel such *pride* when they take a dozen eggs to a friend or a neighbor as a gift - THEY raised these chickens, cared for them, and they have these eggs to share because of their own efforts - sharing that is an amazing thing for a kid to be able to do!

There are many more benefits I've been contemplating, but the toddler just woke up from her nap, so I guess those will have to wait!

Anyway, I'm so glad we bought some chickens! ;)