Thinking about raising chickens because of egg prices? Before you commit to this, you might want to learn what you’re signing up for! Before diving into this rewarding hobby, it’s important to understand the time, effort, and costs involved. Here’s what you need to know to enjoy the luxury of farm-fresh eggs.
Your start-up cost for raising chicks & chickens can be costly, but you can plan ahead and buy a little at a time. There is plenty of time to have chickens, it can be next season or even the one after! Expect to pay somewhere around $1,000+ for a modest set-up… or better yet, take your time and build the coop of your dream.
Chicken Coop
A sturdy, weatherproof coop is essential for providing your chickens with shelter and protection from predators. Make sure it’s large enough to comfortably house your desired number of chickens, with nesting boxes for laying eggs, perches for roosting, and proper ventilation. How Much Space Do Chickens Need?
Chicken Run
A secure outdoor space where your chickens can exercise and forage. It should be fenced & covered to prevent them from escaping and protected from predators. It should be tall enough for you to easily access it for cleaning.
Bedding
Chickens need clean and dry bedding to keep them comfortable and to help manage waste. Pine shavings are a good choice and are readily available at feed stores. Use a good amount on the floor of the coop and in the nest boxes. However, sand in my opinion will make your cleaning chores a breeze!
Chicken Feed
A balanced and nutritious diet is important for healthy chickens. You’ll need to provide them with good quality chicken feed that’s appropriate for their age and stage of production. Organic feed is available if that is your choice, although it is substantially higher in price.
Waterer
Chickens need access to clean, fresh water at all times. Use a waterer designed specifically for chickens. If you start with chicks, you’ll need a special smaller waterer for them.
Feeder
A feeder designed for chickens or chicks will help keep their food clean and prevent waste. There are various types available.
Nesting Boxes
Hens need nesting boxes where they can lay their eggs. These should be clean, dry, and comfortable, with some privacy for the hens. You’ll need one nest box for every two hens.
First Aid Kit
It’s always good to have a basic first aid kit for any potential chicken health issues. It should include items like poultry vitamins, electrolytes, wound care supplies, and poultry-safe insecticides.
Chicken Wire or Hardware Cloth
To keep your chickens safe from predators, you’ll need to cover any openings in your coop or run with chicken wire or hardware cloth. Make sure it’s sturdy and predator-proof.
Cleaning Supplies
Keeping your coop clean and sanitary is important for the health and well-being of your chickens. You’ll need tools like a rake, shovel, broom, and a putty knife for regular cleaning.
Perches
Chickens need perches to roost at night. Provide them with sturdy, rounded, or flat perches that are at least 2-3 feet off the ground.
Dust Bath
Chickens love to dust bathe, which helps them clean their feathers and control parasites. You can provide them with a designated area filled with sand. Avoid using food-grade diatomaceous earth anywhere in your coop, this can cause serious health and respiratory issues in chickens.
Egg Collection Basket
If you’re keeping hens for eggs, you’ll need a place to collect and store the eggs. An egg collection basket or egg cartons are good options.
A Brooder for Baby Chicks
A brooder is an enclosure or container designed to provide a warm and safe environment for newly hatched chicks to grow and develop until they are fully feathered.
Heat Source
If you’re raising chicks, they’ll need a heat source to keep warm. This can be a heat lamp or preferably, a radiant heat brooder plate.
Thermometer for the Brooder
A thermometer allows you to monitor the temperature and make adjustments as needed to ensure that the chicks are comfortable and healthy.
Grit
Whether or not chicks need grit to help digest their food is controversial. Today, it is said that if feeding commercial feed, grit isn’t necessary. I’ll leave this option for you to decide.
Can You Have Chickens Where You Live?
Before you buy anything, make sure you’re allowed to have a backyard flock where you live. Check your local city ordinances, and remember, homeowner’s associations and residential subdivisions may have laws that aren’t included in government city ordinances.
The Cost of Getting Started
I certainly understand the cost of eggs has soared to an unreasonable price, and having your own fresh eggs every day sounds pretty nice. But like anything else, there’s a cost for that luxury. It has been said the cost of your first egg is $750, however, in today’s world, a $1,000 minimum may be closer to reality. Your baby chicks are going to need a brooder until they are 7-8 weeks old, then a suitable coop for the climate where you live. Don’t forget, there are numerous supplies needed to care for your chicks/chickens which we’ll address later in this article.
In short, you can buy an awful lot of eggs for the cost of having fresh eggs in your backyard, let’s face it, you’re going to pay for eggs one way or another. Don’t forget there’s also a monthly cost of keeping chickens, there’s feed, shavings for the coop, and other necessities and/or miscellaneous supplies.
The Brooder for Baby Chicks
A place to raise your baby chicks can be rather simple, a box will do, but chicks also need a drinker, feeder, and a heat source. Today, we use radiant heat, heat lamps are seldom used as they are difficult to regulate a consistent temperature, not to mention they are fire hazards. This means raising your baby chicks should be in the Spring, or when temperatures are moderate. Radiant heat is most efficient in temperatures above 55. Learn more about Radiant Heat Brooders.
The Chicken Coop
First-time buyers always buy a too-small coop, this will prove to be a mistake in the long run. Chickens need space in order to live in harmony, and happy chickens are what fill the egg basket. A coop should be easy for you to clean, and easy to gather eggs. It should be a suitable shelter for inclement weather and be predator-proof. And remember, you get what you pay for, buy quality, you’re not saving money if you have to buy a coop twice.
View Coop Types
How Much Space Do Chickens Need?
Where to Get Your Chicks and Choosing the Right Breed
Choosing a breed depends on what your chickens’ purpose is, egg production is the focus here, so learning about which hens are prolific egg layers is most important. Some breeds, especially exhibition or ornamental breeds have broody tendencies and are not a good choice for egg production. (A broody hen has a strong urge to hatch eggs, and a strong desire to sit on and incubate eggs. A broody hen will remain on the nest for extended periods of time, even when there are no eggs present. During this time she will not lay eggs.)
Most Common Broody Breeds
Buff Rocks, Cochins, Buff Orpington, Brahmas, Silkies, Sussex, Dominique, & Dorking.
Note: The Silkie is probably the most broody of all.
Most Common Prolific Egg Layers
White Leghorn: An excellent egg layer, leghorns produce 280+ eggs annually. They lay large quantities of big white eggs.
Rhode Island Red: An excellent choice for laying 260 large brown eggs annually.
Ameraucana: (Easter Egger) Producing around 250 eggs per year. The eggs are medium in size and can be blue, green, white, or tinted pink in color.
Polish Chicken (Top Hat) Looking for a hen with a little more character? The Polish hens lay about 200 eggs annually. This breed is not usually found in feed stores, but are available through online hatcheries.
Where to Buy Chicks
You can usually find baby chicks in your local feed stores, but you won’t have the opportunity to choose a specific breed. There are many hatcheries online that sell just about any breed you want, and your baby chicks will be shipped to your local post office. You will be notified when they’re shipped, and when they arrive. This is primarily how I buy all my birds.
Here’s a list of Hatcheries to choose from. Wondering how many chicks to buy?
Learn More About Which Breed is Best For You
Basic Start-up Supplies For Chicks
Brooder for chicks (Brooder Box Ideas)
Heat Source (Radiant Heat)
Bedding (Pine Shavings)
Chick Feeder & Drinker
Chick Starter Feed
Paper Towels (Best footing for the first week in the brooder. Also for pasting-up issues.)
Basic Start-up Supplies for Chickens
Coop
Fencing (with cover) for outdoor run.
Roosting Bar
Drinker & Feeder
Nesting Boxes (1 for every 2 birds)
Pine Shavings
Chicken Feed
Metal trash can for 40lb bag of feed
Rake
Wheel barrel (for cleaning & managing pine shaving transporting feed bags.)
The real question you should be asking yourself isn’t about saving money on the cost of eggs… it’s whether or not you want to raise chickens and enjoy fresh eggs. Because quite honestly, it’s far more expensive to raise chickens than buying eggs at Walmart.
TBN Ranch Chicken Keeping Resources 