It's not just for sleepy farms anymore. Blurring the lines between city and country, more and more urban dwellers are raising chickens (and collecting lots of eggs) in their own backyard.
It's happening all over the US in cities like Seattle, Chicago, Boise, Portland, NYC, LA, and Phoenix. With a little care and dedication, it seems you can even raise them on your rooftop.
Think of these as utilitarian pets. If you're a green thumb, they provide great fertilizer. All you need is a little coop with some food, water, pine shavings and you're good to go.
Novella Carpenter, one of the early urban farming pioneers, started her farm in Oakland, Calif. ten years ago in a vacant lot. She started out with a few chickens, but she soon had bees, turkeys, ducks, rabbits and even pigs. She chronicled her experiences in her recent memoir, Farm City. Barbara Kilarski's Keep Chickens! Tending Small Flocks in Cities, Suburbs and Other Small Spaces is another reference guide on the art of rearing chicks.
So if you've always wanted a cat or dog, perhaps it's time to consider a chicken or two. They produce food for you at the very least, giving themselves a multi-tasking edge over other domesticated animals.
