So you want to buy chickens? Here's what I've learned since raising my six chicks

Whether it's the price of eggs, the bird flu, politics, or a desire to control where your food comes from, people from every walk of life are taking the chicken plunge in 2025.

I walked into the grocery store this week as I count down the days until farmers’ markets return, and was met with an incredulous sight in the dairy aisle. One dozen eggs is priced at $8.24… and that’s not even the ‘organic’ or ‘free range’ variety. People have reported in different parts of the country that a dozen eggs can cost as much as $15 right now, which for a family of four or larger, is simply unsustainable.

It doesn’t help that a rampant bird flu is forcing farmers to kill off millions of their chickens as way to ‘slow the spread’ per the government’s rules. In 2024, the federal government ordered the killing of over 100 million chickens, which is why in February 2025, we are feeling the effects of such a massive massacre.

The result? Tractor Supply and other feed store employees are taking to social media proclaiming they have never in their lives seen so many people waiting to buy their chicks this week. According to some accounts, people are waiting outside in the parking lot to buy their six chicks and try their hand at chicken farming (in New York State, it’s law to buy a minimum of six chicks at a time).

And it’s not just the usual ‘suspects’ buying these chicks, like farmers, rural families, and gardeners - it’s yuppies, city-slickers, suburban families, and young people still in high school.

2025 is absolutely going to be the year of the chicken, which is why if you’re considering jumping on this feathered bandwagon, I am going to share what I have learned thus far raising six chicks from August 2024 until now.

Unlike the other debby downers that get online to tell newbies why they shouldn’t bother doing something, I am going to tell you why you SHOULD buy some chickens and raise them humanely at your property. Not everything about raising chickens has been obvious throughout my journey, which is why one of the most beautiful things about the internet today is that I can get on here and tell you all what you SHOULD know to be successful at this.

Note: I am not claiming to be a divine chicken expert. But I have firsthand experience raising chicks, to seeing them through -10F degree weather, to now collecting their beautiful eggs every day I plan to sell at my farm stand (and currently eat). I also grew up with horses, ponies, cats, ducks, and chickens as a child, so I entered into this world not totally clueless.

Chickens are sentient beings

I believe since chicken meat is such a commonplace purchase or element on a restaurant menu today, many people don’t realize that chickens are a lot smarter and come with many more ‘feelings’ than they want to admit. It’s easier to pretend that chickens are lacking in critical thought to justify eating pounds upon pounds of chicken meat each week.

I am not here to tell you to go vegan - I believe in local, sustainably sourced and ethically raised meat from small farms. However, we’ve become so detached from where our food comes from that people are largely unaware of how complex chickens truly are.

Chickens have emotional depth to them and will become bonded to you. Leaving them for days on end will make them sad. They have pecking orders within their flocks as well. They experience happiness, sadness, anger, and excitement. They need enrichment. If you are going to keep them in a coop and run permanently, they need suspended foods, swings, disco balls (yes, chickens love disco balls and shimmering lights), and toys. They want to spend time with you and will have a more enriched life if you are actively part of it.

If you want to let them free-range during the day (I will be doing this with mine starting in April), then understand you do run the risk of losing a chicken every now and then to predators. Everything wants to eat chicken. And even if yours do free-range during the day, it’s critical to have an enclosed coop for them to roost in at night. They want to be high off the ground on a perch per their evolutionary makeup. The perch should be sturdy and wide enough for them to grip it without causing foot injuries.

And when I say enclosed coop, I mean it. Weasels and all sorts of critters will find their way into your coop if it is not seriously constructed. The coop needs to be indestructible for their safety. The same goes for the run if you plan to let them out into an enclosure during the day. I have hardware cloth on the bottom of my run so nothing can burrow into the run and eat my chickens (critters will try). Hardware cloth has tinier holes between the wire than chicken wire, believe it or not. I would recommend choosing hardware cloth every time.

Chickens are big eaters

This one has been the biggest surprises to me so far on my journey. My chickens eat 10x what my cats eat in a day. Granted, I bought six black sex-link chickens, which means they are hybrids. Based on their coloring, they are a mix between Jersey Giants and Australorps, which makes them big girls. As big girls, they have BIG appetites. This is one of the reasons why I am letting them free-range come this April. They want to feast on everything from ticks to grasshoppers, and my 6.74 acres can provide them with all of that and more.

For right now while I have them in their coop and run, I provide them with the following daily:

• Nutrena chicken feed (I will be switching to making my own this spring)

• Hay/straw

• Fresh corn

• Fresh lettuce/cabbage

• Occasionally grubs (these are just so dang expensive)

• Occasionally sunflower seeds

• Food scraps

• Leftover meat scraps

This can add up. If you think chickens are going to be cheap, just know if you have no way to let them free-range, you will be spending a lot on their food. I recommend starting a garden near the coop so you can grow at least 50% of what they eat. They will eat just about anything you can grow in your garden.

That being said, chickens are a great addition to a garden if you let them out of the coop from time-to-time. Chickens can eat up to 80 ticks per hour and will feast on the pests that ruin your garden. But do note: chickens love to eat seeds. If you are laying down grass seeds, wildflower seeds, etc. this spring, you may not want to let your chickens out until the seeds germinate.

Chickens can be divas

Like I said, there is more to a chicken’s personality than you realize. Chickens do NOT like precipitation. When it rains or snows, mine run into their coop. They like to stay dry. They don’t want to be in standing water. You need to provide a place for them to be dry and out of the elements, especially if you live somewhere cold. You also need to make sure you have ample space for your chickens so they do not peck or fight each other.

Some breeds are friendlier than others as well. There are docile breeds that want to sleep on your lap. And there are sassy breeds that will try to peck your ankles. This depends on your objective with the chickens. Do you want high egg layers, meat production, a combo of both, or show chickens? You can have your pick! I selected my six girls because they were listed as ‘high layers.’ I plan to sell their eggs at my farm stand when I open it back up this April. My plan is to sell a dozen eggs for $5 each with a carton return bin. I am planning to add four to six more chickens to my flock as well so I am able to stock up a dozen eggs every one-to-two days.

Chickens will lay for years, but once they are done, many farmers will then process them for meat. It’s the circle of life. I will not be doing that because I am the biggest animal lover in the world, but it’s an unavoidable reality for larger families trying to get by.

Chickens are relatively hardy

I have had no health issues with my chickens so far. I did have one of the chicks end up with the start of ‘pasty butt,’ which is when poop and other materials get stuck to their vent and can cause them to get impacted - and potentially die. I rubbed (with a glove on) vaseline over the space, as well as olive oil, for a few days until it gently broke apart. You can’t just ‘rip’ the impacted mass off the chicken, or you risk ripping their skin off and causing infection.

Otherwise, my girls have been very hardy and happy despite these very cold winter temperatures. Different breeds are suited for colder temps, so if you live in Upstate NY like me, I would consider a New England chicken breed, like Jersey Giants or Rhode Island Reds.

When we’ve had our intensely cold nights, in the morning, I check on their feet to make sure none of them have frostbite. I also feel under their wings to check that their central bodies are warm. I have found if you load them up with lots of food, they stay warm in these temperatures. Plan to feed them more during the wintertime.

Otherwise, the rest of this is common sense. It’s being present. It’s spending time observing them. If you get to know their every move, it won’t be hard to figure out when something is wrong in the future.

Chickens require a mild initial investment

The biggest expense you are going to have when getting chickens is in their living quarters. You can find coop kits for a few hundred dollars through Tractor Supply or Home Depot. You will usually have to create the ‘run’ attached to the coop yourself. I did not want to have to take this on a solo, small female starting a farm, so I purchased a coop that already had a run.

If you’re wondering where to find such an item, look for local prefab shed stores near you. They will build these. If you’re in Appalachia, I recommend buying one from the Amish - that’s what I did. My coop and run together measure 10 x 12 and are on a bed of wood chips. I had a local shipper deliver the coop to my property. I break down what this cost me in this article here.

I believe it’s worth it to spend more on the coop and run than you may want to as it will save you a lot of repairs and frustrations in the future. Especially if this is your first-time ever raising chickens or any farm animal, you will want to focus on making sure they are happy and healthy as opposed to their coop roof collapsing in on them. Plus, remember, the coop and run need to be expertly sealed-in, or critters WILL enter your coop and kill your chickens. No open spaces!

You can do this

A lot of this is common sense. People want to pretend this is too difficult for a city-slicker to comprehend. Don’t listen to them. At the founding of this country, nearly 90% of Americans farmed. Your great-grandparents surely had chickens. You will notice the more time you spend with the chickens, the more you can feel the biological bond we have with them. You can tell we’ve evolved alongside chickens for thousands of years. It’s a pairing that just makes sense.

You feed them, shelter them, and love them, and they’ll give you the best eggs you’ve ever eaten. They’ll even pay for their rent if you sell the eggs at a farm stand (and grow 50% of their food).

Most importantly, the average age of the American farmer is over 60 right now, which means we are staring down a food autonomy crisis in the not-too-distant future. Controlling where some of your food comes from is the most addicting feeling in the world. Take it from me.

Lastly, don’t forget about bartering with your farm fresh eggs. I pay my neighbor in eggs to plow my driveway for free. There’s just something enchanting about cracking into a farm fresh egg that was laid next door to your property.

I cover all things land loans, starting a farm with no idea what I am doing, gardening solo, no-till farming, Amish architecture, working with the USDA, and so much more here in my publication.

As this is one of my free articles, here is my ‘buy me some seeds’ profile if you feel inclined.

All funds raised through this link will be 100% used to buy native seeds, plants, and my greater conservation work at the farm.

Thank you all: https://buymeacoffee.com/alexfasulo.

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