The Chicken Story

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Image source - Dawn Allynn

I want chickens. There, I said it. I’ve been tossing the idea around in my head for a while but hadn’t put it out there in words yet. For a lot of people it sounds  a little … wacky. Chickens, as pets. Crazy.

Amy and Sarah have egg laying pets and I’ve been reading their chicken adventures for so long I’ve got a need to hold something feathery in my arms. And though Trish and Arp have ducks it’s still feathered fun running around and laying eggs. I want a chicken. I want a chicken.

I spent nearly two hours the other day explaining in great detail all the many reasons why I want chickens, what breeds I like the best, and how great of an experience it would be for the boys. I’ve got to beat Dearest down with ideas like this. His anti-hippie sensibilities keep him firm in the “livestock are not pets” mindset. It takes a lot of energy to get him past the eye roll stage to the “it might be a good idea” stage. I did it with cloth diapers, organic food, and vaccines. I will prevail gain. Of course it helps that I’ve got Christine here showing up unexpectedly and going into her own chicken wanting ides.

By the way, he thinks we’re like the Borg. One of us gets an idea and we all have it.

I’ve been spending too much time at Backyard Chickens, and chasing Dearest around mking him look at the pictures and posts linked to by Amy (Crunchy Domestic Goddess). I’m plotting how to build a coop, arguing with Dearest tht a coop is not the same as a cage and therefore does not violate our lease (hopefully the landlady will see it the same way), and making lists of the breeds that are gentle and hardy. Meanwhile Dearest has been rolling his eyes and fretting that after I get chickens I’m going to want a goat. That’s not totally out of the question actually.

It’s not like I’m looking to live in a shack in the woods, stock piling for the end of civilization, and staring out my window with my rifles and Nikon rifle scopes. I’m not going crazy doomsday, unibomber. I just want a few chickens, a small backyard farm, and an apple tree. Is that so much to ask?