How easy and expensive would it be to keep chickens for pets?
Firstly get yourself a big old chicken house with a decent sized run. Available space ie garden, for them to run about in. And completely fox proof your pen. POL Pullets (Point of lay hens) range from about £15 upwards each. You will need to buy at least 3 as chickens need to be in groups. a 20kg bag of feed (mixed corn) costs me £15 and lasts best part of 7-8 months. You will also need some grit (chickens don’t have teeth so grit acts as this in their gut to help digestion) and also some layers pellets, you can order all this from your local pet shop. Never feed chickens any meat, but they will love all your leftover veggies and veggie cuttings. Hay and sawdust laid on a newspaper base is adequate for their house, and make sure they have perches inside too. You need to make a box for them to lay eggs in. They need to be cleaned out weekly. Chicken poo makes for great compost. I have 2 pekin bantams. I did have 3 but one died during bonfire night fireworks. You need to be aware of cats
