The Happy Chicken

As with any pet or animal kept in the home, it is very important to make their welfare a priority. Part of the joy of keeping urban hens is the knowledge that your eggs are being supplied by healthy and happy birds, not those horrendously crammed into the battery crates that the egg industry relies on. Along with the general care and maintenance of your birds, most pet owners go that additional mile for their own, and below are some tips and tricks to help. These will not only add to your birds happy lives but can also result in higher egg yield, so there is no disadvantage.

1. Coop Flooring

Many keepers of urban chickens use coops with wheels allowing the change of location at any given moment. Whilst ideal for keeping the floor fresh and clean, it can bring problems with security, especially for those which aren't mesh lined.

Hens are destructive critters and those kept in static conditions will soon reduce any fresh, green flooring to hard bare earth. This causes particular problems when coupled with large rainfall leading to muddy and unhealthy conditions for the birds to walk around on. Grass clippings are an ideal remedy to this problem. They naturally break down without any fuss if spread thinly, allow a soft lining for the bird's feet and also encourage the hens to forage through the cut leaves. Another option is bark clippings, available from most nurseries . Make sure that they have not been treated with anything harmful, clippings for children's playgrounds are therefore ideal. These make an attractive flooring to any coop whilst adding a positive bonus to your hens lives as they rummage through looking for insects.

2. Greens and Extra's

Although hens can exist on a diet of fresh water and grain, it is your best interest to suplement their diet. This leads to both better lives and better eggs. Most scraps - not meat - can be used from the kitchen table, along with any leaves, peelings etc that were taken off before cooking. My hens love boiled potatoes, and become hysterical over cooked pasta. Experiment with different foods, they aren't usually fickle but some extra's will make them mad with joy.

3. Playtime

Whilst many owners prefer to keep their hens solely in their coop, hens can also be allowed out on a supervised basis. Wing clipping can be used if worried about your feathered friends making a bid for freedom, though species such as the fluffy silkie are unable to fly so this won't be a problem. Allowing your birds out for short periods, normally the maximum of an hour, allows them much needed exercise and you will often seem them dashing for dirt baths, rummaging around in the undergrowth for snails, slugs and other garden pests and socialising between themselves. If fed on a healthy green diet, and allowed out for only short periods, chickens shouldn't ruin most plants. Common sense needs to be used, protect small seedlings and vegetable crops such as salads and strawberries, but often they are far more interested in finding a juicy grub than snacking on a geranium.

By carefully assessing your hens' needs you can make sure that they live a happy and healthy life whilst providing you with much entertainment and fresh eggs. As animal cruelty and farming practice debates continue to rage, at least the home farmer can do their part to ensure their animals, pets, or family additions, are as best looked after as they can be.