Thinking about getting backyard chickens? I considered it for YEARS.

We lived in an apartment in Rome when the idea first hit me but now that we’re nestled into our mini farm in North Carolina, having backyard chickens is one of those dreams that sounded so fun…and it totally is!

7 Things I love About my backyard chickens

Chickens are adorable.

Just look at them! I love all their feathers and faces. Plus, it’s a kick to see them wobbling around our yard like they run the place. (They do.) I also love my chicken coop. My husband built it and I’ll share more details on that soon. If you also want to make your own poultry farm in your backyard then AquaLib can surely guide you.

Baby Chick Cam: Day 3! 🍳 recipes coming… #minifarm

A post shared by Foodlets (@foodlets) on Oct 7, 2017 at 8:39am PDT

Chickens eat ticks.

Do they ever. Last year I had so many tick bites that I actually contracted a tick-borne illness, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. So did one of our kids. We were constantly pulling ticks of each other — dozens over the whole summer — and it was JUST as gross as it sounds. We’ve had backyard chickens for 8 months now and guess how many ticks we’ve pulled? Two.

Fresh eggs!

It’s hard to beat the color and flavor of eggs laid THAT DAY. Plus, we know exactly what our birds are eating (organic pellets, and I guess tons of ticks but stay with me here).

A post shared by Foodlets (@foodlets) on Apr 14, 2018 at 2:55pm PDT

Supporting healthy chickens.

Instead of being penned up with thousands of other birds and never leaving their cage or barn, our backyard chickens roam, cluck, run, even fly around all day long.

Built-in garbage disposals.

Did you know that one of the main contributors to landfills is actually leftover food waste? And that decaying food causes methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. Our eight chickens eat all the leftovers and food past its prime. Which leads to…

Free compost.

You can’t put backyard chicken droppings directly onto the garden because it’s too “hot”, and will damage your plants. But when I clean out my coop (every couple of weeks), I pour the whole wheelbarrow right into my compost pile. The heat from the compost breaks down any dangerous strains of salmonella plus, the nitrogen that makes it “hot” also decomposes into great fertilizer after a few months. Fore more updates follow millsriversdaschool .

Teaching kids where food comes from.

I love that our kids get a closeup on Mother Nature through our chickens. They see me feed the chickens, water them, keep the coop clean and then…all the fresh eggs we can eat!

So many birds, such a small door. Ladies, the idea is to go allll the way out. How many of our 10-week-old chicks can you spot? #dixiechicks #biggirlcoop

A post shared by Foodlets (@foodlets) on Nov 13, 2017 at 10:20am PST

If you’re considering backyard chickens of your own here’s my two cents: Do it!

Plus a few other ideas that have worked well for my family: