Animals on the Homesteading: Chickens
One of the most important animals to have for sustainability is a chicken. Chickens have the ability to provide eggs and meat. Although, if you butcher for meat, then you will not get eggs. So where do the eggs come from? Rooster (male) or hen (female)? The eggs come from the hens, which is why we tend to butcher the roosters or hens that no longer lay or that need to be culled. Eggs, themselves are full of nutrients that your body needs, and they are an excellent source of protein. Chickens have always been important for providing food. Chickens were so important, in history, that when people migrated to different places, they usually took chickens with them. Not only are chickens really neat animals, but they were a very important part of sustainability in history!
There are so many breeds of chickens. How do I know what to get? First, decide what your goal is. Do you just want eggs, or do you want meat? Or do you want both. If you want strictly egg layers, then select a chicken that has excellent egg layer capabilities. Leghorns, cinnamon queens, Rhode Island reds, and Australorps are a few that are considered excellent layers. If you are looking for meat, Cornish cross and freedom rangers are the choice you would make. What about if you want eggs and meat? This is what I look for. Orpingtons, Australorps, Barred Rock, Jersey Giants, and American Bresse are just a few.
Recently we decided to purchase American Bresse chickens. Not only are these the ultimate patriotic chicken (red comb, white feathers, blue legs), but they are truly a dual-purpose bird that allow us to reach our sustainability goals. They grow relatively quickly compared to other dual-purpose birds and they lay eggs to feed us. They are also able to breed, which is something that typical meat chickens cannot do. This allows us to incubate another generation of American Bresse chicks, thus helping us reach the goals we’ve set on our little homestead.