Keeping Chickens - Is It Worth It?

This post is solely based on OUR chicken farming 'experience' and if it has been worth it for OUR family.  There are too many factors otherwise to make a blanket statement that chickens are worth it for everyone's situation.  Just sayin'. :)

For inquiring minds, we only have a whopping number of 3 chickens at the moment.  Two Ameraucanas and one RI Red/Delware cross.  Not sure if thats even enough to classify as a flock?

The Cost of Keeping Chickens
We purchased our hens from local farmers as pullets (a young hen, less than a year old).  All three for $36 total.  We choose pullets over baby chicks because we didn't want to buy incubation/warming equipment, and wanted birds that would start laying that same season.  This also decreased the chances of accidently receiving a Rooster.
Chickens don't need much thankfully.  They need water, feed (less to none if allowed to free range) and shelter.  Our upfront cost for all chicken equipment was around $300.  Jonathan built a chicken coop from all new materials and we purchased a decent gravity feeder and waterer.  MTV Chicken Crib post here.

Our feed costs are low since they are typically free range/pastured most of the year.  We supplement with a natural feed (roughly $14 per 50lb bag) on days we don't let them out and through the winter.  Yearly feed costs are about $50 or less.

Cage Free, Organic, Vegetarian Fed, Free Range, Pastured?
I just want to briefly touch on the above egg carton labels.  From my reading there are no regulations on these labels.  So cage free could just mean not in a cage but still confined in a barn to feed.  Free range could mean close to the same thing, maybe some 'outdoor' time.  Organic means no hormones, meds, non natural chemicals, etc. including in their diet.  Vegetarian fed means just what it says..... but chickens are not vegetarians.... they're omnivores.  Pastured is the only label that means chickens are allowed to roam and forage in the outdoors.

Health Benefits  (I had to do math, which I dislike!)
The Incredible Edible Egg
Thankfully lots of research has been done to back this up.  As I mentioned in my pastured pork post, animals are what they eat.... so are hen's eggs.  The study listed at Mother Earth News says-
 "Our testing has found that, compared to official U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) nutrient data for commercial eggs, eggs from hens raised on pasture may contain: 

• 1/3 less cholesterol
• 1/4 less saturated fat
• 2/3 more vitamin A
• 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids
• 3 times more vitamin E
• 7 times more beta carotene
• 4 to 6 times more Vitamin D (their bodies convert the received sunlight to vitamin D, like humans do, which 'enriches' the egg)

Study from Mother Earth News article here.

So I did math for a side by side comparison showing the possible nutritional difference.  Mainly because I was a little skeptical if the above findings made a major impact.  Here's the breakdown that gave me a headache figuring it all out (stinking unit of measures).  I will let you decide if the difference matters to you.

Another note: This chart is based on my reading and research, I am NOT a doctor nor a certified smarty pants.  I did the best I could with what I found to provide only helpful insight.  Feel free to inform me of any mistakes, seriously.

Do Hens Earn Their Keep? (i.e. Pay For Themselves)
Our RI Red mix lays 1 egg a day almost every day of the year.  To be on the conservative side I will say she lays 330 eggs a year (since she misses some in the dead of winter and while molting).  The other two lay for three seasons, taking a break during winter and molting season.  So we'll estimate their laying at 233 eggs each per year.  That gives us a total of 796 eggs per year, or 66 dozen.  Think thats more than you can eat?  You would be surprised. (from a quick google search the average American eats 250 eggs per year, thats just one person to re-iterate my point, there are 4 egg liking people in our house).
The price of commercial eggs here is currently $2/dozen.  66 dozen (what we get in a year) at that price would be $132 yearly savings.
The price of local cage free or organic eggs (not pastured) here is currently $3.25/dozen.  66 dozen at that price would be $214.50 yearly savings.
Pastured egg are hard to find for purchase (they are not at my standard stops anyway).  A farm near me sell them for $6.50/dozen.  66 dozen at that price would be $429 yearly savings.

Hens will lay eggs for a solid three years then begin to teeter off, becoming less productive.  Using the cheapest egg price that would be $396 worth of eggs over three years.  So yes, they do pay for themselves.  Remember we only have three chickens, the more layers you have, the faster they would pay for themselves (again, in regards to our situation).  Lots of people sell their excess eggs which turns a profit even quicker.


Taste-
I can again vouch (as I did with the pastured pork) that pastured eggs taste is superior to store eggs.  Commercial egg's taste are noticeably bland in comparison.  Below is a picture comparison of the two, store bought on left, fresh on right-

Photo compliments of Flumgummerie Farm Blog

So I don't feel it is fully fair (in regards to worth) comparing commercial egg's price to pastured egg's price.  It's a higher quality product all around.

One last argument-
Since we have eggs constantly accessible, I have found that I cook with them more.  I make more meals with them (breakfast, lunch AND dinner), and take egg dishes to more potlucks.  Eggs do NOT just have to be breakfast meals, though we love breakfast for dinner, but paired with other ingredients can make amazingly and seemingly fancy dinners.  For example, to name a few-

• Top toast, asparagus, ham, swiss cheese and cream sauce with an over easy egg (Rachel Ray's more involved recipe here)
• Mix ricotta cheese and chives in with scrambled egg (ridiculous)
• Top lentils in a mustard vinaigrette with an over easy egg (could make lentil haters none haters, Jonathan LOVES this one)
• Top a steak with a fried egg (steak and eggs!)
• Add a hard boiled egg to a salad (Cob and Chef salads have it)

Anyone else have an egg dinner recipe to share, or any other egg dish they love?

Its nice having them on hand for kids lunches and those egg heavy desserts you might not usually make otherwise.

To end, I wanted to clear up a widespread misconception-  Commercial eggs are NOT fertilized, (can you imagine the poor Rooster in those large operations if this were the case) so you are NOT eating a baby chick.  Therefore....  you do NOT need a Rooster for your hens to lay eggs.

The end-

Chicken Tip:  The fluffy poof part under their tail is called a Vent.  A large Vent can be a sign of a good layer.  The one on the right is our most consistent layer.