My Pet Chicken Blog

Seriously, cats and chickens, seemingly mortal foes, can be good buddies! A bit over a year ago, my ten year chicken dream was finally realized. Four, seven-week-old pullets came home to our Tennessee hillside. My husband had built a fine coop and it was predator proofed to the max.  Said girls were named —names that […]

Chickens are so easy to raise that they fit almost anywhere. Many are in small suburban backyards where predator loads are smaller, and flocks are a little easier to protect. However, some of us live on larger, wilder land and have to deal with an additional variety of predators that would love a good chicken […]

Has your chicken math exceeded your run space? Have you decided to add a run to an existing coop for added predator protection? Whatever point you are at in your flock care you will eventually hit the point where you need to add some protected space for your birds. To inspire some ideas about designing your own custom […]

“Free Range Eggs!” Before having chickens of my own I though this was the gold standard of eggs and what I should look for.  You don’t want eggs from chickens that are confined, right? Well, when looking into the horror that is factory egg production I realized that a “Free Range” stamp was not all […]

It’s the one thing most people forget, but it’s also something that should be done daily make sure your flock is safe! It doesn’t take long; it will probably take 2 minutes or less. What is it? A daily coop damage inspection should be a part of your regular maintenance routine!  Having a predator-secure coop is […]

When your chickens are refusing to roost in the coop, it can be a big problem. A group of cats is called a glaring, which well describes the look cats give you if you try to herd them. This look is often bestowed from above, as out of reach as possible… or from beneath the […]

Connecticut’s state motto: “He who is transplanted still sustains.” This is so fitting! We moved in November of 2013 from a rural/suburban New England town to our current residence in Connecticut, and have been fighting ever since to sustain our dwindling flock of chickens. While we had run-ins with predators at our old haunt—including raccoons, hawks and coyote—it […]

This morning I could hear the yipping and howling of coyotes down in our holler. Even so, I’m not too worried; I have roosters to help keep a look out. But how can roosters hope to deal with coyotes? Let me explain! Coyotes are in my area year-round, but we tend to be aware of […]

Have your chickens ever encountered a skunk? The other morning I had a chicken skunk encounter–yikes! It happened quite early in the morning when I was out taking sunrise photos.  I especially love those rosy mornings in spring and fall, where the light casts everything as pink. Our silvery old barn is always a little […]

Chickens and dogs: they don’t naturally get along. A reader writes to “Listen Lissa,” asking how to handle the loss of her chickens to a neighbor’s dogs: My neighbors’ dog gets out of their house a lot. Twice he got into my enclosed chicken yard and has now killed half of my hens. How do […]