What Do Chickens Need To Survive?

If you’re asking yourself how to take care of chickens, you definitely need to know the basics of what do chickens need to survive.

What Do Backyard Chickens Need To Survive?

Chickens are commonly known as easy animals to raise. They are relatively cheap to buy, can produce eggs that can be cooked or turned into omelets, and are fairly low maintenance. When raised properly, these are just a few of the things chickens need to survive.

Whether you are starting a homestead or are looking to raise chickens on a hobby level, these tips are sure to get you started on the right foot.

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Why Consider Raising Chickens?

One of the most popular reasons people raise backyard chickens is for food production. Whether you raise your chickens as meat birds for meat or not, a good egg-laying hen can produce several hundred eggs over the course of its life. These eggs can then be enjoyed by the family or sold to neighbors for a little extra cash.

Another great reason to raise backyard chickens is pest control. Chickens, especially free ranged chickens, are really good at searching for bugs and other creepy crawlies that you don’t want running into your home or garden.

Chickens can chase and eat mice, snakes, spiders, ants, centipedes, and so on. Essentially, if it is smaller than your chicken, your chicken will be able to chase and eat it. And some flocks have even been known to work together to chase and take down creatures, such as cats, that are a little on the bigger side.

Of course, food production and pest control are not the only reason to raise chickens. Some people keep them as pets and enjoy spending time with them. They can also be used to teach children about responsibility and caring for another living being.

Regardless of your reason for wanting to raise chickens, you will want to provide them with some basic needs in order for them to lead a healthy and happy life.

Basic Backyard Chicken Food and Water Needs

There are a few basic needs that all backyard chickens will need to be met. These needs include food, water, exercise, and shelter. 

Food

Chickens are omnivores, meaning they eat both plants and other animals. Unless your chickens are free-ranged and can catch their own live bugs or worms, you should provide them with feed that has everything they need in it. 

Even if they do free-range, in order to meet their specific dietary needs, you should still provide at least some chicken feed for your birds to graze on. Seeds, insects, vegetables, and meat scraps are all great ways to keep your flock fed properly.

While some chicken owners prefer to make their own homemade chicken feed, the majority of chicken keepers provide their birds with store-bought layer feed from the local feed store.

Water

Chickens need regular access to clean, fresh water. They will also likely need some sort of water container that is out of the sun and away from the ground, as chickens like to make a mess of their food and water dishes. You can provide this by hanging a bucket or dish from a nearby tree branch or fence post, or by putting your chickens’ water dish on top of something like a brick. 

If you live in a cold climate where the water dish will be prone to freezing you will need to address this as well. Some chicken owners prefer to break up the ice every day. Others prefer to add a little bit of heat to their water dish so the water doesn’t freeze in the first place. 

As long as you take certain measures to ensure the chickens don’t peck on the cord and cause problems, a little heater added to your water should be just fine.

Calcium

If you are raising egg-laying hens, you will need to provide them with free choice calcium in addition to their regular feed. Calcium is important for strong egg shells. Simply filling a bowl with oyster shells or crushed up egg shells should be sufficient for most laying hens. 

Your chickens will know when they need more or less calcium and will be able to self-regulate their own diets, so long as you provide this important nutrient.

What Should Be Included In The Chicken Coop?

Exercise Space

The space needed for your chickens’ coop is different from the space needed for their coop. This is because chickens need space and fresh air to roam and move around. If chickens are feeling too cooped up, they will take to pecking and bullying one another which is not good for anybody.

A little bit of pecking order behavior is expected and acceptable, but if y9our chickens begin drawing blood or causing one another to go bald from too much pecking, this is a problem that must be addressed.

You either need to provide your chickens with a good-sized run that gives about 4 square feet per bird, or you need to let your birds free-range every day.  A safe place to let your chickens out to roam is important since predators could potentially cause harm.

While you may place bedding such as pine shavings inside your chicken’s coop, it is important to leave the chicken run space floor with plenty of access to dirt. Chickens will take dust baths which is good for their feathers and helps keep them free of mites. 

If you do end up with a mite problem, adding a little bit of food-grade diatomaceous earth to the spots your chickens dust bath will give them a little extra help in getting rid of these pests.

Shelter

Even if you are letting your birds free-range or providing them with a large run, they will still need protection from the elements such as wind, rain, snow, hail, and in the summertime, intense sun rays. This is because there may be times when weather conditions become too harsh for them to be outside.

A good chicken coop should allow for 2 square feet per bird. It needs to be fully enclosed on at least 3 sides and have a good, strong roof that won’t allow any water to get inside. Depending on your specific cold-weather needs, you might consider enclosing all 4 sides and adding a coop door that you open and close daily. 

Giving the birds some warm bedding and good perch space on which to roost is also worth considering. And whatever you decide to do with your chicken coop, make sure it is completely predator-proof as chickens will be sitting ducks at night when hungry creatures are out and about.

The better your chicken’s shelter, the healthier and happier your hens and roosters will be. And the happier your chickens are, the better egg production you can expect to enjoy.

Although meeting the basic needs of chickens may seem like a lot of work, doing so will allow them to flourish and be happy. It is important for chicken owners to consider these needs before buying their birds. 

Nesting Boxes

If you raise hens who are old enough to be laying eggs, you will want to provide nesting boxes. It is best if these nesting boxes are inside the coop so they can be protected from the elements. 

Any floor space you provide for your birds needs to be above and beyond these nesting boxes in order to cut down on egg pecking and egg eating behaviors.

After your adult chickens lay their eggs, you can decide if you are going to collect them every day or leave them for broody hens to enjoy hatching on their own. Keep in mind that you will need roosters in order for your hens to lay fertile hatching eggs.

Raising chickens in your backyard is a great way to teach kids about animals and where food comes from. You’ll also get fresh eggs for yourself! It takes some work, but the benefits are worth it. Your chickens will be happy living with you if you take care of them.

And the next time somebody asks you what do chickens need to survive, you will know what to say!