City Chicks: Keeping Micro-flocks of Chickens as Garden Helpers, Compost Makers, Bio-reyclers, and Local Food Producers [Perfect Paperback]

Patricia L. Foreman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2010

There are a lot of books about chickens, but City Chicks is the ONLY book that tells you how to employ them using their skill sets. Urban agriculture is on the rise and City Chicks shows how to enable local food supply by keeping family flocks of chickens as garden helpers, compost creators, bio-recyclers, and local food suppliers. How-to detail throughout all 460 pages on keeping, employing, growing food for, and enjoying backyard poultrys. Chickens are the mascot of the local food movement. A desire for sustainable, clean, wholesome food and superior soil quality has led more and more suburban and city dwellers to keep laying hens in their backyards and gardens. Across America municipalities are allowing, and even encouraging, residents to keep laying hens within city limits. Learn how you can: Develop your own Chicken Have-More Plan. Have fresh, heart-healthy eggs, daily from your backyard home flock. Employ your chicken s skill sets as garden workers, organic pesticiders, herbiciders, fertilizers, compost creators and top soil enhancers. Become a chicken whisperer. Save millions of tax payer dollars by using chickens to divert food and yard waste from landfills and waste management systems. Be a Primary Poultry Health Care Practitioner to save on vet bills. The Poultry s Pharmacy shows you how to make and use effective, inexpensive home treatments. Draft and pass local laws allowing laying hens within your town or city. Avoid roosters and why you don t want them. Do much, much more with chickens than you ever thought possible, including outrageous chicken tricks. Learn how others: Have built urban chicken tractors, hen huts, condos and chicken chateaus to blend in with neighborhood landscape and architecture. Join in urban eco-agri-tourism with annual coop & garden home tours for fund raising. Start or join local poultry clubs. Keep small flocks to help preserve endangered breeds of chickens. Draft and pass local laws allowing laying hens within their town s limits. By the co-author of Chicken Tractor, Backyard Market Gardening, Day Range Poultry and the Co-Host of the Chicken Whisperer Backyard Poultry and Sustainable Lifestyles Talk Show. City Chicks is a revolutionary way of keeping and using chickens by thinking outside the coop and inside the gardens . Over 100 photos, drawings, and tables give visual clarity. The imaginative and entertaining style of writing is combined with handson, real-life experience to bring you one of the most complete and authorative books on micro-flock management. The chicken is still having her moment as the mascot and darling of the always-cresting locavore food movement. Many people are struggling to learn how, exactly, to care for her. Enter City Chicks; Penelope Green, New York Times, September 2009.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

From Oakland, California, to Madison, Wisconsin, to Brooklyn, New York, the backyard buzz is all about urban chicken keeping, and mainstream publications, such as the New York Times and the New Yorker, have chronicled the trend’s growth, especially among members of the local food movement. Foreman, who has authored several urban agriculture and chicken-themed titles, offers a full compendium of everything a novice city chicken farmer needs to start and maintain a coop. Included among the dense but conversational chapters is information on chicken breeding and health, incubation and hatching, becoming a “chicken whisperer,” legal issues, and starting your own profitable “eggribusiness.” Everyone interested in the subject will find something useful here. Experienced chicken keepers will want to add to their own storehouses of knowledge with the vast resource lists, while complete beginners will appreciate the basic advice, such as photos that demonstrate how to hold a chicken. The audience for this may be small right now, but the flock of city-dwelling chicken enthusiasts is growing by the minute, and libraries should be ready to meet the demand. --Gillian Engberg

Review

By PENELOPE GREEN New York Times, September 9, 2009 The chicken is still having her moment as the mascot and darling of the always-cresting locavore food movement. But as hipsters and foodies from New York to San Francisco embrace her charms and services like her ability to consume food scraps and turn them into nitrogen-rich compost much faster than, say, a clutch of earthworms can (and with bucketloads more personality) many people are struggling to learn how, exactly, to care for her. Enter City Chicks: Keeping Micro-Flocks of Chickens as Garden Helpers, Compost Makers, Bio-Recyclers and Local Food Suppliers (Good Earth Publications, $22.50). Yes, its title is a mouthful, Creators its author, Patricia Foreman, a pharmacist and author from Lexington, Va., is a very thorough woman. (She has degrees in agricultural science and public affairs and has kept chickens, and written about sustainable agriculture, for two decades.) In an attempt to have the chicken-keeping laws of Lexington changed the city, like many others, considers chickens livestock, which are usually contraband within city limits she took Attila the Hen, a comely and personable fowl (above, with Ms. Foreman), to a city council meeting. The council members, she said, loved the chicken, which purred and preened as she was passed around, but the law remained, to Ms. Foreman s dismay. I think the stakes are high, she said in a telephone interview. We need to change our food supply, manage our trash and get off the oil habit. In her book, Ms. Foreman notes that commercial fertilizers and pesticides are oil-based, but chickens make a richer fertilizer than the commercial variety and are deft weeders and pest eaters. Of course, she said, education is key, to show that chickens are an asset, not a nuisance. --New York Times, September 9, 2009

City Chicks: Keeping Micro-flocks of Laying Hens as Garden Helpers, Compost Makers, Bio-recyclers and Local Food Suppliers. Reviewed by Jd Belanger, Editor Emeritus Backyard Poultry Magazine. With a title like that, what else is there for a reviewer to say? But seriously, that doesn't even begin to describe everything you ll find in this new book from the co-author (with Andy Lee) of the immensely popular Chicken Tractor and others. This one is quite different, as she helpfully points out in comparing City Chicks with Chicken Tractor and Day Range Poultry. She says the focus is on micro-flocks of laying hens kept in urban backyards and gardens. That might be narrower than the homestead poultry production focus and the commercial focus of the other two, but she still manages to find plenty to fill all 460 lively pages. She does go a short way beyond chickens to do it, but that is not a problem in a book that headlines its interest in compost, recycling and local food. In several sections the central focus is not on chickens, but on how chickens fit in with so many other common needs and concerns of the early 21st century. It s all interesting, and it flows together seamlessly. Where chickens are front and center, we still see a much wider range than most other chicken books present. For example, I wondered why there was a chapter on Home Eggri-Business in a book about micro-flocks what is there to sell? but she starts the chapter by explaining: A backyard flock of three hens can provide enough eggs for a family of four. A micro-flock of 20 can produce enough extra eggs to sell. Aha. A micro-flock is bigger than I d thought. (My only objection would be that most urban flocks are limited to much fewer than 20 birds.) The chapter then goes on to discuss nutritional value of eggs, food safety and food-borne diseases, the unhealthy lifestyles of commercially farmed hens and much more, before running through a list of possible egg buyers, advertising (try giving talks and slide show presentations) all the way to egg st --Various reviewers

City Chicks is a revelation! It s time that someone expertly connected gardening to raising and keeping hens. The two practices go hand in hand. This book is filled with excellent advice so that everyone can confidently prac- tice good earth stewardship, not to mention have a prize garden! Michael C. Metallo, President National Gardening Association The best solutions today are integrated solutions. City Chicks show how to successfully produce protein along with your garden vegetables while managing waste and increasing soil fertility...a 3-for-1 benefit! Will Raap Founder, Gardener s Supply Far more than just another book on chickens, City Chicks opens the door to a whole new world of poultry possibilities. Keeping small flocks is good for gardens, municipalities, education, and the local food movement. City Chicks covers a lot of ground, and is a comprehensive information source. Richard Freudenberger, BackHome Magazine Publisher & Chicken Owner City Chicks shows how local governments can save thousands if not millions of tax-payer dollars that are spent on solid waste management simply by allowing resi-dents to keep hens to help with composting food and leaf and yard waste in their backyards. Mimi Elrod, Ph.D. Mayor, Lexington Virginia The focus is on how chickens fit in with so many other common needs and concerns of our century. This is a book for our times. JD Belanger, Editor Emeritus Backyard Poultry Magazine I love the lightheartedness, the humour, the fun in it, as well as the really solid information that City Chicks pro- vides. I really love it! Marjorie Bender, Research & Technical Program Manager American Livestock Breeds Conservancy City Chicks is an outstanding book that covers it all. It is comprehensive starting with fresh eggs through to raising replacement hens...and integrating chickens into urban agriculture with all the joy in between. Novice and expert will enjoy this book. Andy Marsinko Grandmaster Exhibitor, poultry Judge American Poultry Association Hall of Fame I love that City Chicks details every facet of humane and compassionate care for these lovely birds. The chapters on Poultry Primary Health Care and The Poultry s Pharmacy cover just about all of what you need to know for treating and keeping your flock in optimal health. Well done! Cindy Downes, Veterinarian --Reviews from fans

Reviewed By Jd Belanger Editor Emeritus ith a title like that, what else is there for a reviewer to say? But seriously, that doesn t even begin to describe everything you ll find in this new book from the co-author of the immensely popular Chicken Tractor and others. This one is quite different, as she helpfully points out in comparing City Chicks with Chicken Tractor and Day Range Poultry. She says the focus is on micro-flocks of laying hens kept in urban backyards and gar- dens. That might be narrower than the homestead poultry production focus and the commercial focus of the other two, but she still manages to find plenty to fill all 460 lively pages. Have extra eggs to sell? but she starts the chapter by explaining: A backyard flock of three hens can provide enough eggs for a family of four. A micro-flock of 20 can produce enough extra eggs to sell. Aha. A micro-flock is bigger than I d thought. (My only objection would be that most urban flocks are limited to much fewer than 20 birds.) The chapter then goes on to discuss nutritional value of eggs, food safety and food-borne diseases, the unhealthy lifestyles of commercially farmed hens and much more, before run- ning through a list of possible egg buyers (don t forget your book club and exercise class), advertising (try giving talks and slide show presentations) all the way to egg storage and legal concerns. That s what I call comprehensive. She does go a short way beyond chick- ens to do it, but that s not a problem in a book that headlines its interest in compost, recycling and local food. In several sec- tions the central focus is not on chickens, but on how chickens fit in with so many other common needs and concerns of the early 21st century. It s all interesting, and it flows together seamlessly. There is also an unusual and interest- ing chapter on children and chickens. ( If you are using an adult hen, wrap her in a towel with her legs back. Having the legs extended backwards calms the hen and she can t get a foothold to stand up. The towel restrains her wings so flapping won t scare the child or get a wing tip in the eye. ) That s good advice most dot- ing grandfathers wouldn t even stop to consider. And there s much more. Where chickens are front and center, we still see a much wider range than most other chicken books present. For example, I wondered why there was a chapter on Home Eggri-Business in a book about micro-flocks what is there The author herself summarizes the book very neatly in an epilogue, when she says, City Chicks is written in the same spirit as the Have-More Plan (a magazine-size book from the 1940s that s famous for ushering in one of the great back-to-the-land movements of the past century). It is not just another book about chickens, although it does describe how to keep micro-flocks of laying hens ... (It) has the ambitious intent of exploring three subjects: namely, urban agriculture systems, recycling food and yard waste, and using local resources to preserve and enhance the environment. This is a book that sees chicken- raising as much more than an avian hobby interest like fancy pigeons or canaries. It s a book for our times. Jd Belanger founded the original Backyard Poultry in 1979. His latest book is The Complete Idiot s Guide to Self- Sufficient Living, which will be released in December, 2009. City Chicks; Keeping Micro-flocks of Laying Hens as Garden Helpers, Compost Makers, Bio-recyclers and Local Food Suppliers is available from the Backyard Poultry Bookstore. --Backyard Poultry Magazine , August September 2009.

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Product Details

• Perfect Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Good Earth Publications, Inc.; First edition (January 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0962464856
• ISBN-13: 978-0962464850
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (45 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #102,489 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Patricia L. Foreman was born and raised in Indiana. She graduated from Purdue University with degrees in Pharmacy and Agriculture (Animal Science, genetics and nutrition). At Indiana University's Graduate School of Public and Environmental Affairs she earned a Masters of Public Affairs (MPA). Her majors were in Health Systems Administration and International Affairs. She completed the Virginia Master Gardener's program in 1999.

Pat has kept poultry for over 20 years. Her experience includes having owned and operated a small-scale farm raising free range, organic layers, broilers and turkeys. She keeps a backyard flock of heritage chickens to help with the kitchen garden and egg supply.

Her many awards include a Fulbright Scholarship, and appointment as a Presidential Executive Management Intern. She served as a Science Officer for the United Nations in Vienna, Austria, and has worked in over 30 countries conducting workshops and providing consulting services. Agencies funding projects she has worked on include the U.S. Agency for International Development, World Bank, World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization.

Pat is the author of the popular paradigm-shifting book: City Chicks: Keeping Micro-flocks of Chickens as Garden Helpers, Compost Creators, Bio-recyclers and Local Food Suppliers.

She is the co-author, of several alternative, popular sustainable agriculture books including:

* Chicken Tractor: The Permaculture Guide to Happy Hens and Healthy Soil

* Backyard Market Gardening: The Entrepreneur's Guide to Selling What You Grow

* Day Range Poultry: Every Chicken Owner's Guide to Grazing Gardens and Improving Pastures

* A Tiny Home to Call Your Own: Living Well in Just Right Houses.

Pat loves to talk and is the co-host, along with Andy Schneider, of the Chicken Whisperer Backyard Poultry and Sustainable Lifestyles Talk Show. She has been a guest on radio talk and TV shows across America -- including NPR.

She is the Course Director for the Chickens and YOU Training Series that include:
* The Chicken Have More Plan
* Gardening With and For Chickens
* Chicken Whispering: Discover the Chicken You Never Knew
* Chickens as Partners Toward Zero Waste
* Way of the Hen: Incubating Eggs and Brooding Chicks Naturally
* ... and 10 about other workshops that lead to the Master Backyard Chicken Keeper Certification

She is available to facilitate workshops, give presentations, and provide consulting services. Contact her through Good Earth Publications.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE book to learn about urban chickens!, April 16, 2010

By 

Renee F. Wrede "science with a heart" (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: City Chicks: Keeping Micro-flocks of Chickens as Garden Helpers, Compost Makers, Bio-reyclers, and Local Food Producers (Perfect Paperback)

I own sixteen (really!) books and have taken five classes about urban chickens. I found City Chicks to be the most inclusive book of all which makes it a great bargain. The author gives incisive information on care, behavior, housing, and even explains how to best use their ah, manure. Foreman discusses different ways you can use your chickens in your garden, what their coops should have as well as delve deeply into the differences between commercial and homemade feeds. Although there are reference books you should not be without, I feel this book should definitely be included in your library if you want to have backyard chickens.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brooding chapter alone worth price of book, October 14, 2009

By 

Ann M. Huebner (Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: City Chicks: Keeping Micro-flocks of Chickens as Garden Helpers, Compost Makers, Bio-reyclers, and Local Food Producers (Perfect Paperback)

I bought this book a couple of weeks ago, right before my first shipment of day-old chicks arrived. Boy, am I glad I did. The brooding chapter alone told me everything I needed to start my chicks. There is a very good check list of supplies. I took it with me to the Tractor Supply and bought everything I needed. The photos are very helpful; you can see how things are supposed to look. The day-by-day diary was also very helpful. As a first time brooder, I was very nervous, but breaking things down in day-by-day chunks made the process manageable. My friends started chicks last spring. They just followed the generic advice the hatchery sent and ended up with a lot of dead chicks. I haven't had ANY losses. There was one chick dead-on-arrival in the box. The other twenty-four were thriving by the end of the first day.

The other thing I like about Pat's brooder set-up is the hygiene. The aspen shavings keep everything very clean and dry. There is no smell at all.

I heartily recommend this book.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great book!, March 26, 2010

By 

Kristi Okamoto "acornmom" (pacific northwest) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: City Chicks: Keeping Micro-flocks of Chickens as Garden Helpers, Compost Makers, Bio-reyclers, and Local Food Producers (Perfect Paperback)

This is a great book and I recommend it to anyone who is interested in raising backyard chickens. Lots of information, and I refer to it often. There's even a section on what steps to take to change the ordinances in your city if chickens are currently not allowed.