Living with Chickens: Everything You Need to Know to Raise Your Own Backyard Flock [Hardcover]

Jay Rossier (Author), Geoff Hansen (Photographer), American Poultry Association (Introduction)

Book Description

Series: Living with | Publication Date: June 1, 2002

Straightforward prose and dozens of detailed illustrations offer advice on everything from choosing the best birds for your needs to suggestions for building a windowed coop.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

These two new books are targeted at anyone with a couple of acres (and even city dwellers where ordinances permit) who would like to raise a few farm animals for meat, milk, eggs, or simply enjoyment. Both volumes are intended for beginners and are written by nonexperts who nonetheless can offer a great deal of practical information and advice based on their own experiences. Peck-Whiting and her family have dabbled in raising chickens, ducks, rabbits, goats, pigs, and cows on their country homestead in the mountains of northern Washington. In Farm Animals, she devotes at least a chapter or two to each of these species while saving the most space for pigs. (She previously wrote Pigs and Other Stories.) The author crams her book with personal anecdotes, enthusiastically sharing the successes and failures of her ventures in a casual, down-to-earth style. While Farm Animals gives readers a relatively quick survey of a variety of livestock and poultry and is best employed as supplemental reading material, Living with Chickens focuses entirely on one species and stands on its own as an excellent introduction to chicken basics for newcomers. Rossier draws heavily on his own experiences raising fowl in Vermont and fits in additional chicken facts as he gives detailed "how-to" advice on housing, hatching, buying, feeding, and butchering. He even includes a chapter on children and chickens. Photographer Hansen (My Life as a Dog) ably captures the essence of chickens at home in various barnyards and other Vermont locations. Both titles are recommended for public libraries. (Index of Living with Chickens not seen.) William H. Wiese, Iowa State Univ. Lib., Ames
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

In this charming book, the authors provide a nice overview of the basics of poultry keeping for those new to the hobby. Breaking down the life of the chicken and chicken husbandry into 10 chapters, the text covers the essentials of each aspect of keeping poultry. The discussion of which type to raise goes over the differences between breeds raised primarily for eggs or meat but also points out the aesthetics of the different colors and markings of chicken plumage. The designs of chicken coops, roosts, runs, nest boxes, and feeders are explained, along with how and what to feed the birds. Sections on how to hatch eggs, raise chicks, and buy adult chickens will get the poultry keeper started, and segments on handling eggs and butchering adult chickens assist in dealing with the produce from the flock. A glossary, bibliography, list of resources, and catalog of chicken breeds round out the text. Beautiful color photographs throughout demonstrate the appeal of chickens, adding to the value of this nice primer on backyard chicken keeping. Nancy Bent
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 204 pages
• Publisher: The Lyons Press; 1st edition (June 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585744522
• ISBN-13: 978-1585744527
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,834,194 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for the beginning chicken owner!, May 29, 2005

By 

H. Melander - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Living with Chickens: Everything You Need to Know to Raise Your Own Backyard Flock (Paperback)

I read this book cover-to-cover the first day and next morning that I got it from the library. Very clear and easy to understand even for a kid. The book is written with a touch of humor that makes it especially fun to read! There is BEAUTIFUL photography in this book. If you are thinking about getting chickens like I am, or already own them, you won't want to pass this book up! Happy Reading!

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice book! Recommended highly, February 16, 2006

By 

N. Ferguson "Two, Daisy, Hannah, and Kitten" (Ohio) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Living with Chickens: Everything You Need to Know to Raise Your Own Backyard Flock (Paperback)

Friendly style, full of information, & tons of special, vivid photos-- I read this cover to cover in a day and really enjoyed it. A GREAT book for the person who is thinking about starting a small backyard flock. One of my favorites. (The layout is unique, too- engaging and easy to read.)

I would strongly recommend this book.

31 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finger lickin' good!, October 14, 2004

By 

Tom Bruce (East Moriches, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Living with Chickens: Everything You Need to Know to Raise Your Own Backyard Flock (Paperback)

So, you've decided to put in a couple of layers and grow your own eggs. You need to buy this book. From coop to care from breed to feed, author Jay Rossier gives you all the detailed information you need to know to become a successful Old MacDonald. His breezy insights into raising chickens for fun and profit is a delight to read. But, you say you live in a railroad apartment on the lower East Side of Manhattan. Then get this book for the terrific photographs by Geoff Hansen. You'll never look at a chicken the same way again. In fact, this book might inspire you to leave the big city for a small piece of land in New Jersey. Now, that's a book!