Backyard Animals ·
Best Brown Egg Layers: Six Breeds Ranked on Eggs per Year
Brown eggs come from a handful of reliable breeds. Which lay most, which keep laying through winter, and why hybrid layers burn out faster than heritage hens.
Chickens
35 guides in Backyard Animals.
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Backyard Chickens: What It Actually Takes
Space, cost, time, and the rules nobody mentions. An honest account of keeping backyard chickens before you buy the coop — including why the eggs are not free.
Backyard Animals ·
Best Egg Laying Chickens for Hot Climates: Heat-Hardy Breeds
Heat stops hens laying before it kills them. Which breeds keep producing above 90°F, what body shape and comb size have to do with it, and which to avoid.
Backyard Animals ·
Best Egg Incubator for Backyard Chickens — 5 Compared
The best egg incubator for backyard chickens holds temperature steady. 5 compared on turning, humidity and cost. See which matches your hatch size.
Backyard Animals ·
Best Rooster Breed for a Mixed Flock: Temperament First
A rooster's job in a mixed flock is watching and keeping peace, not fertility. Which breeds do it calmly, the ratio to keep, and the one trait to rule out.
Backyard Animals ·
How Long Do Backyard Chicken Eggs Last? Washed vs Unwashed
Unwashed eggs keep for weeks on the counter; washed ones must be refrigerated. Why the bloom decides it, plus the float test and real storage times.
Backyard Animals ·
What Chicken Lays the Most Eggs Per Day? None Lay Two
No hen lays more than one egg a day, and the biology sets that ceiling. Which breeds come closest to daily laying, and why the question matters.
Backyard Animals ·
Backyard Chickens and Bird Flu: Biosecurity That Is Realistic
Avian influenza reaches backyard flocks through wild birds. The practical steps that lower the risk, what to watch for, and who to call.
Backyard Animals ·
Backyard Chickens and Salmonella: The Real Risk, Managed
Healthy-looking hens carry salmonella routinely. The handling habits that matter, why chicks are the usual source, and how to keep eggs safe.
Backyard Animals ·
Can I Have Chickens in My Backyard? How to Check the Rules
Most US cities allow backyard hens, but the conditions vary widely. Where to look up your own rules, and the five clauses that catch people out.
Backyard Animals ·
Mulch for a Chicken Run: What Works and What Turns to Mud
Wood chips beat straw, sand and bare earth for a run that drains and composts. Depth, cost, top-ups, and the materials that are genuinely unsafe.
Backyard Animals ·
What Is a Pullet? Chicken Age Terms, Decoded
A pullet is a female chicken under a year old. What that means when buying birds, what you pay for, and every other term on the price list.
Backyard Animals ·
Water Glassing Eggs: Storing a Glut Without a Freezer
Lime water keeps unwashed fresh eggs for a year at room temperature. The ratio, which eggs qualify, what the method cannot do, and how to use them.
Backyard Animals ·
Multi Coloured Rooster Breeds: The Most Striking Birds
Which rooster breeds carry the boldest colour, why roosters outshine hens, and what temperament and laying ability come with each of them.
Backyard Animals ·
Why Do Chicken Coops Have Two Doors? The Practical Answer
One door is for the birds, one is for you — and the split solves cleaning, predator security and ventilation at once. What each door should actually be.
Backyard Animals ·
Best Chickens for Beginners — 5 Breeds Ranked on Temper
The best chickens for beginners are picked on temperament, not eggs. 5 breeds compared on noise, handling and hardiness. See which suits your yard.
Backyard Animals ·
Best Chicken Coops to Buy — 4 Fixes Before You Order
Knowing the best chicken coops to buy starts with what prefabs get wrong. 4 fixes compared, plus when building costs less. See which your flock needs.
Backyard Animals ·
Best Dual-Purpose Chickens — 5 Breeds That Do Both Jobs
The best dual-purpose chickens never out-lay a hybrid, and need not. 5 breeds compared on eggs, carcass and temper. See which covers both jobs.
Backyard Animals ·
Chicken Breeds: A Guide by What Each One Is Actually For
Fourteen common breeds sorted by purpose — eggs, meat, dual-purpose, beginner-friendly — with a link to the full comparison for each category.
Backyard Animals ·
Chickens in Winter: What They Need and What They Don't
Chickens tolerate cold far better than most keepers expect. The real risks are moisture and frostbite, not temperature — and a heat lamp usually makes both worse.
Backyard Animals ·
Do You Actually Need a Rooster?
Hens lay perfectly well without one. A rooster is only necessary for fertile eggs — here is what one actually does, and why most municipalities ban them anyway.
Backyard Animals ·
Introducing New Chickens to Your Flock Without a Bloodbath
Chickens will hurt a stranger dropped straight into their pen. A slow introduction over two to three weeks avoids nearly all of it — here is the actual sequence.
Backyard Animals ·
What Chickens Can (and Cannot) Eat From Your Garden
Some garden plants are genuinely toxic to chickens, not just unappealing. What is safe to let them forage, and what to keep them away from entirely.
Backyard Animals ·
Types of Chicken Coops: Which One Actually Fits Your Yard
Fixed, tractor, walk-in, A-frame — each solves a different problem. What each style is actually for, before you commit to building or buying one.
Backyard Animals ·
Best Chickens for Meat — 5 Breeds, 8 Weeks to 6 Months
The best chickens for meat take 8 weeks to 6 months to reach table weight. 5 breeds compared on feed cost and welfare. See which suits your setup.
Backyard Animals ·
Chicken Coop Plans: Sizing It Right Before You Build
Most coop plans get ventilation and predator-proofing wrong. The dimensions that actually matter, what to build from, and a step-by-step order of work.
Backyard Animals ·
Chicken Manure Fertilizer: Compost It or Burn Your Plants
Fresh chicken manure is too strong to use directly and carries pathogens. How to compost it properly, the NPK you end up with, and the food-safety waiting periods.
Backyard Animals ·
Chicken Mites: How to Find Them and Get Rid of Them
Red mite hide in the coop and feed at night, so daytime inspections miss them. How to identify what you have, treat it, and break the seven-day life cycle.
Backyard Animals ·
Chicken Molting: What to Expect and How to Help
Hens look terrible and stop laying for 6–12 weeks every autumn. What is normal, what is not, and the one change worth making to their feed while it happens.
Backyard Animals ·
Chicken Tractors: Mobile Coop Plans That Actually Move
A chicken tractor gives hens fresh ground daily without fencing the yard. How to size one you can move alone, and the weight mistakes that strand it.
Backyard Animals ·
How Long Do Hens Lay Eggs? The Honest Answer
Hens lay best for two years, then decline about 15–20% annually. Most keep laying into year six or seven — just not many. Here is the real production curve.
Backyard Animals ·
How to Keep Chickens Out of the Garden
Chickens will strip a vegetable bed in an afternoon. Fence the garden rather than the birds, and use the six other methods in the order that actually works.
Backyard Animals ·
Why Your Chickens Stopped Laying: Work Through This List
Nine reasons hens stop laying, in the order to check them. Most are seasonal and fix themselves — but three are worth acting on before the flock loses condition.
Backyard Animals ·
Best Chickens for Eggs — 6 Breeds, 200 to 300 a Year
The best chickens for eggs lay 200 to 300 a year, but not for long. 6 breeds compared on output, temper and lifespan. See which fits your flock.
Backyard Animals ·
How Long Do Chickens Live? (5–10 Years, With Caveats)
Backyard hens typically live 5–10 years, but breed and predators change that dramatically. The realistic lifespan, and what actually shortens it.
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