Raising chickens in Brooklyn? Not as hard as you'd think

Karen Oh is one of the first people I met after moving to PLG a few years ago. Feral cats were running rampant on our block and she offered to help me get them spayed and neutered. It's not every woman who will spend hours helping a stranger corral cats. Karen is one of those exceptional types. Since moving here in 2005, she's become actively involved in the neighborhood but doesn't make a lot of noise about it.

When not corralling feral cats, Karen sits on the board of the PLG CSA, is working on a team to bring a food coop to the neighborhood, and helps lead her Sterling Street block organization. For cash, she relies on freelance jobs doing graphic design. But we didn't talk to Karen about her community work or other jobs. We talked to her about her chickens.

That's right, Ms. Oh and her husband, Chris Rado, are among the increasing ranks of urbanites who keep chickens in their back yard.  A peculiar habit, yes, but one that started seeming a lot more appealing and much less insane to this writer after viewing a recent undercover video shot at an industrial egg hatchery.

I visited Karen at home last week, to see her chickens in action and to collect some free booty: six gorgeous, fresh brown eggs that turned out to be delicious as well.

Hawthorne Street: What made you want to raise chickens?

Karen Oh: I used to live in Maine and always wanted chickens. For me it's a way of feeling connected to rural living. And, of course, I like eggs. Fresh eggs from small flocks taste different than your standard grocery store eggs. The yolk is a very deep color, almost orange, though it depends on what you feed them. The eggs are also very rich and have more of an "egg-y" flavor.

How often do your chickens produce eggs?

They lay about five per day total [about one each], but that will taper off after two or three years. At that point you can eat them or just keep them as pets. We'll probably eat them but I haven't really thought about the butchering process. That's a ton of work and I'm not sure how to go about it.

Most chicken in the supermarket is from birds that are about nine months old. At two or three years, we're basically getting stew chicken. You know the saying, "tough as an old bird"? It's true. Older chickens aren't exactly the tastiest.

What do you do with all the eggs?

I give a lot to neighbors. The chickens only started producing a few weeks ago—I got them as chicks this past April—so I don't have a big store of eggs. At first the eggs were very tiny, like quail eggs. Then they became consistently larger. Still, they're smaller than most eggs that you'd buy in the store.

How did you get the chicks?

They came by mail when they were one day old. The box had holes, a heat pad, and a sponge with water, but no food. For the first day or two, chicks live off their internal yolk sacks. I kept them under an infrared lamp in the basement for five weeks. They don't need a lot of space, only about 2 feet by 4 feet for all six chicks. You can raise them outside if the weather is warm, but we have several cats and I didn't want to worry about them and other predators.

The funny thing about chickens is that they only look like cute chicks for two days, then they start to get feathers and look a bit awkward, like the chick equivalent of teenagers. Around five weeks, they are more chickenlike, but then they look like some sort of prehistoric animal: half chicken, half dinosaur. At around 20 weeks they start to lay eggs.

Are yours all girls?

Yes. Roosters are illegal in the City because they make a lot of noise and people use them for cockfighting. The girls don't fight.

They look different, though. They must be different breeds.

I've got two breeds, Rhode Island Reds, which are bred for egg production, and Plymouths, which are used for both egg production and meat.  These breeds are endangered in the cultural sense. They are only used on small farms. Factories don't use them because they're not productive enough. The catch is that the flavor goes down when you breed chickens for high production.

How do the cats react to them?

The cats are fascinated by them. They'll sit and just watch, and the birds watch them back. It's funny but I assumed chickens would be kind of nervous animals but I find them very calming. The sounds they make, the gentle clucking, reminds me of being in the country.

Can they fly?

Yes. They would go all over the place and eat neighbors' tomatoes and other plants if I let them. They'd also fall prey to predators. We once had a hawk land on top of the run and it terrified them.

You've done a good job with avoiding an odor. It doesn't smell back here.

Wood chips help absorb the smell. Once it gets bad, I'll put the stuff aside and turn it into compost.

Where do they lay the eggs?

We built nest boxes in the coop, where the chickens will lay every morning. They'll instinctively keep this area very clean—they won't poop in it. To get them started, we placed ping pong balls in there at first, then they got the idea....

Is it expensive to raise chickens? What do they eat?

We built the pen and coop entirely from found materials, except for the roof shingles, so that didn't cost much. Chickens will eat lots of bugs: grubs, snails, pretty much anything that moves. We'll also feed them fruits and vegetables that are past their prime—tomatoes, lettuce. And then the bulk of their diet is organic pellets. The organic costs is twice as much as the regular stuff; it's about $30 a month to feed my six. For that we get about 2.5 dozen eggs per week, so it's not expensive. If you like eggs, you're nearly breaking even.

Have you had any neighbors complain?

No. Just Food, a nonprofit organization, has a City Chickens program. In fact, the head of the program, Owen Taylor, lives in PLG. I followed the advice in the City Chickens handbook and talked to my neighbors about it first. Since this is a West Indian area, it's not so weird. My next door neighbor, who is from Granada, was really into the idea. The people in back are from Guyana.

That's great that your next-door neighbors let you build part of the coop in their  yard.

Yeah. Chickens need 4 square feet at a minimum. I could probably do 12 chickens in this space. The run, which is the outdoor part, is 32 square feet and the coop, which is their house, is 24. At dusk, they all naturally move into the coop. They'll probably stay in there more during winter. Chickens are fairly winter hardy, though. My husband had chickens when he was growing up in Maine and didn't insulate their coops.

Are your chickens happy?

I think so but it's hard to tell. They're not like cats. They make contented sounds but they are somewhat abstract pets. They're not at all emotive. We haven't named them. They don't seem to have distinct personalities. I can't even tell them apart, beyond the two breeds.

And what about you? Are you happy with your chickens?

Definitely. Chickens are surprisingly low maintenance. It may seem weird to keep chickens at first but once I got chickens it doesn't seem weird at all. Anyone with outdoor space could do it.

Comments

[Owen Taylor]

Hello Karen and neighbors!

What a great article, and thanks for the shout out to Just Food. People who are interested in starting their own coops should also check out our Meetup group: http://www.meetup.com/Just-Food-City-Chicken-Meetup-NYC/

I was just checking this blog because I live on Hawthorne Street and was looking to get involved with the block - what a nice surprise to see your beautiful hens!

Bok bok bok,
Owen

[ariella Papa]

this is a great post. i love this blog!
karen IS exceptional and inspiring. one of my favorite things about being a part of the csa this year is getting to know her better. she is a super talented and humble person. i love that you focused on a person in the neighborhood.
for more on chickens: last week's new yorker had a great article about chicken raising for the lay person by susan orlean.
cluck cluck.

[Murray Dwertman]

My 6 unit condo building just started raising chickens for eggs in June! We have a coop out back and are just waiting for our first egg. Building the coop, tending to them, and throwing chicken parties are all things going down at the Lincoln Rd. Farm. We would love to get in touch with you Karen. The omelet party is is quickly approaching!

[Matt]

Awesome interview! I'm totally mail-ordering a half dozen laying hens right now. I hope the neighbors don't mind, but whatever. It's a free country!

[karen]

Hey Murray, I would love to see your coop! We PLG chicken-ers should get to know each other! Owen from Just Food is the Chicken Guy and I've been trying to get together with him too. Email me at karen[at]houseofcakes[doc]com.

Thanks again Carrie!

[Jason Nixon]

Karen:

Hey there! You went to Colby, right? I live on Chester Court...

Hope you are well!
Jason Oliver Nixon

[Nick]

Yes it's really hard to tell if your chickens are happy. That's why you have to make sure that your doing the right things when raising chickens. I name my chickens, not saying they come when, but it's just something I thought was necessary.
Other Frequently Asked Questions about Raising Chickens!