More Suburbanites are Raising Chickens

Mostly farm families wait to pick up the chicks, but mixed in with the rural chick-raising veterans are first-timers like Justin and Stacey DeWeese, both 25. They collect a box of 30 chicks, which they plan to raise in suburban St. Louis. Motivated by the taste of farm-fresh eggs and a desire to try something new, the couple built a coop at a friend's house and researched how to care for a flock. Stacey said the couple wants chickens "for the eggs, to watch them play in the backyard." And to "kill the bugs," Justin added. It's a phenomenon that's playing out all over the nation. Poultry dealers, chicken feed businesses and self-proclaimed "chicken enthusiasts" report city slickers and suburbanites are showing greater interest in raising small flocks of chickens far from the farm. Clearview's manager Karen Ruck said about every tenth person who calls to inquire about ordering chicks through the store says they've never raised chickens before. She hears from suburban moms, who want a few hens to teach their kids responsibility, and new gardeners, seeking birds to go with their attempts to grow backyard vegetables. Livestock feed and pet food maker Purina Mills is seeing double-digit growth for its small, 5-pound bag of all-natural poultry feed marketed since 2003 to people who raise small flocks for eggs or as companion animals. Backyard Chickens, a Web site that began to help city residents raise chickens, says its community of about 27,000 people is growing rapidly, with about 100 new members daily...AP

Are their premises registered with the USDA?