Laying Hens: The Best Place to Start Your Homestead

Chickens are awesome. If you are looking for a starting place for a homestead or self-sustaining lifestyle, this is it. They are easy to maintain, relatively inexpensive to feed, and give back so much in return.

We maintain a flock of 6 to 8 laying hens at all times. For us, this is the perfect number to keep the family supplied with eggs without becoming a burde

How We Manage Our Flock

We keep things simple. We feed our hens a standard layer feed, but we keep costs down by supplementing with table scraps and allowing them to free-range.

We also take a slightly different approach to flock management than some big operations:

We do not cull our hens when they stop laying. Hens usually slow down production around the 3-year mark. Instead of culling them, we let them live out their natural lives. We simply replace our chickens through natural attrition. It’s a system that works for us and keeps the flock stress-free.

Our Favorite Breeds

Over the years, we’ve found that temperament and health are the most important factors. We highly recommend:

• Red Sex Links

• Barred Plymouth Rocks

Both of these breeds are very docile, hardy, and healthy. If you are just starting out, you can’t go wrong with either of them.

Helpful Resources

We have put together a lot of resources on this site to help you navigate basic care and the common challenges of raising laying hens. Check out the articles below to get started.

If you have any questions that aren’t covered here, please feel free to reach out to us. We are always happy to help.