Reason No. 1: Fresh Eggs

Many people have discovered the pleasure of harvesting their own produce and crops from the back garden; those who garden know there is simply no comparison in taste and quality between your own organic backyard production and what you can get from the store.  Chickens and eggs are no different and give a daily return in fresh, great tasting eggs. Our hen coops make it easy to keep chickens without having an eyesore out your back window.  Without a doubt fresh eggs is the top reason!

Reason No. 2: More Nutritious Eggs!

In a 2007 study by Mother Earth News pasture raised eggs were found to have 1/3 less cholesterol, ¼ less saturated fat, 2/3 more vitamin A, 2 times more Omega-3 fatty acids, 3 times more vitamin E, 7 times more beta carotene and 4-6 times more vitamin D.  Little wonder when your own hens can enjoy the fresh air, grass, and sunshine available in a more natural environment than warehouse cages.  Our chicken coops are designed to give your chickens access to as much of these elements as possible per coop footprint.

Reason No. 3: It's Cheaper!

Food prices are going up everywhere in the world and New Zealand is no exception.  Quality for quality, you'll pay less for eggs and chickens by keeping your own.  True pasture-raised free-range eggs cost a fortune in townie supermarkets, and even in rural areas they aren't cheap.  Many 'free-range' eggs in supermarkets are from hens that are allowed to “free range”--in a warehouse!  Basically the only difference between these and battery chickens is these get a little more exercise.  Why pay more for less?  Our hen coops will help you get started in being egg-independent--you decide whether to feed your chickens food scraps from your table, garden weeds and left-overs, purchased layer-mash or wheat, or any combination of the above.  But regardless, if you keep hens your egg expenses should go down and your qualiy should go up! 

Reason No. 4: Help Your Garden..Naturally!

Why not let your chicken tractor do the “tractor work” in the garden or lawn? When it’s time for the garden to be tilled just move the tractor and let the hens do their job. They clean up the plants, till the soil, eat destructive insects, and fertilize the garden getting it ready for the next planting.  This is one of the great benefits of using a movable chicken coop or tractor.

Chickens love grass, fresh tender vegetables from the garden and creepy crawlies, and New Zealand has plenty of all that! By using a chicken tractor the chooks get the greens they need but their access is controlled saving the vegetables in the garden and the greenhouse for your table and for you to disperse.  Our portable hen coops let you easily change locations to prevent overgrazing or to target specific areas of your garden.

Reason No. 5: It's Educational!

If you are looking for ways for yourself or your children to learn more about the world and how it operates in practical ways, keeping hens accessible is a good solution.  Children love the excitement of checking the coop each morning for eggs and the novelty doesn't seem to wear out.  Plus they can help in feeding and watering, learning a bit about the food chain as they do so.  But learning isn't limited to children; curious or observant adults will see behaviours or problems that in turn inspire a search for answers.  Handled frequently, hens will become quite tame, and doing so will result in noticing potential health problems when they first arise.  Our chicken coops attract complimentary attention rather than being off-putting; and you might even find they make good jungle-gyms!

Reason No. 6: It's Entertaining!

If your coop or tractor is readily accessible, chances are your chickens will put a smile on your face as well as those happening to pass by.  You will have ample opportunity to learn how to cluck properly, and a little time spent watching them will have you doing the chicken dance better than anyone you know.

Simple things for simple folk perhaps.  But have you seen a chicken eyeballing a perch, unsure how to get on it, wander around in a circle and come back to it a few seconds later still befuddled, and go through the whole process again?  Or have you seen the incredible alacrity with which they can catch flies?  Or squable for food?

Add in a few pets and things can get downright hysterical.  True, you're not going to buy one of our chicken coops just for fun...but a little more healthy laughter isn't a bad thing.

Reason No. 7: Save a Chicken!

No, we're not chicken activists.  But...do your research and find out where the eggs you purchase at the supermarket come from. Chicks are hatched in an incubator; the males and weak are weeded out and thrown in the bin. The beak is then cut with a knife without anesthetics and is sent off to the cage bleeding. The hen is crammed with several others in a cage to eat and poop until it begins to lay. The hen then is moved to another cage also full of hens to eat, lay eggs and poop.

Not much of a life, eh? Well, we're not really into saving hens per se, but if you can make things a little better, why not?  Our chicken coops are a vast improvement on what most battery chickens experience in their factory cages.