February 7, 2012

Built to feed a seemingly insatiable appetite for home-laid eggs and a yearning for a farm-like lifestyle, Wollongong council has reported a boom in backyard chicken pens.

For Simon Tedder, 26, of Bulli, who has two chickens for about two years, freshness is what matters.

"The eggs taste nothing like the eggs you taste in a shop and they are awesome for bribing neighbours," he said.

Workshops on chicken rearing have been selling out, according to council officers, who say there is growing recognition of the benefits of having a backyard brood.

Vanessa John, environmental officer at the council, said she had witnessed "a massive surge" in chicken-rearing popularity. "Workshops are booking out - they are super-popular. We have definitely noticed an increase in demand," she said.

"People are looking at chickens as a fabulous new pet." She said while coops could attract vermin, precautions such as raised feeders can easily get around potential problems.

In more ethnically diverse southern suburbs, backyard chickens have been long a mainstay, according to John, while some with little background in chicken rearing were also taking an interest.

One of the first steps by would-be chicken farmers is to educate themselves about breeds. Isa browns, which can lay about 300 eggs a year, are the most common. But John said some were also taking an interest in more exotic breeds, such as the Transylvanian naked neck, which is comfortable in warmer temperatures.