• Features

    Back Yard Chickens: Pros and Cons

    (IMAGE: PHOTO OF CHICKEN COOP IN SUSIE’S CHILDHOOD BACK YARD. SUSIE IS THE INDIAN PRINCESS BEYOND THE POLE ON THE LEFT. PHOTO BY J.S.RICHTER OF FRESNO) The earliest memories of my childhood in Fresno, CA, were of doing the chores for the hen house. I was in charge of raking the poop and removing it from the pens, to be used for my mom’s flowers. I also mowed our lawns and carted the clippings to the hen house, because my mom swore it made the egg yolks bright orange. I fed the hens laying pellets and collected the eggs several times a day. Crazy child that I was, I’d lift…