My family and friends always ask me about our chickens and ducks. Man, let me tell you I love having chickens and ducks. If you had told me 10 years ago, I would have 15 chickens and ducks, I’d tell you you were crazy! I still remember when we fell in love with fresh eggs. Our friend Wei came over one day, brought us fresh eggs from his mom’s chickens, and ever since then, we can’t go back to the store-bought eggs. Today I’m going to share with you about raising chickens and ducks together!

For me, the best gift I can give my kids is their health and knowledge. I want them to start with a strong foundation by putting lots of superfoods and educate them about healthy food. We try limiting processed foods and give them lots of whole foods. Eggs are a regular part of our diet. Eggs are a good source of protein, selenium, phosphorus, and a and b vitamins.  Our hens are raised with no antibiotics, hormones, or any fertilizers. Their eggs are super healthy to eat.  

HERE ARE 5 THINGS WE LOVE MOST ABOUT RAISING CHICKENS & DUCKS

1. FAMILY EDUCATION-It’s very important for our kids to know where their food comes from – we want them to know it doesn’t come neatly packaged in a box or container – it takes hard work and often it means something has given it life, in order to provide us with a delicious and nutritious meal. Having our chickens and ducks is a great way to teach our kids about the circle of life. We raised our chickens and ducks from the time they were baby chicks to adult laying hens.
2. RESPONSIBILITY– Our kids play an important role in caring for our chickens and ducks.  This includes waking up early, putting on their boots (rain or shine), feeding, cleaning, and collecting eggs – there’s no such thing as a free breakfast!  As a result, our kids have a greater appreciation for the food that’s put on the table.  
3. LOVE FOR ANIMALS– While our oldest daughter immediately gravitated towards all animals, our middle son would immediately start crying if the chickens came remotely close to him.  We gave him space, and over time he’s gained an appreciation and love for them as well.  While we live in the heart of the silicon valley, we don’t want our children to grow up in a bubble – scared of something so natural and innocent as a chicken.  It’s important for us to have our children feel comfortable around animals and in general, the outdoors.  While they’re young, we want to instill a love and appreciation for all things living.  
4. WASTE REDUCTION-I think in general, people waste lots of food every day. By giving them our leftovers and scraps (rice, bread, vegetables, fruit), we’re able to waste less food.
5. HEALTHY AND DELICIOUS!-You are what you eat!!! And the same goes for our chickens! Our chickens have a great diet.  They eat tons of green vegetables, fruits, and worms. They lay out in the sun soaking up vitamin D and they free-range all day. The eggs they lay are more nutritious than the store-bought eggs because of the quality of their diet and exercise as opposed to store-bought chickens who have never even seen the sun, are stuck inside an overcrowded factory plant, eating soybeans, corn, and getting injected with hormones. In short, happy chickens lay more nutritious eggs!

If you guys want to learn more about how to build a chicken coop or raising chickens and ducks together, make sure to stay tuned for a future post on how we built our chicken coop!

Love, Tiffany