A “Funky Chicken Coop Tour” is something you might not expect to find, but in a town like Austin, an event such as this fits in perfectly with the “keep it weird” vibe. In fact, this will be the sixth year the Funky Chicken Coop Tour takes place in Austin.
The Urban Poultry Association of Texas puts on this event to help educate Austinites about how they can raise chickens within the Austin city limits. Chicken coops can be incorporated into urban residences without violating city ordinances or becoming a nuisance for neighbors. Seasoned chicken owners on various “stops” throughout the tour will demonstrate to ticket holders the numerous ways in which they can incorporate chickens into their own lives.
On Saturday, April 19, 2014 you can purchase a map/ticket for $12 at any of the stops on the chicken coop tour or at the Information Center (Sunshine Community Gardens, 4814 Sunshine Drive, Austin, TX, 78756). You can also purchase tickets online here: http://austincooptour.org/2014/tickets
One tour group can share the self-guided tour map and travel together to each site between the hours of 10AM and 4PM. Tour hosts will show off all kinds coops from the inexpensive shanties to elaborate palaces. There are many benefits to raising chickens from fresh eggs to chicken manure that can become part of a household gardening and composting regimen that results in inexpensive, healthy and sustainable food, even in relatively small spaces.
If you are both a chicken and a bicycle enthusiast, you can participate in the Bicycle Tour de Funky Chickens. This group tour by bike will travel together to some of the locations on the Funky Chicken Coop Tour map. For more information: https://www.facebook.com/events/738682156156978/
You may ask, why are cows writing about chickens? Cows and chickens may seem like an unlikely team, but as our fellow barnyard animals, there are several reasons why we love chickens.
-Chickens will eat things we won’t. As herbivores we take pride in our strict diet of grass and dry feeds. Chickens, bless their hearts, if left to roam will even eat some of the more undesirable food options like bugs, lizards and small mice. Blech! We don’t want to eat those things, so we are glad the chickens will!
-We complement each other. Pies, cakes, cookies, custards, flan, pancakes, crepes, quiche, etc: what do all these things have in common? Milk and eggs! Milk and eggs go together like Batman and Robin, Salt and Pepper, Ketchup and Mustard, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. The products we produce make a great team.
-Chickens make great neighbors. While cows are large and require a lot of space, chickens which are of a much smaller stature, don’t take as much room. This means cows have more pasture to graze in. Did we mention that another benefit to chicken neighbors is that they come with a built-in alarm clock, a rooster!
Image Source: flickr.com/photos/28681973@N00/12158789436
Original Source: https://squarecowmovers.com/funky-chicken-coop-tour/