The topic of keeping chickens within the city of Louisville came up on a mailing list in which I participate. Ever since reading Animal Vegetable Miracle, by Barbara Kingsolver, I've been intrigued with the idea of keeping chickens in my yard. While the book itself is a description of the Kingsolver family living off their rural farm and from other local sources, she also mentions that she kept chickens in arid New Mexico in a much more urban setting.

First, the question was asked whether it is even legal to do such a thing. I found on the Louisville Metro Government site that you can have up to 5 non-crowing chickens and one crowing rooster:

(8) All crowing and non-crowing poultry must be kept on tracts or lots of at least .5 acres or more, unless a tract or lot is on less than .5 acres and only houses five or less non-crowing poultry, and no more than one crowing poultry in accordance with the remainder of this subsection. All crowing and non-crowing poultry shall be kept in a fence or structure of sufficient height and construction to prevent the animal(s) from leaving the owner's property. The fence or structure must be in good repair. All gates or doors to the fence or structure shall fit properly and shall be locked or secured by a latch. Poultry associated with an agricultural use shall not be subject to the restraint requirement as set forth herein.

 The rooster is not necessary for the egg laying process. Unless you're planning on raising more little chickens, the hens are just fine on their own.

So you can legally keep chickens. Now what? What do you keep them in, what do they eat, what kind to get?

Several good sources were recommended for answering these questions: 1. a book called Keeping Chickens, 2. a site called My Pet Chicken, and 3. Craigslist.com was mentioned as a place to look for coops and inexpensive chicks.

My main concern about keeping chickens for eggs is what to do with them after they stop laying eggs. I don't eat meat, but even if I did I don't think I could keep a few chickens as pets for several years and then eat them for dinner. Maybe it would be different if I had a huge flock on a farm, but I think keeping a few chickens in my tiny yard would be different.