When I tell people I’m a chicken consultant, I get anything from scoffing, to a bemused grin, to incredulity, to curiosity. The next question is “What is that?” I usually tell people that I help people in the city raise chickens.
What does that involve? Largely, if it involves chickens, I’ll do it! Here’s a list of chicken-related things I do:
- House calls to talk about chicken-keeping in general, to check on the flock’s health or behavior, or to give advice on a sick bird
- Phone consultations for the same reasons as above
- Necropsies to determine cause of death for a chicken
- Classes on chicken keeping, coop building, winter care, summer care, and health
- Presentations for schools, gardening groups, offices, event, and libraries
- Chicken wrangling for movies and photo shoots
- Consulting for organizations that want to install a chicken-keeping program
- Community events at fairs, bookstores, community centers, and other locations
- Expert witness at village meetings where chickens are under consideration
- Ordinance review for communities that have legalized chickens
- Network to connect people who can help each other
- Learn as much about chickens as I can, attending veterinary talks and shadowing avian vets, reading, conducting online research, etc.
If you have any questions about what I do, feel free to contact me.