Not 'Cluckin' Around: Local couple offers chicken rentals to bring neighborhoods together
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – It's time to think outside the box…or outside the coop, if you will.
How does the idea of renting a chicken sound?
There's a local couple doing just that – renting out chickens all over the area and it's more than just eggs.
Sure, the eggs get the renters' attention but it doesn't take long before those chickens become part of the family.
When the hens first arrived at Carolyn Hare's home in Point Breeze, they couldn't just be "Hen One" and "Hen Two."
"So their names are Kylo Hen and the other one goes by Mo," she laughed.
Quiet by nature – Kylo Hen did perk up for this interview.
Carolyn said her family decided to rent the hens as a distraction during the pandemic.
"All of a sudden, we started having families walking their kids down, just hanging out with the chickens," she explained. "It was a cool way to build a community."
It was also a cool way to build a breakfast. Hare said one of her favorite parts of renting the hens is the breakfast burrito she makes every morning.
Kylo and Mo deliver an egg every day so there is also a sharing element.
"The neighbors know if they need something for baking, they just come over and grab an egg," she said. "It's easier than going to the store."
With everything provided in the rental, Carolyn said the hens are very user-friendly.
"We let them out to free-range, supervised of course, but you know, so they can get the bugs out of the yard," she explained. "We feed them once a day – it's really easy."
The Hare Family pays $485 to have the hens from now through November.
"More than happy to make that investment, they brought a lot to our lives and to the neighborhood," Carolyn said. "It's really worth it."
So, how would you like to get up every morning and grab your morning eggs from a chicken coop in your backyard?
When Phil and Jenn Tompkins of Freeport started renting chicken nine years ago, they had no idea if the concept would fly or…lay an egg.
They go by Homestead Phil and Jenn and they love the reaction of their renters after they pull up at a home with a chicken coop and a couple of hens.
Generally quiet, unless they're laying an egg, Jenn said there's a bit of magic in these hens.
"If you talk about any of our renters, before they rent, it's about the eggs and once they rent, it's about so much more," she said.
They tend to be neighbor magnets, especially those neighbors with kids because as Jenn said, "not everybody knows somebody who has a chicken."
Two hens arrive in a coop with all the feed they need, a bowl, an instruction sheet, and a "chicken hotline" for any questions.
At a cost of $485 for the season, the pair will drop up to 14 eggs per week, which Jenn said are better than store-bought eggs, but she did say they do want you to move the wire at the bottom of the coop each day.
"It makes it so that your hens have access to fresh grass and bugs every day," she said.
Docile by nature, they will peck at shiny jewelry as well as red nail polish on your fingers, Jenn explained. She added they'll also peck at toes and open-toed shoes.
The real impact is the one they have on the renters.
"They're just friendly and provide a level of therapy that a lot of people don't know that they need," she said.
Of course, if you're interested, make sure your local municipality doesn't have codes prohibiting it.
