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I was raised on eggs from my grandmother's farm and I can never recall having any kind of food borne illness. After my grandmother stopped raising chickens I had a friend who kept me supplied with wonderful fresh eggs from her hens until this year. She and her husband raise quail and the workload has just gotten to be too much.

I can really tell the difference in the eggs I now buy at the supermarket and the ones I used to get from her. The shells of the storebought ones are so thin that I rarely get the package home without breaking at least one where the shells of the ones I got from her were very thick.

I wonder if that indicates that her chickens were healthier or getting better nutrition in their feed?

I would think so, msbaby. When you see those specials about mass-cage-raised chickens and the horrors they go through, you pretty much swear off of eating eggs from them. I am in a minor struggle with Bob right now because I want to get only cage-free eggs and he balks at the high price. We need to find a local farmer to find a solution I think.

I read recently where people were starting to keep chickens in their yards even in subdivisions for the eggs. People I've spoken with said that they had problems with animals killing their chickens even when they had a good pen with a wire top..I wonder how you would ever keep them alive running free?

The odd thing is that we live near a lake and have so many mallards and hens that we have to shoo them away from the bird feeder! I guess they sleep on the water at night where predators can't reach them.

There you go, you should be raising ducks! You could be eating duck eggs!

The magazines I've read about raising chickens in your yard tell you where to buy a "bird igloo" from which is a high tech plastic thing the chickens sleep in. So we've come a long way from wood-plank cages

Bird Igloo

Of course it's more expensive too. I think people spend far more on their "pet chickens" in modern times than my grandparents would ever have dreamed of

If you live in a rural community, lots of people will have chickens. Which means they are thrilled to sell you their eggs. They also request you keep your empty cartons for them. They get so many eggs! I have so many sources here to buy eggs from, including little signs on the roads telling me where to turn off for fresh eggs, fresh produce, fresh fruit/nuts, whatever people have that they grow and wish to sell. It's a lovely situation.

In a surburban area, some people do still have chickens. it depends on local zoning and whether people are compliant with that zoning. So it's still possible to get fresh eggs but it will be harder to find a source. In this case, I'd run a craigslist ad and see if anyone has fresh eggs they'd like to sell.

In small cities and sububurbs your best bet is joining a food co-op or getting out to the Farmer's Markets each week. You can do this in large cities also, but the food will not be as local - it will probably be more regionally local instead of neighborhood local.

Even in small city apartments there are ways to have tomato plants inside or on a balcony, and fresh herbs.

My parents live in San Diego and along the narrow side yard they have peach, orange, lime, lemon, tangerine and grapefruit trees that put out big fruit surpluses. Those are pretty good snacks and absolutely free every year.

If this house plan i am working on comes to fruition, I will be able to garden, plant fruit trees, make a root cellar to have fresh produce all year, and even get three laying hens for my eggs. I would not have time for a goat - which is sad; I adore goats.

Jilly I'm sure a neighbor has a goat that you could go visit and play with, and trade your eggs for their milk!