The Surprising Truth About Backyard Chickens and Smell
By Tom Seest
Do Backyard Chickens Really Smell?
At BackyardChickenNews, we help people who want to raise backyard chickens by collating information and news blended with our own personal experiences.
Having backyard chickens might sound like a dream come true, but there are some things you should keep in mind before getting your first flock of birds. First of all, you should have dust bathing facilities for them. That way, you’ll have no problem controlling their smell. Besides, backyard flocks are easy to maintain.

Do Backyard Chickens Really Smell?
Table Of Contents
- Does The Backyard Chicken Smell Myth Hold True?
- Can Backyard Chickens Really Smell?
- Can Controlling Backyard Chickens Reduce Odor?
- Can Backyard Chickens Make Your Garden Fun?
- Can Backyard Chickens Teach You Something?
- Can Backyard Chickens be Safe and Odorless?
- Can Backyard Chickens Really be a Nuisance?
Does The Backyard Chicken Smell Myth Hold True?
It’s a myth that backyard chickens smell. Although chicken feces do produce an unpleasant smell, they are much less smelly than dog or cat excrement. You should not be alarmed if you do find a little chicken dropping on the ground. Fortunately, there are several steps you can take to prevent smelly chicken messes.
The first step is to educate the community about backyard chickens. The majority of the population associates chickens with the meat bird horror show, but they’re not. The best way to educate the community about backyard chickens is to educate them about their benefits. In addition to the fact that chickens are a great source of natural fertilizer, backyard chickens also provide fresh eggs.
Another misconception is that chickens attract rodents or other pests. In fact, chickens are a perfect pest deterrent. While rats can be attracted to pet food, these animals aren’t attracted to chicken poo. Besides their own natural defenses against fleas, chickens also eat baby rats and small snakes.
While backyard chickens are not prohibited, you will have to feed the chickens regularly, clean their waterers, and collect their eggs. You will also need to secure the coop doors at night to prevent predators.

Does The Backyard Chicken Smell Myth Hold True?
Can Backyard Chickens Really Smell?
If you’ve never had chickens before, you may be worried about the smell. However, you’re not alone. Many people who have never raised their own chickens only know what they smell like from commercial poultry operations. These chickens are usually kept in overcrowded conditions and are not cleaned regularly. As a result, they can accumulate ammonia. If you’re looking to raise chickens as pets, you should be prepared to deal with this problem.

Can Backyard Chickens Really Smell?
Can Controlling Backyard Chickens Reduce Odor?
There are some simple ways to reduce backyard chicken smell. One way is to keep the chickens’ living areas clean and dry. This will reduce the smell caused by the manure. Another simple method is to clean the chicken’s bedding. You can also place a few fresh herbs in the chicken coops to combat strong ponging.
Adding a strong scent such as peppermint oil to your yard can help deter your chickens from pecking and scratching in certain areas of your yard. You can also plant marigolds in these areas. These flowers have a powerful smell that chickens dislike.
Garlic is another effective way to control the backyard chicken smell. Garlic’s pungent smell makes it less appealing to chickens. Using a spray made of crushed garlic can work well. Simply sprinkle two to three cloves onto the pecking or scratching areas where you don’t want your chickens to venture. This inexpensive method will help you keep your flock from roaming your yard.
Chicken poop is a common cause of backyard chicken smell. Chicken droppings contain ammonia, a gas compound derived from hydrogen and nitrogen. If the coop isn’t properly maintained, this compound can lead to a stinky odor.

Can Controlling Backyard Chickens Reduce Odor?
Can Backyard Chickens Make Your Garden Fun?
If you want to know what your chickens smell like, you might want to smell them. While chickens do not have the most powerful sense of smell in the animal kingdom, they do use their sense of smell to make sense of their world and make decisions. The smell of a single dropping is not strong enough to detect ammonia, but a large pile of chicken manure will be a strong enough smell to detect.
Fortunately, having a flock of backyard chickens is relatively easy. Just make sure you have adequate dust bathing facilities. Keeping a flock is a great way to enjoy your chickens and get to know your new family members. If you have the time and money, chickens make a great addition to any home.

Can Backyard Chickens Make Your Garden Fun?
Can Backyard Chickens Teach You Something?
You may not realize it, but smelling your backyard chickens’ manure is a good way to learn about how these animals are affected by fecal matter. It’s not only educational but also fun. Backyard flocks often share tools. This makes them particularly vulnerable to bacterial infections.

Can Backyard Chickens Teach You Something?
Can Backyard Chickens be Safe and Odorless?
If you’ve never raised chickens before, you may be worried about the odor problem. You may only have seen chickens on commercial farms, where they’re treated as a commodity and kept in cramped conditions. They are also not cleaned and ventilated regularly, which allows ammonia to build up. In contrast, if you’re raising backyard chickens for your own pets, you’ll want your chickens to smell as good as possible.
One way to keep backyard chickens smelling fresh is to wash your hands thoroughly before touching them. You may also want to use hand sanitizer, which you can hang outside the coop. This will help prevent the buildup of germs and bacteria. If you find that your chickens have a foul odor, contact your veterinarian.
You may want to consider keeping your backyard flock in a separate area from the house. Chickens can easily spread disease and cause outbreaks of illnesses. This makes it vital to clean and sanitize the house regularly. You should also clean out the coop regularly and dispose of cracked eggs.

Can Backyard Chickens be Safe and Odorless?
Can Backyard Chickens Really be a Nuisance?
Backyard chickens don’t produce much odor and don’t cause a nuisance. The smell they produce is much less than the smell of larger animals, such as cats and dogs. The smell comes from the waste they produce, which is contained within a coop and run. It’s also important to water them frequently and keep a light on until they go to bed.
Though some residents are concerned about the odor of backyard chickens, the smell isn’t a nuisance. While the smell may be noticeable, it isn’t loud enough to be a nuisance, and clucking is only a few decibels louder than a normal conversation. As long as backyard chickens are kept in a safe place and have a healthy diet, neighbors will not be bothered by their presence.
The smell may be a nuisance if it attracts a lot of pests. Pests can be attracted to food sources, including spilled chicken feed. They also tend to frequent trash cans and wild bird feeders. While they don’t typically infest humans, they can carry diseases.

Can Backyard Chickens Really be a Nuisance?
Be sure to read our other related stories at BackyardChickenNews to learn more about raising chickens in your backyard.