10 reasons to raise chickens

10. They help you build upper-body strength by hauling their feed bags

9. They keep family activities interesting with their curiosity (but it's doubtful our chickens will get near diet coke again)

8. They help dispell myths about their abilities - like the fact that they really can fly

7. They give you eggs to eat, which can be more than you can handle sometimes

6. They eat any kind of left-overs, including gingerbread houses and ice cream cake

5. They are easy pets to take care of (my daughter takes exception to that in the winter when their water freezes)

4. You can play doctor on them and they don't really mind

3. They are pretty good actors with a little coaching (the next installment of the "Magical Leaf" will likely be out this summer)

2. They pick through the compost pile, which helps aerate and speed up the decomposing process

1. They love to eat ticks! - which are in abundance this year