CityView Magazine

CityViewNC.com | 15 Leigh Gonzalez mixes lavender bath salts at Curate Essentials. Order your alcoholic beverage in a designated social district cup. Stroll and shop your way through Downtown Fayetteville. Look for the Social District stickers in the windows of participating businesses or restaurants. Note stickers: Welcomed Here, Sold Here, Not Permitted Here. ORDER beverages from participating businesses DRINK from designated social district cup ENJOY shopping and exploring downtown. DISCARD your cup into trash cans. Take our free joint pain assessment at CentralCarolinaHosp.com/Joint Count on us to keep your life in motion. looking for something to do," says Kelly Dodson. "We home-school, so this is a big responsibility for the children. We really enjoy it and, in learning about all of this, we have expanded from egg-laying hens to meat chickens as well." When the family moved to Vander, they became neighbors with Rob and Julia Brattin and their children, Liberty and Charlee, who also raise chickens. At the Bell's Seed Store workshop, the children started the class with a few chicken jokes. e audience began to lean in as Rob Brattin started talking about the importance of learning where food comes from and having a supply of eggs and meat through raising chickens. "Raising chickens is simple, and then they produce a constant supply of eggs," said Brattin. But Brattin said his family's decision to raise chickens was not just about the price of eggs. It was about self-sustainability and teaching his children about responsibility. "We stopped learning where our food comes from, so we decided as a family to change the paradigm. We take care of the chickens so they can take care of the ground. It's a win-win," said Brattin. He told the crowd that he and his wife wanted to give their children a better life. "We wanted to give them a future. Wise men pass on an inheritance more than money. is will last generations," said Brattin. Many in the audience nodded in agreement. "Six chickens is a good amount to start with, but I would suggest getting chickens according to the space you have," said Brattin. Brattin outlined different options for raising chickens, including how to keep them caged in spaces like a back porch or the backyard and how to let them be free-range so they can roam and eat grass and bugs. "With chickens, if you need to keep them in a cage, it's easy. You can use what you have around you too," said Brattin. He said old furniture and chicken wire can be used to make a proper chicken coop as long as it is kept clean and gives the chickens enough space to scratch and move. One trick to help caged chickens produce more eggs is to put a rabbit in a cage on top of theirs. at bit of advice surprised some

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