INTERVIEW WITH THE BROOME'S

Interview Highlights (1/31/12)

1. Where are you from? Where did you grow up?
   We're both from the Kansas City Area. 
2. What kinds of activities are you involved in or enjoy doing?
   Kevin: I enjoy spending time with family, building toys, playing guitar, cooking.
   Ashlee: I love planning parties and d.i.y. type things. I was involved with the 18th Street Fashion Show here in KCMO. I also enjoy gardening.
   Remy (7 yrs. old): I like playing video games and drawing. I like picking up our soft chickens!
3. What got you started on having chickens?
   Ashlee: My cousin had chickens in Boulder, CO. It sounded easy enough, we want it to be a hobby rather than a huge commitment. We also really like that it brings the family together. It teaches our kids about the cycle of birth, life, and death.
4. Tell us about your coop?
   Ashlee: Well, Kevin built it and made it so that it'd match the look of our own home.
   Kevin: Yeah, I just used material from Home Depot and put it together myself.
5. Do your chickens have names?
   Yep! Bertha, Mable, Frizzle (or Shaniqua)...
6. How do you feel about the city ordinances?
   I think people are misinformed about chickens, and we wouldn't want to live somewhere that didn't allow chickens. They don't realize that they are very quiet. Once people meet the chickens they realize that they are really nice and fun to have. And family oriented.
7. How do your neighbors feel about the chickens?
   Ashlee: Well, at first they seemed wary, but when we offered eggs, they definitely didn't seem to have a problem with it. They are very onboard with the chickens.
   Kevin: Yeah, none of the neighbors complain, we don't have a rooster so it isn't noisy. 
8. Think there's a difference in your eggs and the ones at the store?
   Ashlee: I don't think so.
   Kevin: I can't tell, I mean, the yolks are yellower, so visually, there might be a difference.
9. Do the kids participate in raising the chickens? How so?
   Yeah, Remy chases them on occasion, but he mostly collects the eggs out of the coop.
10. Where do you go for help or questions about your chickens?
    The internet mostly.
11. Have you had any problems with the chickens so far?
    We've had the chickens for about three years. One of our first chickens got injured and then eaten by a raccoon, which was really sad. Another time, one of our chickens got sick and so we took her to a vet and humanely euthanized her. 
12. If you were a chicken...where would you live?
    Remy: I'd want to live on a farm where I can run around free!

Ashlee & Kevin Broome are a wonderful couple living in Merriam, who care deeply about the ethical treatment of animals. They had a lot of helpful advice for raising chickens.

This is their backyard. There's the Silkie hen!



That silkie is quite elusive, hiding near the dog house (yes, batman!)



Kevin built the coop using materials from Home Depot. It was made to match their own home.





They've got all sorts of chickens. Bertha, the white hen, is their best layer.



Their home is very well decorated and certainly lovely. They are both very artistic people.



Remy, their son, wants to be an illustrator! Here is holding their family cat. They own two cats and one dog, who gets along very well with the chickens.

Eggs! The Broome's were kind enough to share their eggs with us. Personally, I think these eggs taste much better.