Homestead Jenn checking in... Where are we now?

Hello!   Homestead Jenn, Co-Founder of Rent The Chicken, checking back in! I can't believe it's almost the end of April already! Where has time gone?!   Again, thank you to all who already made your reservation for 2026! Some of you have already participated in Hatch The Chicken for 2026. So amazing! For Hatch The Chicken rentals, we'll be in touch about a week before your delivery with more information. For Rent The Chicken rentals, we deliver in either April, May, or June depending on where you are located. Stay tuned for more details!

Some of you may recall that I was under the weather on and off in December and January. It hit me again early this month! I'm back to being healthy but being sick caused me to miss over two weeks of half marathon training. I'll report back on the race when I check in next time! Spoiler... it involves wearing a potato costume! haha

 

We had Spring-like weather last week only to dip into freezing temps again the last few days. We are hopeful that Spring has officially sprung! Homestead Phil (my husband and Co-Founder of Rent The Chicken) and I went for a nice motorcycle ride together last week. The weather was PERFECT!

 

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At any rate, I have more big news!

 

I have more locations to feature and announce as we continue to egg-spand:

 

Rent The Chicken backyard egg-laying hen rentals AND Hatch The Chicken 5-week hatching rentals are available in Tampa / St Petersburg, Florida and Rent The Chicken is available in Columbia, South Carolina!

 

Homestead Valynda is now offering Rent The Chicken and Hatch The Chicken rentals in Tampa / St Petersburg, Florida. Her photo is below with her lovely hen! Homestead Gary and his family (pictured below) are providing Rent The Chicken to the Columbia, South Carolina area.

 

Here are some links for both Hatch The Chicken and Rent The Chicken:

 

Tampa / St Petersburg, FL - Rent The Chicken

Tampa / St Petersburg, FL - Hatch The Chicken

Columbia, SC - Rent The Chicken

 

For all other areas:

To see a list of all of our Rent The Chicken locations - click here.

For all of our Hatch The Chicken locations - click here.

 

To reserve:

To place a Rent The Chicken reservation online in the USA - click here.

To place a Hatch The Chicken reservation online in the USA - click here.

To place a Rent The Chicken reservation online in Canada - click here.

To place a Hatch The Chicken reservation online in Canada - click here.

**For Hatch The Chicken, before reserving it is best to find out what dates are available in your region. Feel free to respond to this email and we'll be happy to send the available dates over to you!

 

Enjoy the sunshine!

Homestead Jenn

Rent The Chicken - Co-Founder 

Homestead Phil - Checking in! Is it garden season yet?

 Hello!

 

Thank you to all who already made your reservation for 2026! For Hatch The Chicken rentals, we'll be in touch about a week before your delivery with more information. For Rent The Chicken rentals, we deliver in either April, May, or June depending on where you are located. Stay tuned for more details!

 

Homestead Phil checking in! I'm the Co-Founder of Rent The Chicken alongside my wife, Homestead Jenn. She asked for me to say hello from her and that she's keeping busy and clucking along! :)

 

I thought I might jump in here and say "HELLO". I am so ready for summer to be here. In Western PA we have had 70-degree days followed shortly after with snow falling. Do I plant my onions, or do I wait another week?

 

I was excited to pull my motorcycle out the other week and take a ride 'around the block', which really means through the township. It felt good to get out and to be in the sun, even if there were still some remnants of snow along the side of the road.  

 

I hope all of you are as excited about the warm weather as I am! I am almost jealous of this last week's weather forecast that I saw from Arizona. If you are there, don't worry, it's a dry heat :-)

 

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At any rate, Homestead Jenn asked me to share more big news!

 

I have more locations to feature and announce as we continue to egg-spand:

 

Rent The Chicken backyard egg-laying hen rentals AND Hatch The Chicken 5-week hatching rentals are available in Raleigh / Durham, NC and Los Angeles, CA in 2026! AND Hatch The Chicken is now available in South Central Kentucky!

 

We previously had Affiliate Partners in both Raleigh / Durham and in Los Angeles. Rentals in these areas are baaaaaaaack! Homestead Michelle & her family are providing Rent The Chicken & Hatch The Chicken to Raleigh / Durham, NC. Homestead Maria & her brother Homestead Juan are providing Rent The Chicken & Hatch The Chicken to Los Angeles, CA! Homestead Jeff & Andrea are providing Hatch The Chicken to South Central Kentucky It's all egg-citing!

 

Here are some links for both Hatch The Chicken and Rent The Chicken:

 

Raleigh / Durham, NC - Rent The Chicken

Raleigh / Durham, NC - Hatch The Chicken

Los Angeles, CA - Rent The Chicken

Los Angeles, CA - Hatch The Chicken

South Central Kentucky - Hatch The Chicken

 

For all other areas:

To see a list of all of our Rent The Chicken locations - click here.

For all of our Hatch The Chicken locations - click here.

 

To reserve:

To place a Rent The Chicken reservation online in the USA - click here.

To place a Hatch The Chicken reservation online in the USA - click here.

To place a Rent The Chicken reservation online in Canada - click here.

To place a Hatch The Chicken reservation online in Canada - click here.

**For Hatch The Chicken, before reserving it is best to find out what dates are available in your region. Feel free to respond to this email and we'll be happy to send the available dates over to you!

 

Sending some chicken love to you!

Homestead Phil

Rent The Chicken - Co-Founder 

Feels like Springtime... but it isn't!

 Hello!

 

Homestead Jenn checking in!

 

Again, thank you to all who already made your reservation for 2026! For Hatch The Chicken rentals, we'll be in touch about a week before your delivery with more information. For Rent The Chicken rentals, we deliver in either April, May, or June depending on where you are located. Stay tuned for more details!

 

Wow... I know people can't stop talking about the snow (and apparently the Half-time Show but that's not what I'm going to chat about that!)! Here in Western Pennsylvania, we had about 18" of snow fall in about a 36 hour period on January 25-26! There's still a lot of snow outside but today's high is 51F (10C) so we are hopeful for a lot to melt today. We are thinking about Spring, baby chicks, chickens, and fresh eggs over here!

 

Yesterday, after all of the frigid temps recently, it was like a heat wave at 32F (0C) and the roads were clear enough for Homestead Phil (my husband and Co-Founder of Rent The Chicken) and I to bundled up and took a 26 minute brisk walk. It was glorious! See below for a photo.

 

In my last message, I mentioned that I had been sick. I felt better and went on a cruise to the Bahamas with my mom, my cousin, her daughter, and 6 of my mom's friends. See below for a beautiful photo I took from the ship. It was warm and lovely! My mom even zip-lined for the first time with some of her friends. I stayed on the ground where I was comfortable! haha Then... I got sick AGAIN when I got home. I'm feeling better now and hoping to not relapse ... again.

 

At any rate, I have more big news! Last time I wrote using this format, I announced that we now have Rent The Chicken rentals available again in New Jersey. Hooray!

 

I have three more locations to feature and announce as we continue to egg-spand:

 

Rent The Chicken backyard egg-laying hen rentals are available in all of Salt Lake City, Utah, Dallas / Fort Worth, and Kamloops and Okanagan, British Columbia in 2026!

 

For Rent The Chicken rentals, we've had Affiliate Partners in Dallas / Fort Worth previously as well as in the Interior of British Columbia. Rentals in these areas are baaaaaaaack! Here are some links for both Hatch The Chicken and Rent The Chicken:

 

Salt Lake City & Utah Valley - Rent The Chicken

Salt Lake City & Utah Valley - Hatch The Chicken

Dallas, Texas - Rent The Chicken

Dallas, Texas - Hatch The Chicken

Fort Worth, Texas - Rent The Chicken

Fort Worth, Texas - Hatch The Chicken

Kamloops & Salmon Arm, BC - Rent The Chicken

Kamloops, BC - Hatch The Chicken

Kelowna & Vernon, BC - Rent The Chicken

Kelowna, Salmon Arm, & Vernon - Hatch The Chicken

 

Homestead John & Rachel are providing Rent The Chicken & Hatch The Chicken to Dallas and Fort Worth. Homestead Mollie has been with us for about a year offering Hatch The Chicken to the interior of British Columbia but decided to offer Rent The Chicken as well! Homestead Devin join us last summer to offer Rent The Chicken & Hatch The Chicken to her local area in Utah. It's all egg-citing!

 

To see a list of all of our Rent The Chicken locations - click here.

For all of our Hatch The Chicken locations - click here.

To place a Rent The Chicken reservation online in the USA - click here.

To place a Hatch The Chicken reservation online in the USA - click here.

To place a Rent The Chicken reservation online in Canada - click here.

To place a Hatch The Chicken reservation online in Canada - click here.

**For Hatch The Chicken, before reserving it is best to find out what dates are available in your region. Feel free to respond to this email and I'll be happy to send the available dates over to you!

 

Wow.. I had more to say than I thought! Some of you who know me aren't surprised though! haha Until next time...

 

Stay warm and chat soon!

-Homestead Jenn

Rent The Chicken - Co-Founder 

My business heart hurts.

Is that a thing? "business heart"? Let's say it's a thing. Mine is hurt.

Homestead Phil, each of our Affiliate Partners, and I work really hard to provide these fantastic products of Rent The Chicken and Hatch The Chicken. We strive to have ethical standards of business practices as well as farming / homesteading practices. Certainly our service isn't for everyone! That's OK.

Now and again, potential renters ask "what happens to the chicks / chickens at the end of the rental?". I chuckle and make light saying "We don't have a big barbecue that's for sure!" They chuckle then I provide a more in depth response.

Sometimes, potential renters state "Someone said you kill all of the baby chicks after the rental.". Wait. What? Someone said *WE* do what? Who said that? This week, some one said they read it on a website. Certainly not our website! Those babies are worth more to us and our Affiliate partners as live baby chicks than dead baby chicks. :(

Here are a number of scenarios as to what happens to the baby chicks after our Hatch The Chicken program is complete:

The girls are raised to be hens for Rent The Chicken

The girls are raised as breeding stock for Hatch The Chicken

The boys are raised to be roosters to fertilize eggs for Hatch The Chicken

The girls are raised to lay eggs for our families

The boys are raised to protect our flocks to help keep them safe

The chicks are sold to families looking to expand their flocks

The roosters are sold to families looking to protect their flock

I can't confirm what other organizations do with their baby chicks after a hatching program but I know with my whole heart that all of the chicks hatched with our Hatch The Chicken program provide a purpose following the rental. We value their lives and value what they bring to our business and those who participate in our programs.

"No Judgement Chicken Mentors"

This morning, as I was chatting with a renter who was signing up to reserve her Rent The Chicken Rental, she said "My farming friends keep saying to me 'Just get chickens' but I'm not ready for that! I need a 'no judgement' ..." As she was pausing to find the words I blurted out "We'll be your 'No Judgement Chicken Mentors'!" We laughed and she said that would be a great topic for a blog post. So here it is... "No Judgement Chicken Mentors"

I may or may not have had some judgement while in the midst of our TEN days at the Farm to Table section of the Pittsburgh Home & Garden Show recently. The "what if I eat the chicken?" comments weren't funny on day 1. They were internal sighing and eye-ball rolling by day 10! haha Nonetheless, we tried to be as fresh and as relaxed on day 10 as we were on day 1. We still said "If it's not a good fit, you can (pause) 'chicken-out'!" on day 10 :) Winters in Pennsylvania are a valid concern for chicken keeping. Instead of asking "What do you do with the chickens in the winter?" or "How do the chickens do in the winter?", many asked "What do you do in the winter?". I started answering honestly with "I watch a lot of Netflix." I would pause and then say "Thank you for asking.. How about you?" bwahahahahaha By then I had already made some jokes and said "chicken-out". All fun! The best was when a good looking guy with his very tall and attractive lady friend came over with their burly guy friend. Hook. Line. Sinker. He said "What do you do in the winter?" Keep in mind, this was day TEN of 10 and about an hour before the show was due to close. I said "Oh.. I watch a lot of Netflix. That's pretty personal to ask especially in front of your lady friend? What about you?" LOL He turned about 10 shades of red and his lady friend busted her little gut while the burly friend about fell over laughing! He said "I like you!". It was HILARIOUS.

There are thousands of ways to raise baby chicks and to have backyard hens. Not everyone (chicken keepers and non-chicken keepers alike) understand our business model and our coop choices. Our coops are portable which allows the chickens to feel like they are free ranging when the coop is moved but they are still very protected by the coop. A portable coop also means there won't be a build up of droppings or a dead spot in no time flat unlike a stationary coop. Our coops are a good size for the number of chickens that we provide with our rentals. If we made our coops larger, they would either not be moved as much or at all. Then we'd be back to square one with the dead spot and build up of droppings PLUS there would be more desire for free range time as the chickens would have zero access to grass. Speaking of free range time, we ask for all of our renters to ONLY free range WITH supervision. A responsible person should be outside and near the chickens when the chickens are roaming outside of the coop. But why? One word - Hawks. Overhead predators. Everything wants chicken for dinner when all you want is breakfast! Plus, if the chickens are always put in after supervised free range time, there is ZERO chance that they will be forgotten about and not locked in when the sun goes down. Spoiler: The rest of "everything wanting chicken for dinner" comes out when the sun goes down. It's ironic that the same people who are concerned that our coops are too small and ask if they are safe in the coop, are the same people who think the chickens need to be free ranging. Guess who free ranging is not so good for?

Another spoiler:

Remember, there are thousands of ways to have backyard hens! We know what works for our rentals, renters, and our rental hens. We encourage our renters to follow our recommendations and remind them they will receive 5-6 months of education during the rental. From there, they can make a super educated decisions on their long-term chicken-keeping goals. :)

For both Rent The Chicken and Hatch The Chicken, we ask for our renters to follow our recommendations. Are our recommendations the difference between life and death of the chicks & chickens? Sometimes it is! Other times it's ease of use. Other times it's predator control. Sometimes it's about egg production. We all do our best to be a "No Judgement Chicken Mentor" but you'll need to trust that we know what works for our rentals - Rent The Chicken and Hatch The Chicken. We want for our chickens and chicks to be safe and for each of our renters to have a great experience!

Never had backyard hens before? No problem! We will do our best to answer your questions with the same patience and sincerity as we answered in 2013-2014 when we first started answering rental questions. Heads up: If you ask what I do in the winter.. I will likely say "I watch a lot of Netflix." :)

Remember when...

Remember when I used to blog at least once a week? I'll try my best to get back into the swing of things!

With our niece Brooklynn visiting for the summer, Our Girl (foster kiddo who we plan to adopt), day trips, maintaining and growing both Rent The Chicken and The Chicken Network, plus managing the home part of The Homestead, I've been a bit busy and maybe even overwhelmed so my blog took a backseat. In fact, it may have been on the back bumper and not even on the backseat!

We drove to New Jersey to be part of a Coops for Troops presentation. It was our first time but a number of our Rent The Chicken Affiliates have participated previously. To watch last season's episodes of Coops for Troops for free online, go on over to Coops for Troops! Scroll down to "bonus features" which are the actual episodes. It was an incredible experience. A local chicken 4-H club nominated a vet to receive the package of generous sponsors including chickens from Rent The Chicken!

We made a day trip to Old Bedford Village in Bedford, PA. It's been a few years since I've been there. It's this great "village" experience that stepped us back into the 1800s with basket making, history lessons, a blacksmith, candle maker, and more! They did have some chickens but none were available for rent! :) Like Aunt like niece in these photos!

We are well into #TompkinsPalooza2018 as I mentioned a few entries back. It's really about being purposeful with friends and family. Neighbor kids from up the road have been visiting again. They used to visit when we had our last little guy and it's good to have a reason for them to be visiting again. In addition to a few trips, we've also been puzzling (probably not the right verbiage?!), swimming in the river, playing board games, creating in the kitchen, and more! We also hatched baby chicks this week! Can you believe these kids are convinced that they need three meals a day?! Yesterday, "Uncle Dad" (as Homestead Phil has been renamed around The Homestead) "made" breakfast, we went out for lunch as we were out running errands and the natives were getting restless, and we traded eggs for pizza at our favorite local pizza place - Wolfies. I didn't have to cook one meal! There was a death in our church family so I did whip up about 3 dozen eggs worth of egg salad for the meal to follow the funeral.

Our IT department (aka Homestead Phil) is backing up my phone, updating my operating system, and has big plans for a phone upgrade for me. So I've been without my cell phone for hours! It's a good thing I have a PC and a work phone all conveniently located at my desk while the updates are happening. When I talk on the phone, it sounds like the person on the other end is a little mouse in a box trying to talk to me so I've been using the speakerphone option. Even my headset isn't work well. In addition to hearing people when I'm trying to talk on the phone, I hear the emojis with the last 27 iOS updates are pretty great! I wouldn't know, they all show up as squares and question marks when people send them to me. I just use my imagination as to what emojis are being sent to me :) All in a days work, right? Hot Date plans for our Friday night include a trip to the Verizon store. Yay.

Chat soon!
-Homestead Jenn

Why "Homestead Jenn"?

I may have jumped the gun on this whole "I'm a blogger now" thing! Apparently there are new phrases like "pinterest photo" and "blog hops". There's a way to make a posted photo be "pinnable" - another word I just learned! haha I'll have to save the learning of those buzzwords for another day! I did learn how to add the social media icons to my blog and to Rent The Chicken.com! If you need to learn how, be sure to read Christina's igottacreate! blog!

Before I describe to you how I became "Homestead Jenn", it's best to back up to tell of how "Homestead Phil" came about. Good ol' Homestead Phil has always been a dreamer and a visionary. When we were planning to transition from life in the city to life in the country, he had big dreams of a large garden, raising meat rabbits for food, and having backyard hens for eggs. For as much as he is a visionary and a dreamer, he doesn't always envision the steps it takes to get to the dream. That's where I come in! I'm the planner, the list maker, and the "what do we have to do to get to the dream?" of the team. Before we even moved, I put my foot down to say "You can pick two things of the three!". Needless to say, my foot didn't stay down very long! Phil was listening to pod casts and watching youtube videos on homesteading preparing for the next stage of our lives.

Once we moved from outside of Baltimore, Maryland to the country in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, Phil started to convert into Homestead Phil! He studied the seeds to buy for his garden. He researched the best meat rabbits to buy and breed. One random day when I thought it was far too cold to buy baby chicks, he said "I'm going to buy baby chicks. I'll be back after bit." (Notice: I didn't say he researched! haha) I think he said it when he was going out the door so I couldn't give a rebuttal! We had ZERO supplies for chick raising. We did EXACTLY we don't recommend for people to do when getting into backyard chickens. Phil started calling himself Homestead Phil. He created a Homestead Phil email address and even posted to a YouTube channel for awhile until we shifted social media to focus on Rent The Chicken. I ultimately did not get crowned with the Homestead Jenn title until we hatched Rent The Chicken.com! So apparently, I'm "Homestead Jenn" by association. :) Each of the families that offer Rent The Chicken from their farm/homestead are also called Homestead So-and-so! You can read about all of them on my favorite section of Rent The Chicken.com: The About Us Page.

So here are some flashback photos of the start of Homestead Phil! The chicks that started the vision for Rent The Chicken are being inspected by Givi Kitty! There were no chicks harmed in the snapping of this photo. haha The baby rabbit was our first ever breeder rabbit, Fiona. The sprouts are cucumbers growing inside. Eventually when the weather broke, they were transplanted into the garden. Rabbits love to snack on cucumbers! As much as Givi Kitty loves having me around, she is truly Phil's kitty. She will pick his lap over mine almost every time. She likes to sleep on me at night though so it all evens out! :)