Tired of purchasing your eggs at the local market? A more time-honoured tradition is becoming increasingly trendy in the Columbia Valley.

A growing number of people in the community are becoming backyard chicken keepers, and now chicken lovers need look no further than their own backyards.

Local chicken farmer extraordinaire Kalista Pruden will be giving a two-hour course on backyard chicken raising basics — on coops, food types and collection systems.

If you are interested in keeping a pet that provides you with breakfast and are concerned about creating a healthy living environment for these feathered friends ,then this is an excellent opportunity.

The Invermere Community Greenhouse is organizing the chicken farming information session on April 8th between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. The course — which will start out at the local community greenhouse, followed by a visit to a couple of local coops — will help give you a sense of confidence about the possibility of chicken farming and help you in the process of setting up and raising chickens in your backyard or on your acreage.

Upon the completion of the course, you will have an opportunity to attend a chick order with the possibility of ordering a small backyard flock of your very own.

The cost for the course is $10 for ages eight to 16 or $30 for adults.

For more information, email events@groundswellnetwork.ca or call 250-342-3337.

Story written by Erin Knutson