Building your food system with backyard poultry. In This Podcast: Who knew when Christine Heinrichs told her daughter they could get chickens that it would shape her life into three popular books and a backyard full of heritage breeds? We sat down with Christine to discuss the re-release of her book, different chicken breeds, their characteristics, and what she learned along the way. We also discuss the mindset of raising meat hens and the importance of predator proofing your coop. We also have a special giveaway opportunity for 3 lucky listeners of the podcast, listen in for instructions on how to win a copy of her updated book! Don’t miss an episode! Click here to sign up for podcast updatesor visit www.urbanfarm.org/podcast Christine lives on California’s Central Coast, in an unincorporated rural community. She has a small flock of about ten hens, some old friends and some newcomers. She holds a B.S. in Journalism from the University of Oregon and belongs to several professional journalism and poultry organizations.  Christine started writing about chickens in the 1980’s when she lived in San Jose and got her first hens. How to Raise Chickens was published through Quarto Publishing in 2007, just as the local food movement was starting to focus attention on our food system and backyard chickens became the symbol of local food. How to Raise Poultry followed in 2009 and her third book The Backyard Field Guide to Chickens was published in 2016.  This year her first book How to Raise Chickens has been updated and re-released. Go to www.urbanfarm.org/christineh for more information and links on this podcast, and to find our other great guests. 438: Christine Heinrichs on Raising Backyard Chickens.