Rising egg prices prompt some to rent a hen and coop from popular Sebastopol business

SEBASTOPOL, Calif. (KGO) — The high price of eggs has many folks turning to a unique business that will rent you a chicken and a coop for a week, or even months.

It’s a story we first brought you last summer but inflation has ruffled some feathers, prompting new interest.

Eric Strother was checking in on his backyard henhouse in Sebastopol Friday and all the ladies inside.

All the hens are available for rent.

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“We’ve had a lot of demand for the hens, booking a lot of rentals in the last couple of weeks,” Strother said.

We first spoke to Strother last summer about his unique business model only months after launching Rentbackyardhens.com. Since then inflation has driven up the price of groceries, especially fresh eggs.

“I think it’s getting people to think they can be more self-sufficient looking at their backyards differently, where they had lawns, they’re thinking maybe I could put a chicken coop back there,” he said.

Strother says all prospective renters are prescreened. If it’s a good fit, he’ll deliver two egg laying hens, a coop and organic feed anywhere in the Bay Area.

Rental prices range from $175 to $475 dollars, depending how long you want to rent. Eric gives personal instruction on caring for the hens. There’s so much interest, he plans to build more coops soon.

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