My grandfather raised chickens. I can't remember how many he had but he had two large chicken houses. I used to stay at his place during the summer break when I was a kid and help him. I would clean the houses, gather eggs, help grandma candle them, catch chickens fro butcher and help butcher them. All done by hand; a couple of chopping blocks, big tubs of boiling water for pluckin', etc. Never again. I wouldn't even eat chicken for years.