eat Willcutt's home on Nicollet Island straddles two worlds. The front-yard view -- a swath of downtown Minneapolis skyline -- is as urban as it gets.

But the view out back could be a scene from rural Nicollet County: a chicken coop, adorned with vintage farm tools and filled with fowl -- 30 hens, two roosters, a dozen ducks and three geese, to be precise.

Willcutt, a University of Minnesota student who shares chicken chores and eggs with several neighboring households, sees nothing incongruous about poultry farming in the heart of the city. He's been raising animals and growing his own veggies since he was a kid in Rice County.

"With chickens, you can harvest food even in the winter," he said. On a frigid February afternoon, when most urbanites were snug indoors, Willcutt was out feeding his flock a homemade treat of rice, yogurt, garlic and cat food, tossed with olive oil. (They also eat commercial feed and kitchen scraps.) "We don't throw away food anymore. We have our own garbage disposal."

The Nicollet Island flock is large, as residential poultry populations go, but no longer a rarity. Back-yard chicken coops are hatching in cities and suburbs all over the country, from New York to Seattle, and a growing array of books and websites are offering advice and support. Willcutt operates a site, www.urbanagrarian.com, takes part in an online forum with 110 local members and teaches "Chickens in the City" classes. "It's a great way to meet interesting people who share the same values," he said.

Melissa Driscoll of Minneapolis, who has raised chickens most of her life, taught a similar class during the 1990s. "But there's a lot more interest now," she said.

Chicken-related questions to the University of Minnesota's animal science department have surged in recent years, said poultry expert Jacquie Jacob, who now averages one such call each week.

And the number of small-animal permits issued in the city of Minneapolis nearly doubled between 2006 and 2007, from 31 to 57, said Tom Doty, manager of field services. More than three-fourths of the 2007 permits were for fowl, according to Marilyn Fisher, manager of shelter operations.

How did the humble chicken suddenly acquire urban cachet? The locally grown food movement is a big factor, said Paula Pentel, an urban studies instructor at the University of Minnesota. Consumer scares, such as last year's spinach recall, have raised concerns about long supply chains, she said. "People are interested in having more control over their food sources."

That's why Chelsie Glaubitz, a university student who keeps five hens in the Prospect Park neighborhood, asked for a coop for Christmas two years ago. She had no agricultural background, but wanted to grow her own food. "It tastes better, and it's better for the environment," she said. "I have major reservations about industrial agriculture and animal welfare."

Her housemates don't share her fervor. "They think I'm kind of a hippie," she said. "They'll eat the eggs, and if I'm gone for a few days, they'll help, although some of my roommates are more scared of eggs from the back yard than from the grocery store."

For Chris Magnuson of Robbinsdale, it's satisfying to cook with eggs laid by her three hens. "I feel more connected and pride of ownership," she said. "When I make pancakes, I love cracking our own chicken eggs."

Chickens make great pets, according to Driscoll, who keeps three in the Longfellow neighborhood. "They're fun to watch, and they're good for gardening because you get great manure. The chickens love the compost pile. It's kind of a recycling system."

And some of today's poultry keepers are "die-hard foodies who want eggs you can't find in the store," Willcutt said. "I started keeping ducks because I couldn't find duck eggs and I wanted to cook with them. They have more fat. They're particularly good in custards and desserts."