In March of last year, we bought chickens for the first time. It was a new experience for everyone, but as the resident animal lover I was in charge. In total there were eight chickens, 5 Rhode Island reds and 2 silkies. They were relatively easy to take care of, the silkies were a bit sick when we first got them but after treating them for a week or so they were fine. The problems started coming once they were fully feathered and deemed old enough to start free ranging.
Within the first three weeks one of our silkies went missing, Fuzzie, and we couldn't find her anywhere. I felt awful, but she was relatively slow and had a harder time learning and getting into the coop. I figured a hawk or snake had gotten her, since she didn't tend to run from anything.
Flash forward a couple months later and nothing had happened. Then, my chicken Belle went missing. I was distraught, freaking out and trying to find her everywhere. No luck. We found feathers in the front yard and decided it must have been a hawk or eagle, because they are common where I live and she was way to big for a snake or a cat to get her. About a month after that, around December, we had sold our Rhode Island red rooster Apollo and kept our silkie rooster Cow, who wasn't as aggressive. We figured he would still help protect them. But then, he went missing. We didn't know where he could have gone, and didn't see any feathers. We closed up the coop as normal and hoped he would come back.
By now I was starting to think raccoons were getting our chickens, but after some research none of the signs of raccoons were there. Then, the next day, my mom told me that our chicken Hazel had been grabbed by our neighbors dog. She had ran after it and gotten her back, because he was a bird dog and dropped her when he got back to his house. Until this point I hadn't even thought of dogs. But the only dogs near us were usually in kennels. So, that night I went to close the coop at night and discovered two of our chickens missing, Tinker and Blue. That was the last straw. There were only two hens left, a silkie and a Rhode Island red, and I was mad. We could not figure out for the life of us what was taking our chickens. Just a reminder, 3 of our chickens had gone missing in a matter of days. So, we decided to keep the hens in the coop. We had felt bad doing it before because the store bought coop is pretty small, and didn't suit 8 or even just 5 chickens.
About a week later I was hiking around my backyard. We have a large stream back there, but they never went anywhere near it because it was loud. So, I cross the bridge and walk back to the city road behind our house. And I see feathers. Just, everywhere. Fluffy white silkie feathers, red feathers, just littering the ground. I was horrified. And I'm trying to think what in the world would bring all of our chickens back here to eat.
I looked around, next to the dirt road was a large field of goats and sheep, a house, and a kennel of dogs. Dogs that every time I come back here aggressively bark at me and are allowed out of their kennel. Their owners use them as sheepdogs. And so it clicks. These peoples dogs have been taking my chickens at night, around dusk after they herd the goats and sheep. I didn't confront the owners about it, as we had decided to sell our remaining hens to a nice lady in our neighborhood who had a better coop.
I just wanted to share my experience with free ranging, because although it has many benefits, it also has it's downsides. Consider the area you are located in, the pets that live in your neighborhood, and what local predators are lurking about, ready to snatch your chickens. Although this experience was a bit traumatizing, I luckily learned from it. We have a new group of chickens, some sweet little australorps and gold sex links, and guess what we put in? A fence. No dogs are grabbing anymore of our chickens on my watch.
Within the first three weeks one of our silkies went missing, Fuzzie, and we couldn't find her anywhere. I felt awful, but she was relatively slow and had a harder time learning and getting into the coop. I figured a hawk or snake had gotten her, since she didn't tend to run from anything.
Flash forward a couple months later and nothing had happened. Then, my chicken Belle went missing. I was distraught, freaking out and trying to find her everywhere. No luck. We found feathers in the front yard and decided it must have been a hawk or eagle, because they are common where I live and she was way to big for a snake or a cat to get her. About a month after that, around December, we had sold our Rhode Island red rooster Apollo and kept our silkie rooster Cow, who wasn't as aggressive. We figured he would still help protect them. But then, he went missing. We didn't know where he could have gone, and didn't see any feathers. We closed up the coop as normal and hoped he would come back.
By now I was starting to think raccoons were getting our chickens, but after some research none of the signs of raccoons were there. Then, the next day, my mom told me that our chicken Hazel had been grabbed by our neighbors dog. She had ran after it and gotten her back, because he was a bird dog and dropped her when he got back to his house. Until this point I hadn't even thought of dogs. But the only dogs near us were usually in kennels. So, that night I went to close the coop at night and discovered two of our chickens missing, Tinker and Blue. That was the last straw. There were only two hens left, a silkie and a Rhode Island red, and I was mad. We could not figure out for the life of us what was taking our chickens. Just a reminder, 3 of our chickens had gone missing in a matter of days. So, we decided to keep the hens in the coop. We had felt bad doing it before because the store bought coop is pretty small, and didn't suit 8 or even just 5 chickens.
About a week later I was hiking around my backyard. We have a large stream back there, but they never went anywhere near it because it was loud. So, I cross the bridge and walk back to the city road behind our house. And I see feathers. Just, everywhere. Fluffy white silkie feathers, red feathers, just littering the ground. I was horrified. And I'm trying to think what in the world would bring all of our chickens back here to eat.
I looked around, next to the dirt road was a large field of goats and sheep, a house, and a kennel of dogs. Dogs that every time I come back here aggressively bark at me and are allowed out of their kennel. Their owners use them as sheepdogs. And so it clicks. These peoples dogs have been taking my chickens at night, around dusk after they herd the goats and sheep. I didn't confront the owners about it, as we had decided to sell our remaining hens to a nice lady in our neighborhood who had a better coop.
I just wanted to share my experience with free ranging, because although it has many benefits, it also has it's downsides. Consider the area you are located in, the pets that live in your neighborhood, and what local predators are lurking about, ready to snatch your chickens. Although this experience was a bit traumatizing, I luckily learned from it. We have a new group of chickens, some sweet little australorps and gold sex links, and guess what we put in? A fence. No dogs are grabbing anymore of our chickens on my watch.
