Just some advice on raising free range chickens.

[JohnDS1]

Hello all.

I have a half acre of property backed by a half acre of woods. My wife and I were kicking around the idea of buying fertilized eggs, hatching them and raising them as free ranged as possible. We thought it would be fun for our 7 year old daughter to watch them grow.

So when the chickens are able to be moved outside, I was trying to think of ways to keep them as free as possible for their own benefit, but also so we don't have a continued mess to clean up in the coop. So for 6 chickens, I was thinking, since they'd be walking around free from morning until night, I was thinking to build a raised 6' long nesting area that has six 12"×12" separate nests. In front of that a roosting bar. Then a ramp leaning on the roosting bar from the ground. Of course the perimeter would be caged in but no bottom. Can this be done without a bottom or would it be too drafty for my climate 7(A).

I guess you can see where I'm going with this so that when they poop, it hits the ground. I want to set it up as maintenance free as possible without having to clean mounds of chicken poop from a traditional coop, all while giving them the benefit of being free. I would even put this contraption on wheels so I can move them around so the poop can hit different areas of lawn and I can just let nature take care of it.

If I was letting them run wild all day, do they still need to be fed? That would be great if they don't because that would eliminate other animals coming if there is no food in coop.

We were also thinking of getting Barred Plymouth Rock Eggs since we live in Long Island, NY. Assuming this would be a good breed to withstand the winter of course.

Does this sound possible? Or maybe I'm reinventing the wheel here, can someone recommend a coop that is like this?

 

[Acre4Me]

A few notes.

Sure, you can let them eat whatever, but egg production may suffer -many find that providing formulated feed, even to free ranging chickens, is beneficial. It does not need to be available 24/7, it can be avail during daylight hours.

Your free ranging chickens may be feeding local wildlife rather than giving you eggs. Often, once predators find the chicken dinner buffet. They stay until the are all gone, or you lock up your chickens. So, basically, you should have a plan for when predators show up, or a plan to repopulate your flock.

Nest boxes vs free ranging. Chickens may need to be trained, or sometimes retrained to use nest boxes bc they will create their own nests for eggs somewhere in their free ranging area.

Nest boxes should be lower than the roosts, otherwise they will sleep in the nest boxes. Chickens poop during the night, in their sleep, so nest boxes will get dirty.

Open bottom/ mesh bottom coop. This is something I’ve seen done in warm weather locations. Winter can be s bit cold in 7A, but not usually for long. Pay attention to prevailing winds and storms. Keep roost area draft free. Could work ok.

Hatching eggs. 50% males possibility. Your kid could be chased or attacked by hormonal rooster, making them scared or disliking chickens for life, plus kids are at the right height to be attacked in face eyes. Just be aware. Some roosters are ok, but all are unpredictable. For a first/starter flock, I do not recommend males. Once your girls are hens (over a year old) then, they can handle a young rooster and teach him some manners. But the hatching part, it is a great learning experience for kids.

 

[FunClucks]

Look into Deep Litter or Deep Bedding (search terms on this site). Using this method, you would typically only clean out the coop once or twice a year. The poo incorporates into the bedding and it's usually quite manageable depending on your climate. Something to consider.

Also, moving the coop around sounds like a chicken tractor. Maybe search on that term also and in the Coop Design Forum for moveable coop.

I would definitely plan to feed them some amount of commercial feed every day or the eggs they lay won't be as large or as frequent as they could be. The chickens of today are bred to require at least some commercial ration in most climates in order to get all the nutrients they need to be healthy and produce the maximum amount of eggs. These are not our grandparents or great grandparents chickens - they've been bred time and again for more eggs (or more meat if that's the goal). Since today's egger chickens lay larger eggs more often, they depend more on commercial feed to meet their nutrient needs. I would do lots of research into the type / breed of chicken before you purchase them if feeding them a minimum amount of commercial feed is your goal. There are many posts on this site about this topic, with lots of good info.

If you do end up hatching eggs, have a plan for the roosters. I.E. be prepared to send them to freezer camp if they become human aggressive. Rehoming is a good option for good roos who you just don't have space for, but @Acre4Me 's warning about kids is a big deal, and I second what they said.

I did a hatch recently, and out of 20 that hatched I maybe got 4 females. I would like to rehome the nicer roos, but there's no way I can find safe homes for all 16 where I live. Either they get eaten by predators, sent to freezer camp, or I sell them / give them away and take the risk that they will either be eaten or go in the cockfighting ring (which is illegal and I consider animal abuse, but they do it a lot where I live). So they'll be living a good life for 4-6 months and then most of them will visit my freezer.

 

[JohnDS1]

A few notes.

Sure, you can let them eat whatever, but egg production may suffer -many find that providing formulated feed, even to free ranging chickens, is beneficial. It does not need to be available 24/7, it can be avail during daylight hours.

Your free ranging chickens may be feeding local wildlife rather than giving you eggs. Often, once predators find the chicken dinner buffet. They stay until the are all gone, or you lock up your chickens. So, basically, you should have a plan for when predators show up, or a plan to repopulate your flock.

Nest boxes vs free ranging. Chickens may need to be trained, or sometimes retrained to use nest boxes bc they will create their own nests for eggs somewhere in their free ranging area.

Nest boxes should be lower than the roosts, otherwise they will sleep in the nest boxes. Chickens poop during the night, in their sleep, so nest boxes will get dirty.

Open bottom/ mesh bottom coop. This is something I’ve seen done in warm weather locations. Winter can be s bit cold in 7A, but not usually for long. Pay attention to prevailing winds and storms. Keep roost area draft free. Could work ok.

Hatching eggs. 50% males possibility. Your kid could be chased or attacked by hormonal rooster, making them scared or disliking chickens for life, plus kids are at the right height to be attacked in face eyes. Just be aware. Some roosters are ok, but all are unpredictable. For a first/starter flock, I do not recommend males. Once your girls are hens (over a year old) then, they can handle a young rooster and teach him some manners. But the hatching part, it is a great learning experience for kids.

Thank you for the reply. This is great information.

 

[nuthatched]

Hi there, welcome!
Unless you have roving flocks of feral chickens already, they need to be fed by you, especially modern dual purpose breeds. They'll grow stunted, produce little to no eggs if they don't get proper feed in proper quantities. Animals are going to be far more attracted to the free chicken buffet than the feed, especially while they're small.
Considering you live where winters are harsh, you need a secure coop and large run, a tractor (what you're describing) won't work well in your climate as they need to be out of the wind and have lots of room when it snows.
You only need two nest boxes, and make them at least 14 x14, chickens stand to lay eggs.
They will need to be secured as unlimited free ranging is going to attract predators and they likely won't survive a month (and I'm being liberal in my estimate) as you have weasels, martens, owls, hawks, fox, possum, coons, coyotes, snakes, rats at any given time.
If you want to hatch eggs for your daughter, that's great but you're going to have to completely rethink your plan or find homes for them once they hatch.

 

[JohnDS1]

Look into Deep Litter or Deep Bedding (search terms on this site). Using this method, you would typically only clean out the coop once or twice a year. The poo incorporates into the bedding and it's usually quite manageable depending on your climate. Something to consider.

Also, moving the coop around sounds like a chicken tractor. Maybe search on that term also and in the Coop Design Forum for moveable coop.

I would definitely plan to feed them some amount of commercial feed every day or the eggs they lay won't be as large or as frequent as they could be. The chickens of today are bred to require at least some commercial ration in most climates in order to get all the nutrients they need to be healthy and produce the maximum amount of eggs. These are not our grandparents or great grandparents chickens - they've been bred time and again for more eggs (or more meat if that's the goal). Since today's egger chickens lay larger eggs more often, they depend more on commercial feed to meet their nutrient needs. I would do lots of research into the type / breed of chicken before you purchase them if feeding them a minimum amount of commercial feed is your goal. There are many posts on this site about this topic, with lots of good info.

If you do end up hatching eggs, have a plan for the roosters. I.E. be prepared to send them to freezer camp if they become human aggressive. Rehoming is a good option for good roos who you just don't have space for, but @Acre4Me 's warning about kids is a big deal, and I second what they said.

I did a hatch recently, and out of 20 that hatched I maybe got 4 females. I would like to rehome the nicer roos, but there's no way I can find safe homes for all 16 where I live. Either they get eaten by predators, sent to freezer camp, or I sell them / give them away and take the risk that they will either be eaten or go in the cockfighting ring (which is illegal and I consider animal abuse, but they do it a lot where I live). So they'll be living a good life for 4-6 months and then most of them will visit my freezer.

Thank you for the advice. That's great info to keep in mind as well.