Leaving chickens with sitter at another house....?

[Kmack]

Hey all, I tried to search this but didn't know quite how to in order to get the answer I'm looking for.

We are going overseas for Christmas (living in Australia and going home to the US). We're going to be gone for three weeks. I have asked everyone I know if they can house/chicken sit but everybody is doing something. I simply cannot afford to pay $25/day for three weeks for somebody to come by and check on them.

I found this wonderful woman who takes care of pets while people are on holidays. She has a huge back yard and a big family. We met her and she is just great. She will take my dog and the chickens for the full 3 weeks for just $200.

So my question is this. Has anybody brought their chickens to somebody else's house for a month? They have a big chunk of backyard right now and at this lady's house they will be put into smaller coops with small runs and all be separated to maybe two or three birds per run. They are rabbit hutch sized.... It's not the ideal setup in my gut but I don't know what else to do

Originally my landlord was supposed to look after them but her daughters surprised her with tickets to go home for Christmas too and she hasn't been to Fiji in a long long time so it's not like I can raise a stink.

Will they be ok? Are they going to have to go through the pecking order thing again when they get back? Will they stop laying eggs? Are the going to hate me!!!???

 

[Toddrick]

Do what you gotta do. I wouldn't worry about their egg laying as they will get over that stress soon enough. I'd only be concerned whether her cages could have infectious diseases in them from other bird visitors. If she never has had other birds, or hasn't had any for a few months, then I would think it is safe.

 

[Kmack]

It's looking like that's my only option anyway. I will be sure to ask her if she has had any other birds within the past few months. Thanks for that.