Official BYC Poll: When You Travel, Who Looks After Your Chickens?

[BYC Project Manager]

You're tired and jaded and need a break, but you can't figure out who could take care of your flock as well as you could? Even the most devoted chicken lover needs a break sometimes. However, we cannot figure out how to ensure that our chickens are as well taken care of as we would like. Perhaps you have to leave your home for another reason: perhaps a family emergency, or perhaps you have to work away.

So we would like to find out: When You Travel, Who Looks After Your Chickens?

Place your votes above, and please share your thoughts and experiences in reply to this thread.

(Check out more exciting Official BYC Polls HERE!)

 

[nuthatched]

The poll isn't as much as 'who' as much as it is 'what' they're allowed to do.
As for who, my family or friends, they can take eggs.

 

[Isadora]

We haven't traveled since getting chickens. But our neighbor across the street is willing to help out if we need it. We haven't talked about details, but we are willing to pay her for her help. She buys eggs from us anyway.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I pay for gas (my chicken sitter is about 1 hour away one way) and let her take any eggs she wants for eating or hatching that are laid while I'm away

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I voted that I don't travel, but it's not necessarily that I don't want to leave my girls with anyone, it's more that I just don't like to travel.

 

[Poultrybonkers]

Ther isnt anyone on this planet I trust with any of my birds...

 

[Sally PB]

I am DREADING leaving my chickens when we go to visit friends or family.

 

[Chookchicken]

We left our chickens with a family who wanted experience taking care of chickens (and Quail). They took the eggs but there wasn’t really any payment. We were away for 3 weeks and if they left the eggs the eggs would likely explode. We did offer them money but they didn’t want it.

 

[BDutch]

We have several neighbors who are happy to take care of our chickens when we are away for a weekend or longer. They live just 10-100 meters away. And we have an automatic pop door to make it easy for them.
They get the free eggs and often a small gift as a thank you.

We take care of their animals (cats, pig, fish, bearded dragon) when they are on a trip/vacation. And often get a small to say thank you in return.

 

[Callender Girl]

I USED to travel. A much-trusted friend, whose husband was working/living overseas, used to stay in my house and take care of the menagerie (chickens, ducks, geese, sheep, goats, dogs and cats). She never wanted paid, just enjoyed hanging out with animals in the country. However, I did always bring her a small gift and told her to eat anything in the house, use the washer and dryer, do whatever she needed/wanted. However, he has now returned, and they are living in another state.

My only other experiences with someone else caring for my critters have not been great, although the people involved were well-meaning. One, who didn't know anything about poultry, couldn't figure out what to feed anybody and bought feather-fixer (no one was molting, BTW) instead of using the all-flock feed that was already here. Another, a very experienced poultry keeper, didn't lock up my love-to-go-wandering runner ducks; I came home to find them LOOSE in the little area beside their shelter. Thankfully, all were still alive and accounted for.

On Monday, I am meeting with a fellow who works for a farmer and knows a lot of rural folks in this area who possibly will be able to care for my critters. I am hopeful that I will be able to go somewhere again someday. I have not left home for more than a few hours since September.