I have a small flock - just a rooster and 3 hens only - and sometimes babies. I feed them a good quality mixed seed and they are completely free all day (within a very large walled area) where they have fresh green pick - plants, flowers, and grass and fresh water. They also have sandy dirt...
I live in the UAE (but am an Australian national) and keep a rooster and several hens - mostly for their eggs although sometimes also for meat. They have free range in a walled garden. The weather here is very hot - summer: 50 degrees celsius. My chickens survive despite the fact that the...