http://www.cacklehatchery.com/page10.html#range
I bought the "Free Range/Predator Resistant Chicken Special" last year. We have heavy, heavy, HEAVY pressure from coyotes and our place is pretty much a chicken buffet to them. We have a secure coop with an auto door but they were getting picked off during the day. We do not have them in any type of yard or fencing, they completely free range and feed themselves once they leave the coop. I keep this flock for bug control, manure spreading and purely for the enjoyment of watching a flock of chickens scratch around. (I have a separate group of 5 hens that I keep in a chicken tractor in my yard for eggs).
I have bought many breeds and assortments of chickens trying to find exactly what you're looking for before I found this mix. We have gone through hundreds of chickens within the last 5 years. This group of chickens has lasted longer than any of the others but they're still slowly disappearing. The birds that have lasted the longest are solid black and on the gamey side. I've looked at the list of breeds that were included in the mix and none of them look like this bird so I'm not sure what they are. They are very skittish of us even though we interact with them daily. They fly well and they have raised several groups of chicks. We were hoping they would reproduce at a rate equal to our predator loss but it's not working out like that. We are thinking of switching to turkeys. I know turkeys are still vulnerable to predators but I'm hoping their size will give them a bit of an advantage.
In summary, we have tried and are still trying to do what you are describing and in our area it's just not possible. We need to build a fenced and covered yard in order to keep a large flock of chickens and that just doesn't allow them to serve the purpose we want them to serve.
I bought the "Free Range/Predator Resistant Chicken Special" last year. We have heavy, heavy, HEAVY pressure from coyotes and our place is pretty much a chicken buffet to them. We have a secure coop with an auto door but they were getting picked off during the day. We do not have them in any type of yard or fencing, they completely free range and feed themselves once they leave the coop. I keep this flock for bug control, manure spreading and purely for the enjoyment of watching a flock of chickens scratch around. (I have a separate group of 5 hens that I keep in a chicken tractor in my yard for eggs).
I have bought many breeds and assortments of chickens trying to find exactly what you're looking for before I found this mix. We have gone through hundreds of chickens within the last 5 years. This group of chickens has lasted longer than any of the others but they're still slowly disappearing. The birds that have lasted the longest are solid black and on the gamey side. I've looked at the list of breeds that were included in the mix and none of them look like this bird so I'm not sure what they are. They are very skittish of us even though we interact with them daily. They fly well and they have raised several groups of chicks. We were hoping they would reproduce at a rate equal to our predator loss but it's not working out like that. We are thinking of switching to turkeys. I know turkeys are still vulnerable to predators but I'm hoping their size will give them a bit of an advantage.
In summary, we have tried and are still trying to do what you are describing and in our area it's just not possible. We need to build a fenced and covered yard in order to keep a large flock of chickens and that just doesn't allow them to serve the purpose we want them to serve.
