After 2 yrs. of free range...it finally happened

[ruth]

You know it's funny - we moved here to the country a few months ago and I my husband was proudly telling one of the locals he met that our chickens were "free range". They sort of laughed and shook their head and said "Son, everyone around here has 'free range' chickens - what else would you do with them - have them inside watching television?" I told my husband, "Little does he know."

Point being, here in the country, on the farms where everyone has hundreds of acres, it's just a way of life. No one would even think of keeping them locked up. Most people here have lost a few over the years to an occasional hawk attack but most here have farm dogs that remain loose and keep the other predators away.

 

[bluey]

Do yours free range 24 7 or do they go into a coop at night?

Mine free range from 7am - 9pm. They always return to the coop and I lock them in for the night.

Do you give yours feed also or is the bugs and foliage more than enough?

Feed and water are provided outside the coop at all times.

Do they brood their babies outdoors too?

No, I moved my broody to a brooder in the garage to hatch and raise chicks. I don't feel the need to expose the chicks to the multitude of dangers until they can defend themselves (~8-10 weeks).

How often do you think you loose some?
Haven't lost a chicken in 16+ months but I will add the caveat that I hunt raccoon and possum like a madman utilizing a game cam in the coop area. We also have a golden lab that polices the area. Of course it's just a matter of time that we lose one, but like I told Davaroo, they are chickens, not gold bars. They can be easily replaced.

 

[walkswithdog]

My great Grandmother always said, "dumb slow chickens die, that's natural." Her flock of Barred Rocks only cooped up at night. She saw some minor predator loss in free range birds as normal natural selection.

Smarter, faster, more wary chickens should be the ones to survive, so I won't fuss at loss when mine free range.

Of course she had Barred and I've fallen for Partridge Rocks but I remember her huge flock of Barreds with great fondness.

Nature takes the slow, the dim, the unfit - as it should be. That's how a species stays healthy and strong.

I can free range and oh yeah, we will. They'll coop at night. Yes, I'll offer appropriate feed. They'll be raised with my dogs, like all my stock, so I really doubt anything will get anywhere near them. The dogs don't even let wild birds land in the yard or garden. And anything raised in the house is family so they'll be safe.

Another advantage of large breeds, like the JGs or Cochins I'm adding - hawks are a tad intimidated by that size.

I understand if you have small birds, a small flock, or limited space, or are keeping pets and that's okay too. Some people don't take loss well. That's just how they are, that's okay too.


But I'm looking at utility, freedom, maximum health benefits and free range really is my way to go.

 

[ruth]

In answering the questions:

Re: Hours - Mine are let out of locked coop when we get up in a.m., usually 7:00 a.m. and return on their own and are locked back in by 8:00 p.m. (or when dark). They do return to nest boxes to lay their eggs or sometimes lay them in barn.

Re: Feed - They have a little food and water everywhere at all times. There are feed/water bins in coop, in run, and outside run in yard. Because sometimes I let the babies, or an injured hen, have the run of the coop, or the run, and lock everyone else out. I go out at least three times a day and put a little food in bins. I find this keeps them close to home and they come running to see what I'm putting out and if it's plain chicken feed and scratch or treats. Thus, they don't wander too far from view anymore and it seems to have put a stop to their wandering deep into woods and staying there all day.

Re: Broodiness - I had two go broody and lost both. The first because she laid her nest in old abandoned barn and kept going back there at night no matter how much I tried moving the nest into coop and building a pen in coop for her. She broke out and went back at night and got killed by a predator - my first loss in one year of free ranging. The second broody, at same time, went broody in coop in built-in wooden nest box, but was young and was freaking out at everyone coming and going from coop so she wouldn't leave the nest and wouldn't eat or drink for a month. She died of malnutrition despite all efforts to get her to eat and drink or get off nest. SOOO....I built new nest boxes using plastic file crates from dollar store that are set sideways on self and filled with straw with idea that if another goes broody, I can pick her up, nest and all and lock her in a kennel away from activity. Of course, haven't had one go broody since then.

Re: Losses - other than the two broodys the only losses I had were early this spring, shortly after moving here, when my original flock of hens started going deep into woods and not coming home. I've lost 3 out of 60 chickens this way. No other losses to date - almost two years of free ranging. My free ranging flock of DOGS helps tremendously in keeping predators at bay.

Like others have posted, they are chickens and are designed to forage, and scratch, and run and fly all day long. Except for short naps in heat of day, I rarely see my chickens standing still - they are energy in motion and on the go at all times. They have a wonderful life, lived the way it was meant to be lived, and if something gets one, it's not that I don't care and don't get upset, I do, but I'm hatching them daily and with life, death happens. Still think a life well lived, though possibly shorter, is better than a long life in captivity deprived of all the natural instincts.

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
I just gotta ask.....

Why do you think that living in a pen is the same thing as being "deprived of all the natural instincts"?? For heaven's sake, nobody's keeping their birds in straight jackets.

 

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

It's great to see so many free rangers. I feel the same way...I don't want chickens if I can't let them be chickens? I love watching mine out foraging in the green grass and chasing each other around...flying here and flying there. They LOVE it. We even have a cat visitor who comes to watch chicken tv and leaves them alone. Just lays there and watches. LOL Not our cat but possibly the neighbors.
I do realize that there is a big risk in this but I think it's worth the risk. Just watching them be free is a wonderful thing.

A big plus...you can sell your eggs for a dollar more a dozen if you free range

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
Why do you think that chickens in a pen can't be chickens?

 

[cthrash1]

I wouldn't worry about your kids and coyotes...I grew up in California and stayed out in the canyon with my aunt and uncle every Summer. It was the coyote and bobcat trails that I'd walk on and explore. I was always off climbing mountains, walking in streams, exploring unknown regions, etc...Never worried about an attack of any sort and I knew what to do if I came across a rattle snake which I never did but they were what I was most afraid to cross. Of course I had to check in every few hours. Don't worry about your kids in the woods(unless they're too young), let them explore, build forts what have you. If it worries you just keep an eye on them, or hollar to them once in a while so you can hear them. Tell them not to go far, it's just as much fun building and climbing a little way in as it is way in. Remind them to stay aware of their surroundings at all times.

 

[bluey]

you're once.....twice.....

(three times a troll)

 

[Skyrider]

Quote:
The bad side of that is that crows will steal your eggs.

Yes, and the crows also steal baby chicks -- at least here in India, they do. Our neighbor has lost two of them out of only five to crows.

I think mine are safer in the bathroom for a while longer.

I also have to agree with the person who said he thought the scream was from a rabbit. They do indeed scream, a very high pitched scream, and I have never heard of a deer screaming.

Sky