anyone else NOT letting their chix free range ALL day?

[CMV]

If I let my birds free range all day I would have NO birds in a month's time. They are only out if someone's around to watch them or if I am working outside.

 

[GoldenCometLover]

Yep - i live in the country so way too many predators that could pick them off....they are out every day after I get home from work and pretty much any time I am home...they have a good sized run (about to be expanded even more!!) that they can bop around in during the day...not sure I could prevent any sort of attack even if I was home, but peace of mind and not worrying about them all day is a fair trade off

 

[The Chicken People]

I value my laying hens so therefore they only get out when I am out there or if they fly over the six foot fence! Which for my Lakenvelders and my Buff Cochin Bantam is atleast a three time a day habit!

 

[sewandgrow]

Sorry guys,........... I am sorta new at this posting & sent something that I meant as a reply as a report. Do I need to do something to fix that??? It was in response to the free range question... I will get it straight from now on...............LOL

 

[Dixiedoodle]

I have never let my girls free range all day long.. We have too many predators and I can't watch them all day.. I always let them out when I go out to work in the coop/run/yard --maybe 2-3hrs... Many days, We go out after my chores and nap time are done and sit in the swing and read, watch my grandson play and keep an eye on them.. They get to be out 4-5 hours.

 

[Jeeper1540]

for about a week a hawk was just flying around and circling the coop, stocking the chickens and ducks, so i stopped letting them out. Sunday was the first day is about 2 months i let them out. i usually let them out between 2:00 and 3:00 PM, then put them in later for the night.

 

[Kansaseq]

My girls have 24/7 access to their 12x18' run, and get to 'free range' in a 3/4 acre, fenced in dog yard from 8am to 2 pm most days. On my days off, they get to come back out after the dogs have gone potty. They love their yard, and I no longer have big, scary spiders, out there, and I haven't pulled a tick off any of the 4 dogs all year

Chickens rock.

 

[dsqard]

Quote:
Same here. Get home from work, let the birds out, do feed/water maintenance, move tractor if needed. When it gets dark I go out and close the door because they're all roosting.

Maybe not ideal but they seem happy and it integrates well with my schedule.

X3 Learned the hard way that I can't let them free range even when I go to town just to run a few errands. Even though the fact that I am home will probably won't stop a wild predator, it does stop my dogs from getting out and wreaking havoc.

 

[Orchid]

I've been letting mine out in the evenings when I get home from work, and for most of the day during the weekends. I don't trust one of my dogs 100% with the chickens so I prefer they are completely separated when I'm not there.

 

[toby5]

I do the same thing. Dogs get free range of the yard during the day while I'm at work and then soon as we get home dogs go in the house and chickens get free range. They are waiting at the fence
door for me to let them out. My husband and I spend all afternoon outside with them till they go up for the night.