At what age is a good age to let them free roam?

[beegirl950]

I tried to take advantage of the less hours for egg layers and get some new chicks. That way I am not so upset about them crapping in the egg boxes because the big hens are preventing the roosting pecking order. Well I have some 7 week old's that I got on Oct 4th that are still not roosting. They are not 7 weeks old now, they are 13 weeks. Then I purchased some chicks the 2nd week in October and the 4th week in October. I am keeping these in Juvenile pens now that they are all outside of the brooder. My question is when is it safe to let them free roam like I do with the rest of my chickens, Will they go back into their coops? I still have some young welsummers who cant seem to make it into the box. Every night I am out there with a flashlight putting them into their little coop. I have a main coop and two little coops. One of the little coops is attached to the main coop with a dog cage on the inside so they are seeing the main hens and the main coop. The other one which has even younger birds is sperate. Advice?

 

[Peaches Lee]

If you still have some individuals not making it into the coop--I would wait a little longer. It's tough for me to give you an exact time because I feel all breeds are just a bit different with regards to readiness. Like my Cornish--they could take to the wild and get back to the coop the day they're hatched! But my Orps--they took a little (a lot) longer. I guess it's like the German term "fingerspitzengefuhl"-- knowing when to do something through intuition rather than hard facts.

 

[ackie]

I personally wait until they're 4 months. Amprolium-medicated chick starter (if you're using it) is supposed to be 90% of their diet for the medication to be effective, and I assume they will eat way too many other things free-ranging if I let them out. They're also a good size that our cats wont mess with them and I feel like they have a decent shot of not getting picked up by a bird of prey. Living somewhere for 4 months gets them pretty solid on returning there at night once they're out, even though some of my birds roost in the trees and convince a couple newbies to join them.

So 4 months is my ideal, but sometimes my metric is simply when I need the pen to lock up something else smaller than they are. LOL.

Also if a loose hen shows up with just a couple chicks, I just let them free-range the whole time because I'm lazy. But like 8+ there is for sure no way she can keep track of all of them and one will just stop following and therefore die because she doesnt notice and can get way too far away too quickly. When they're cooped up somewhere smaller, the stupid chicks still live (yeah anti-darwanism I know). And again this depends on how much room I have in pens.

 

[Ridgerunner]

My broody hens raise their chicks with the flock from Day 1. Whenever the hens wean them they are on their own totally. A couple of times that has been as young as three weeks, so I have a group of 3 week old chicks out roaming by themselves. My brooder is in my main coop. If the main coop is not that crowded when the brooder-raised chick hit 5 weeks I usually just open the brooder door and let them roam as they will. If my man coop is crowded I move the brooder-raised chicks to my grow-out coop with a bit of run. I usually keep then in there until 8 weeks before I let them roam. That's to teach them to return there at night to sleep. If the main coop is crowded and a broody hen hatches I keep them in a shelter where I can safely lock them up at night. Sometimes the broody hen moves them to the main coop when she's ready to take them to the roost but usually she abandons them out there when she weans them.

They are more vulnerable to certain predators when small. A snake that would not be a threat to a larger chicken may eat a chick, for example. I almost never lose one but some people have a lot heavier predator pressure than I do. Even at three weeks the chicks can take care of themselves. It's always pretty warm weather when a broody weans them at three weeks.

Even the three week olds return to where they are supposed to sleep at night. But that is where some issues could come in. Less mature chicks rank lower in the pecking order than more mature chicks or chickens. Usually that is not a big problem but I have seen some younger chicks afraid to go into a coop to sleep because they are afraid they will get beat up. I have to train these where to sleep by putting them inside the coop every night after dark until they get the message. When this happens mine sleep in the immediate area and are not that hard to catch when if gets dark.

Use your various coops and shelters to train them to return there at night. It may take a little effort but you should be able to manage. As for the predators you'll have to assess that. I used to free range with very few issues until a couple of separate dog attacks from people abandoning dogs in the country caused me to get electric netting. I lost older chickens in those dog attacks, not young chicks.

 

[becks123]

Before I let my first flock loose... I bell trained. Yes folks. You read that right. I rang a bell and gave them treats. It helped me ensure they would know how and when to come back. They didn't really need it when I let them loose but it was mostly for my comfort that we had a way to communicate if they DIDNT come back. I let them out at 3 months old. Now, no matter where they are or what theyre doing... I ring that bell and they come RUNNING back to the run. Its pretty great.

 

[beegirl950]

Thanks for the reply but I expect to have some loses. The other day when it was really cold, there were at least 4 or 5 hawks in the vicinity, and being the empath that I am, they were calling to me "please give or we will take" Their calls were those of animals pleading for survival. All of ma nature matters, I am willing to give if they are good enough to get it. But that does not answer my question. When should I lit the little biddies out of the pen?

 

[HappyDuckie]

Mine usually start free ranging whenever they can jump out of the brooder box inside the run. Which is around 4 or 5 weeks. Yours should be good to free range, and they should return to their coop.

 

[springvalley123]

I've let mine loose in the fenced yard anywhere from 4-8 weeks. I had a group of andalusians no more than 8 weeks gather and fend off a feral cat (I was shocked as I was ready to chase it off and they beat me to it!). But they were all at least practicing roosting. It might be possible to herd them in at dusk if they don't return but I wouldn't bet on it.

 

[beegirl950]

Tomorrow I am letting out the ones in the coop/dog cage. I am going to hold back on the other ones since I have a pair of Welsummers that can't seem to get up in the mini-coop. Every night in this unusual cold snap, I have to put them in. So I am going to hold off on them. Thanks, I am going to let it all hang out. I have caught my 15 week old polish rooster not making it into the big coop. He is quite amusing, usually is on the top of an egg box trying to hide behind the door. I am a good chicken mama, I go out and check. chickens make me laugh and laugh.

 

[beegirl950]

I've let mine loose in the fenced yard anywhere from 4-8 weeks. I had a group of andalusians no more than 8 weeks gather and fend off a feral cat (I was shocked as I was ready to chase it off and they beat me to it!). But they were all at least practicing roosting. It might be possible to herd them in at dusk if they don't return but I wouldn't bet on it.

Wow jungle chickens prevail, its no wonder that they are the most successful bird breed in the world.........go chickes!!!!