Best Breeds For Free Ranging?

[barchorses52]

Hello, I have had problems with raccoons, owls, and hawks. They definitely like white, grey, and black chickens.. But my red/brown Easter eggers they have left alone. I live in New Mexico and if I were to buy birds I would buy red/brown Easter eggers. Not only do they lay beautiful green or blue eggs there smart to run under bushes or there house to get away from the flying predators. Both of my Roosters are are white with brown/black feathers. The both of them are Easter eggers. They tell the girls run when they see the hawks, and they run for cover. I had 8 cream legbars and some white Easter eggers, and the predators loved them. Boy was I heart broken. Before I was just letting the chickens run free but now I make sure there in the locked hen house at night. My chickens didnt want to have anything to do with there hen house, they like being in the high trees at night. But one night at dusk my rooster came to me and the hens followed and he was pacing back and forth......hmmmm I thought????how weird are you acting???? So I said come on and he and the hens followed me to the hen house and so I locked them up. You could see the fear in him.Now at dusk they go to there house, and I make sure there locked up. I could hear the owl at night swoop down and grab a chicken off the tree next to my bedroom. Boy was I MAD, and the Raccoon would come pick them off the tree and run. I never was able to trap him. I am just lucky to have 2 roosters that are smart about attacks. Good luck but thats been my experience.

 

[SueT]

I think I’ve read thru all the posts. I used to think coloring mattered but I don’t know now. When our flock free ranged, I had a brown leghorn taken by a predator, probably by a coyote. I’ve had a Speckled Sussex attacked by a hawk but saved by a rooster, and then we saved him by running outside. We used to replace those lost each year, it was usually 2 or 3. We stopped free-ranging altogether in 2020, because there were too many hawks, and I feared they’d completely decimate the flock. Most of the flock now consists of chickens who have never known free ranging.

 

[macmac955]

Guinea fowl. They’re pretty tough, and they camouflage really well. They eat around 1000 ticks per day, and they’re good alarm systems for the rest of your flock.

 

[Sylvester017]

Tiny raptors!

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• It's interesting that recent scientific edicts say chickens are NOT related to reptilian dinosaurs at all
  

 

[Sylvester017]

I think I’ve read thru all the posts. I used to think coloring mattered but I don’t know now. When our flock free ranged, I had a brown leghorn taken by a predator, probably by a coyote. I’ve had a Speckled Sussex attacked by a hawk but saved by a rooster, and then we saved him by running outside. We used to replace those lost each year, it was usually 2 or 3. We stopped free-ranging altogether in 2020, because there were too many hawks, and I feared they’d completely decimate the flock. Most of the flock now consists of chickens who have never known free ranging.

For our open backyard we considered one of those large and tall metal walk-in cages that can cover a big back yard to give the chickens a large area to sort of free-range without the confinement of a smaller pen. We considered one of those huge cages until we decided to deter our Cooper's (chicken hawks) by interfering with their air space in the yard.

We set up multiple pop-up canopies, built-on patio roofs, and planted trees (boy, they grow fast)-- hawks prefer not to battle prey on the ground but fly after stationary or running prey and capture in flight with their talons so we plugged up hawk air space. We even put dog houses and makeshift benches hugging the block wall where the chickens like to hide under as they forage.

This arrangement may not fit all owners' needs but works for our little flock.

 

[AGeese]

I'll put my Buckeyes up to it. Although they're cold hardy. They're great free rangers, and will find a brush shelter take cover in the shade or dig down into when it's too hot, but should be able handle the cooler nights in the desert I would imagine.

My Black Jersey Giants should also be able to handle those cool desert nights and are my best free rangers. They are hardy and the dominant birds in the flock. I find them out and about more than the Buckeyes.

As for hawks all of them are pretty good about keeping alert, watched one of my Buckeyes hi-tail it into my garage when young chicken hawk thought it was going to have an easy lunch, and they've all alerted me to snakes.

 

[Sylvester017]

One more thing I forgot to mention is that we set out a 4x4 cedar garden box filled with kid's play sand and put a 10x10 pop-up canopy over it to keep dry from rain and cool from summer sun. On wet OR hot days the chickens have dry sand to dustbathe in. And the canopy restricts aerial flight space of hawks.

 

[Sylvester017]

Last couple weeks we've been visited nightly by a city 'possum. We have a motion-sensor outdoor light that alerts us when something is in the backyard. Usually it's only a stray cat that sets off lights but recently the 'possum tried to claim our yard. DH goes out and water gun blasts the critter and that staves off visits for a few nights but it came back a couple times. So glad we have a sturdy dog kennel wire pen/coop that keeps out possums/raccoons/coyotes that manage to get over our block wall and gates. The hens roost safely inside the coop. There were a lot of features I didn't like about this coop and pen but for safety sake never regretted the investment.

Because the pen and coop are completely enclosed in strong dog kennel wire we're confident about using the wire floor tray during summer heatwaves for coop ventilation where possum or raccoon claws are too far away to reach sleeping/torpor hens.

 

[McChooky]

I'll put my Buckeyes up to it. Although they're cold hardy. They're great free rangers, and will find a brush shelter take cover in the shade or dig down into when it's too hot, but should be able handle the cooler nights in the desert I would imagine.

My Black Jersey Giants should also be able to handle those cool desert nights and are my best free rangers. They are hardy and the dominant birds in the flock. I find them out and about more than the Buckeyes.

As for hawks all of them are pretty good about keeping alert, watched one of my Buckeyes hi-tail it into my garage when young chicken hawk thought it was going to have an easy lunch, and they've all alerted me to snakes.

I need a bigger coop darn it!

 

[McChooky]

Add

Last couple weeks we've been visited nightly by a city 'possum. We have a motion-sensor outdoor light that alerts us when something is in the backyard. Usually it's only a stray cat that sets off lights but recently the 'possum tried to claim our yard. DH goes out and water gun blasts the critter and that staves off visits for a few nights but it came back a couple times. So glad we have a sturdy dog kennel wire pen/coop that keeps out possums/raccoons/coyotes that manage to get over our block wall and gates. The hens roost safely inside the coop. There were a lot of features I didn't like about this coop and pen but for safety sake never regretted the investment.

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Because the pen and coop are completely enclosed in strong dog kennel wire we're confident about using the wire floor tray during summer heatwaves for coop ventilation where possum or raccoon claws are too far away to reach sleeping/torpor hens.
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Add some cayenne pepper to the water it will set it on fire (Amazon)