Can I free range my girls?

[BeccaGore]

I have 17 chickens who were raised indoors as chicks then moved to the coop we built when they were old enough, and it was warm enough outside. They have been on the coop their whole lives, and they are over a year old now. I want to free range them, but I have a few concerns, and questions. We live in a town of about 400, we live on the edge of town, but we still have neighbors next to us. Which they love the chickens so it's okay, but one of neighbors has barn cats. They are all very sweet, a few have them went into the coop with me, the cats don't mind the chickens, but the chickens don't like the cats, haha. So my questions are, can I free range my chickens even though they have been in the coop most of their lives, and if I free range them will they stay in the yard? What's a good way to start them out free ranging?



Thanks so much in advance!

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

I have 17 chickens who were raised indoors as chicks then moved to the coop we built when they were old enough, and it was warm enough outside. They have been on the coop their whole lives, and they are over a year old now. I want to free range them, but I have a few concerns, and questions. We live in a town of about 400, we live on the edge of town, but we still have neighbors next to us. Which they love the chickens so it's okay, but one of neighbors has barn cats. They are all very sweet, a few have them went into the coop with me, the cats don't mind the chickens, but the chickens don't like the cats, haha. So my questions are, can I free range my chickens even though they have been in the coop most of their lives, and if I free range them will they stay in the yard? What's a good way to start them out free ranging?



Thanks so much in advance!

Yes you can let them out - however, they will not naturally know and respect the boundaries of property lines so if you want them to stay on your side of the property lines you will need to have a barrier there. The likelyhood of them wandering far enough from the coop to be on someone else's side of things will depend on how large your lot is and where their coop sits in relation to those borders, etc.

 

[BeccaGore]

Okay, Their coop is towards the back of our property near a corn field. Our property is about 1.6 acres. I was thinking for the first few days staying outside with them for the day so I can shoo them back into the yard if they get too far, lol.

 

[aart]

Hard to say if your chickens will find the neighbors yard attractive or not.....
.......or whether your neighbors will still love the chickens when they decimate their gardens and/or poop on their porch.

...or whether you will be able to 'shoo' the chicken back to where you want them, herding chicken is harder than herding cats.
(Oh and a full grown chicken is unlikely to be targeted as food by a cat).

'Training' your chickens to come back to the run with grain rattling in a container might be a very useful tool to establish.