Can I let my chickens out

[kristy]

Hi, I am a new chicken owner. My husband gave me 10 hens (that all are suppose to be laying eggs) for a gift. I have always wanted to have chickens, but I know very little about how to care for them. So I am open for any advice you may have. One of the questions I have is can I let my chickens out of the fence? Can they wander around the yard? Will they stay in the yard?

thanks Kristy

 

[justusnak]

Well...you wont want to let them free roam, for a few weeks....let them get used to knowing where Home is...and where the food comes from. When you go in thier yard.....try calling them to you...if they come...give them a treat..like scratch...or veggies. Then they know...when mom calls...we get a treat. good luck with your hens..and enjoy!!
Oh, what breeds did you get? Got pics??

 

[kristy]

I'm not sure what breed they are. I have 2 orange color, 4 black, 2 white, 1 red and 1 brown and she has a little beard. I also have a rooster he is white and black zebra stripe and crazy hair

 

[dragon]

ha haa! crazy hair? hope its a polish, thier fun. maby silver laced? we want pic.s !

 

[kristy]

I'm new to this computer thing too. My girls are going to take some pictures and show me how to put them on the computer.

 

[jf carker]

My chickens run loose all day, but at dusk they all run back to the hen house where they sleep. I lock the doors at night to keep the varments from eating them since they are totally blind in the dark. In the morning I let them out and feed them a little scratch before they start their day. They eat bugs and whatever else they see that looks tasty to them. They run all over all day. They come back to the hen house to lay eggs. I get about 16 eggs every day.

 

[kristy]

Thanks for the info. A new question for you is how many chickens do you have to get that many eggs a day. I have 10 hens,on one day I might get 3 eggs the next I get 5. I would like to get about 10-12 eggs per day. Which brings another question to mind how many chickens can you keep in a coop that is 9x12 before it is just to many. I don't want them not to have enough room, and be unhappy.

 

[johnny_smith09]

yes you can let them out they will go back in.(i was really surprised too) but beware of hawks and coyotes! be sure they know their coop!

 

[Mechanic1987]

Here we have some hawks that fly over and neighbor dogs and cats that rome. So I built a run with wire over it for protection. They will have about 25' by 6' and the coop.

Good Luck
Ray

 

[jf carker]

I have 18 hens and 1 rooster. It seems that they lay an egg about every 25 hours, and will not lay at night. So, you can't expect to get 1 egg per 1 chicken every day. As far as how many in a coop, They only need about a 12"x12" box for each one. They like to be off the ground, and they will huddle together for safety at night. So the area above my laying boxes is 6' wide and 12" deep. They all sleep together up there.....