Can you free-range feather-legged breeds? And do their legs get dirty?

[skillet_scramble]

My feather leggers don't get any visably worse than the others even after extended periods of rainfall.

Just make sure they wash their feet before you snuggle in bed with them.

 

[TennesseeTruly]

I have white and columbian bantam cochins and they're outside running around in the rain through mud and all. Their feet get a bit dirty but I'm not showing them and their feathers are fine. I say get them. You'll love them!

Laurie

 

[wordgirl]

Oh my goodness – i had completely forgotten about this thread! Really sorry! I'm not usually on the Managing Your Flock page, so I hadn't even checked it!

Thank you all so much for your responses! I'm really glad to hear that we could keep some feather-legged chooks! What are your fave featheries? I think, if I could, I'd get some Blue Cochins.

 

[95yj]

if you think about it they'll probably stay cleaner walking around grass, field and woods than a hard packed dirt mud enclosure.

 

[hcammack]

Quote:
I love My Bantam Salmon Faverolles they have feather legs and mine live 24/7 in a tractor and don't seem to dirty yet I agree that they actually stay cleaner in a movable pen or free ranging then they would in a mud or dirt pen. Good Luck with your spring chicks

 

[journey11]

My light brahmas stay cleaner out ranging than they do in their run, where there is more poo in a smaller space. I had been told that they would not scratch so much like clean legged birds do, but I haven't found that to be true. They enjoy turning over a pile of leaves like any chicken would.

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
Yeah I was told the same thing, that brahmas weren't good foragers. Luckily my flock of brahmas never read that book. My feed bill is really low in the summertime when forage and bugs are plentiful and their feet look no different from any other chickens when they go to roost at night.

 

[Faye Rhoden]

Unless you are showing your feathered legged birds, you don't need to worry about the dirty feathered feet. My bantams clean their feet when it gets really bad and it will dry and fall off sometimes. If you put down a carpeted runner somewhere where they go back and forth a lot, say up a ramp to the coop, you could have some of the junk knocked out by the carpet fibers.