Chicken field trip - will they follow me to my garden?

[rosemarythyme]

If they can find the gate to get out of the garden.

Mine would fly out (well, some would) if I try fencing them too long away from their sanctuary (run and coop).

 

[rosemarythyme]

But, I do have hockey sticks, so maybe I could do some herding that way. I don't have a net, but I have two boys, and that might help in the herding option if needed.

We use our pooper scoopers to herd them. If one is lagging behind, it gets a tap on the rump.

Hockey sticks would certainly give you a lot more reach! Just don't mistake the chickens for pucks.

 

[so lucky]

My chickens can fly over the 4 ft garden fence. I am dreading dealing with this after the garden gets planted. I may have to do some wing feather clipping.

 

[Chad Oftedal]

So, I thought I'd give an update on how this all went. Thanks so much for all the helpful suggestions here. With this nice week of weather we've had here in the PNW, I've taken the ladies out 4 out of 5 days for 2-3 hours each day. I usually sit on a chair in the backyard with my laptop and work while they do their thing. I thought I'd encourage them to move beyond the area around the coop, and become acquainted with some of the backyard before making the way to the garden. Here's what I've observed so far these last four days.

1. Chickens given the chance to free range are hilarious. I've decided they become "frenemies". They sort of work together when scratching about, but if one uncovers a worm, the one next to it is happy as can be to snap it up before the one doing the work has a chance.
2. If I'm ever a chicken, and I find a large nightcrawler, I'm not going to squawk in delight and inform the others around me that I've just found a jumbo worm. That would just result in me having to pick it up and run around in circles keeping it away from the others and trying to eat at the same time. I'm going to be smarter than that and just keep my trap shut and eat the worm.
3. Not all chickens get this whole flock mentality. I have one that seems to be content to forage 20 yards away from all the others almost fully out in the open. I'm thinking of renaming her to "Bait".
4. It's really neat to see them at ease where they are able to forage as much as they like, and when they feel like it, stretch out and lay on their side in the sunshine.
5. The shaking of the treats cup really does bring them all back in, pretty much no matter what they are doing. I do have one that like my teenage son has selective hearing, but I can herd her the last few feet into the run.

With all that said, I do have one question. I have one Barred Rock that really won't leave the run area. She will stay up in the area near the run, and make a quiet or hushed call. It feels like it's a "locating" call where either she wants the others to answer back, or she's telling them where she's at. She is no longer in their eye sight as they are around a building and 40 yards away. I've never forced her to join the flock during free ranging, but each day when given the chance to be out and about, she's never left the "safety" area right around the coop and run. She doesn't make this call all of the time, just periodically. She seems fairly content. All of the birds get along well in the run, I've never seen her picked on or shunned in any way. Might she gain confidence and join the others some day, or is this possibly a pecking order thing?