Chickens in the wild?

[darkmatter]

Quote:
Depends on the Breed you select. The State I'm in tried it with pen raised wild turkeys, only to have 100% mortality rates, it wasn't until they caught and released already "wild wise" Turkeys that success in establishing a population worked. If you were to raise a breed close to the original "Jungle Fowl" roots, you may get some to go Feral and succeed. There are now feral populations of Parrots and chickens and guineas and peafowl in some locations.
So far where I'm at the climate won't allow my Guineas to survive year round and raise keets on their own. My chickens get eaten if they spend anytime away from shelter
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P.S. the ethics, morality, and legality of your idea is up to your conscience, I make no judgments myself for others.

 

[oegbman]

I have chickens around my house, i turned them loose, they do fairly well and i feed them every day, they dont go far and they clean up the bugs pretty good and i like to see them roaming around my property. I also live in rural NC and my birds dont bother no one, if they did i would put them up and or sell them, i also have my brood fowl in coops. That doesnt always give them protection and predators that a bird every now and then, peoples uncontrolled dogs has killed far more than any predator has but i take care of my loose chickens and dont really consider them wild. Also i have plenty of my chickens killed in their pens, so it really doesnt matter to a degree where they are i believe its how responsible you are. I also have some guineas running around my property, just be responsible to your animals they can be nuisance to your neighbors, i dont have anyone living so close that they bother anyone. Good luck and God bless.

 

[geebs]

Gee... I think it is cruel.... Not only are they not equiped for it as they are originally "junglefowl" but they are prime for predation. There is no good reason for that. It not only isn't fair to them but to competing birds. There are so many documented cases of animals being turned loose and what the impact is to both released and impacted it is really a predictable outcome. I vote "NO" on many levels.

 

[scooter147]

I vote NO!!! INHO it's irresponsible.

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

Geez guys, the OP was just asking for pros and cons. Lots of people on the forum have "wild" chickens that not only sleep in their trees but refuse to be cooped up. Nobodys giving them a bunch of grief

not trying to sound like anyones mom, but its posts like these that make some not want to ask their questions for fear that they will get not only negative but some straight up rude comments. To the OP- you could turn your chicks loose on your property and you could loose every single one of them. But, you also take this risk by simply free ranging them or letting them out into an uncovered run. Good luck with whatever decision you make.

 

[Future_plan]

Quote:
Instead of letting the chickens go out in the wild, try giving your dog the chicken. Kill it, remove the feathers and you've got a ready meal for your dog. Your dog would love you for it.

 

[scooter147]

Quote:
Instead of letting the chickens go out in the wild, try giving your dog the chicken. Kill it, remove the feathers and you've got a ready meal for your dog. Your dog would love you for it.

I know a lot of people give their dogs chicken but I'd remove the meat from the bone. A trip to the vet that cost over $1,000 because of a chicken bone convinced me. That cost was about 15 years ago.

 

[GiddyMoon]

I am not understanding the mentality behind calling a farm animal, that we know has the ability to take care of itself.....domesticated. Look at all the wild pigs people are hunting now that came from "domesticated" pigs. They went right back to their wild ways.



They are chickens. Seriously. Do we have to humanize everything with unbalanced emotion? Are you not aware of the many islands and cultures where wild / feral chickens roam free that people also consider pets and a food source? There are cities, such as Fair Oaks, in CA that have hundreds of free range feral chickens and they do quite well and lived there for decades. Around cars, homes, businesses, dogs, cats, hawks, you name it..they flourish.

Why don't we start catching all the birds, lizards, squirrels, raccoons and everything else and stick them in cages and call them "domesticated" and care for them for their own good. This is hogwash.

Even cats and dogs..as a long time rescuer of feral cats..the majority of them Do just fine on their own once they gain their feet..which happens very quickly. They are STILL animals and people have a massive ego problem thinking they can take the wild out of the animal and they usually cant'.

Nature finds a way...some get eaten, some don't..survival of the fittest..which we now ignore and help every weak creature we can grow up and weaken the gene pool. Nature knows more than we do!


While I am not saying there is not merit to some concerns here, the majority of the responses are just way overboard with unbalanced emotion.

 

[Player Hater]

there's a town in florida that just has chickens free ranging all over town and roosting in the trees

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

Quote:
Key West??? I went last year and was in paradise. Chickens everywhere. They're mighty hard to catch, trust me I tried. Im sure you can imagine the stares I got as I was chasing a broody with chicks around the Ihop parking lot

definately a priceless moment.