Commingling Chicken & Horses

[shchinchillas]

We free range our birds, and they are always down with the horses. We haven't had a problem to date, and they've been out for a few months now. The chickens just stay close enough to the horses that when they do go to the bathroom they can quickly run over to scratch the poop.

Only downside is we also have several white silkies that free range.. so them being able to "be chickens" and scratch poop has stained and ruined their feet feathers. I personally love seeing chickens do what comes natural.

 

[donrae]

My pullets actually would roost on my mare's back! Wish I had pics.....

Another okay for keeping the two together. My hens do visit my hay stack, and I do find some chicken poo on the hay sometimes, I just flick it off. My horses have never been ill. The chickens do turn the manure into light, fluffy piles and keep the flies down. Love those critters, they're like the ultimate "green" machines!

 

[Mrs. Fluffy Puffy]

My chickens love to scratch threw our cows/horses goats etc poop and get all the corn and stuff out of it.

( My ...

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[goldnchocolate]

My chickens have been in with my horses for years without any problems. The chickens have a separate coop so they don't live in the barn but they wander in and out all day long. It's pretty funny to watch them stand around in a circle waiting for the horse to finish dumping her load and then have them all rush in to be the first to scratch through the steaming pile

These are some of the chicks that I hatched this spring

. They enjoy helping Cocoa Bean eat her breakfast. They scratch around the hay piles looking for the hay seeds.

 

[Momo]

I think mostly horses and chickens intermingle without a problem, but I have a horse who will chase them. Occasionally one or two of my extra roosters (while waiting to go to freezer camp) gets over the fence into the horse paddock, and yesterday my mare got one. I heard the poor boy screaming bloody murder and found him with his leg snapped and his foot half skinned. We had to kill him and I felt really bad that he had to suffer like that.

 

[TeamChaos]

Oh Momo, how terrible- I'm sorry for all of you! I see that this is an old thread with new replies, so I'll put my horse/chicken experience here too- we're new to chickens and they share a paddock with our horse Nicki- they sleep separately and I don't allow the chickens int he feed room where they could poop on her grain or hay. Everybody gets along pretty well, Nicki likes to smell the chickens and sometimes moves her lips as if she'd like to taste one but the chickens are too fast for her. I've read that chicken food can be fatal for horses and all I know is that it must be addicting too because Nicki tries to shake me down for the chicken feed bucket anytime she sees me walking with it.

 

[Mrs. Fluffy Puffy]

Quote:
Chicken Feed is not fatal to hourses, we have a mare and she is super smart and knows how to unchain locked gates etc .. she gets in the chicken coop all the time and eats the whole feeder that is full of chicken food .. she isn't dead so ...

 

[boochaces]

i love this thread.
new to chickens. very old to horses though. this is the first time i have had chickens around my horses - or chickens at all. BUT IT IS GREAT!

 

[FlaRocky]

I just saw and caught up on the thread. I have had chickens for about a year now. They free range with all my horses. I have one gelding Maverick that is a hoot with them. When a hawk or other predator flys over all the chickens run to him and hide in his legs. All the while he is giving the hawk the stinkeye. It getting to where if the chooks start screaming Mavie comes running. I so need to video this.

Maye

 

[boochaces]

I just saw and caught up on the thread. I have had chickens for about a year now. They free range with all my horses. I have one gelding Maverick that is a hoot with them. When a hawk or other predator flys over all the chickens run to him and hide in his legs. All the while he is giving the hawk the stinkeye. It getting to where if the chooks start screaming Mavie comes running. I so need to video this.
Maye

I just pictured this... and laughed. So very cute. I love it.