Desperate! Why did no one tell me this about chickens?

[Wooden_Pony]

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Hey, we have the same yard arrangment at our house as well!! SO gets the front to impress the neighbors and I get the back a whole .25 acre!!

 

[cookiesdaddy]

Biretta,

Sorry to change the subject ... which city do you live in? I'm thinking about moving to Birch Bay, to one of the new development residential areas. I don't know if that area (city of Blaine) allows backyard chicken in residential zone though. It's one of the factors that affect our moving decision!

Hope things are working out for you.

 

[bantymum]

Sorry to hear your plight!
Try throwing some autumn leaves in with some small bits of bread or another snak thrown in , that will keep them occupied for a while, then every day just top the pile up with a all day!!!

My S.O also used to worry about the freeranging though he didnt get a say anyway"what bantymum wants, Bantymum usually gets!!!within reason!
Anyhow, I hose the fresh manure into the grass or rake it up once a week .
I have children that come to play football with my son on the weekend so I do a poop patrol with the leaf rake and just flick the rake so the poops go flying to a better spot less inhabited!
My grass is always green and short!
No spiders or snails survive here.
good luck

 

[bantymum]

my last post read: top the pile up with ??all day!!!

sorry I dont know what happened there!
I meant just top it up with a handful more leaves each day and it should keep them occupied.
Helen

 

[aran]

biretta i think that will work...my girls all live in a pretty large run but we never let them out to free range and they NEVER squawk....i have not heard one of the hens make anything other than a soft buk buk sound so far and they are 17 weeks old ( in think..maybe its 16 or 18 i dont remember!)

 

[biretta]

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Cookiesdaddy, I am told this is not within city limits so I admit I assumed chicken restrictions don't apply (maybe it's just what I wanted to believe!). I figured if no one knows, no one will complain. My neighbor doesn't mind them, and no one has compained about the noise--well, exept the s.o.
Sorry I didn't answer you question, but I would look into it if you would rather not take any chances. May I ask, what residential neighborhood? Is it Malibu, which is the only one here I know of. I've seen the backyards; they're pretty scant. Maybe the neighborhood you have in mind has more room. Forgot to add: I am in Birch Bay, which is considered within Blaine.

 

[biretta]

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Bantymum, I do throw scratch in their pen, which gets covered by hay. That occupies them for about 10 minutes, then it's back to pacing and squawking to get out.

 

[biretta]

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Aran, I didn't have this problem until they were around 22 weeks old and laying. At 17 weeks they were pretty quiet. How large is your run? Mine's not tiny, but I feel it's too small to never let them out. I think I created my own monster by letting them out 3 or 4 times a day in the beginning.

 

[aran]

my run is 40x30feet x 7 feet tall. I have 30birds in there give or take.

 

[biretta]

That IS large. I can see how you can get away with not letting them out. Mine's only 7'x13' by 7' high; it was for 5 hens.