Do you count your chickens before bed?

[doublecrossranch]

I count every night and when they are supervised free ranging. We are down to 11 grown chickens, 5- 4 week old hatchlings, 15- 8 week chicks, and 13- 3 week old chicks

 

[Clairemarie1982]

We only have 12 chickens and count them every night, also I will do random head counts through out the day while they are free ranging. I find myself doing it without even noticing. We have them as pets and don’t plan on getting up past 30. Even at that amount I would still count them.

 

[Chicken Heel]

For me it was when I had a flock that exceeded 100 and ultimately I ended up with 142.

My current count mature bird count is at 18 large breed hens and 1 Black Australorp rooster along with 16 bantam hens and 1 rooster. But I did add 10 bantam chicks from my local TSC over the weekend. I had been steadfast in not succumbing to the baby chick allure in all my previous trips there this spring but destiny intervened. On Saturday, I had stopped by for dog and cat food and flea treatments and lo and behold there was a bin of bantams mixed with ISA Brown pullets. I resisted the urge then but on Sunday I dropped back by the store and there were still 10 bantams left and that was it for me. They are doing well and 7 are feather legged and 3 are clean legged. It will be fun finding out what they are although I know two are OEG and most of the feather legged are Cochins. I have always had a weakness for baby chicks that goes back about 55 years.

 

[Angelfishie]

Yes! Ours are let out early morning and free range all day. Before dusk we have scratch time, which allows me to pen them
in the run where I count them, usually twice. Then they go to roost before the pop door shuts. I count them again in the morning as they come out to free range.

 

[Cluckingham Palace Mom]

Yes, I still count my chickens, ducks, turkeys, 30 chickens, 13 ducks, 2 Turkeys.

 

[Jajika]

I always count "beaks" before I leave them for the evening. It's too easy to miss one or two and I'm fairly obsessive about my girls.

 

[Kazzandra]

I count every night. Never had more than I could count. It's a good habit, and as other people have pointed out, you can easily lose a chicken to sickness or predators that might otherwise be saved if you had just paid attention. Many times I've had chickens roosting in weird places because of a fight or illness-- or they have died outside ranging and I wouldn't have noticed without counting and might have never found their bodies if not for going before night-time predators were scouting (these chickens who died out ranging died from old age or heart attacks as far as I ever could tell-- but better than never knowing what happened to them at all or being afraid of a sneaky predator!)

 

[NaperLix]

I count and say good night by name,so I know they are all safe.They are all pet before bed as well,and in the morning.I know quickly if one is acting differently from a cold or something.

 

[Karen Glatz]

I count them every night. I have 9 hens and one rooster. And counting is quite challenging since they are all up and down and jockeying for good places on the roosts. I hate it when I count 9 one time and 11 the next.

I have three girls who will sometimes try to avoid going into the coop when I put them to bed. I hate finding one or two who have been off scratching somewhere and suddenly realize it's almost dark and everything is closed up and they are pecking on the pop door.

Or worse, find one of them out and about the next morning and know that they were not safe the night before.

 

[Wendee]

I count them every night but I only have 10 chickens.