Finding Chicken/homestead "babysitting"?

[PlentifulPrairie]

Do you ever have problems finding people to care for your flock while you go on vacation or don't because you can't find someone to watch your flock/other animals?

Who watches them if you do go on vacation?

How do you typically find these people?

If there was an website/app dedicated to this would you use it?

 

[Isadora]

I got lucky in that our neighbor across the street is willing to take care of our animals. Otherwise I would ask around to people I knew locally, preferably people who had chickens or animals I kept, to see if they would be willing/could recommend anyone.

 

[KathieMc]

Whenever we have to go out of town, we're lucky enough to have our adult children living close by tend to the chickens and dogs for us. And their payment is done in eggs with no complaints.

 

[Mrs. K]

A couple of days, and I just put a self serve feeder out, and make sure there is plenty of water. In the summer, I worry about water the most, and if they have spilled it.

I too, have family that are willing to do a check for me.

In a bigger city, I would call the extension office, and/or look up local poultry clubs, or 4-H groups.

Mrs K

 

[3KillerBs]

Whenever we have to go out of town, we're lucky enough to have our adult children living close by tend to the chickens and dogs for us. And their payment is done in eggs with no complaints.

Adult children FTW -- especially the ones who still live at home.

Otherwise it would indeed be difficult to find someone to care for the animals.

 

[PlentifulPrairie]

A couple of days, and I just put a self serve feeder out, and make sure there is plenty of water. In the summer, I worry about water the most, and if they have spilled it.

I too, have family that are willing to do a check for me.

In a bigger city, I would call the extension office, and/or look up local poultry clubs, or 4-H groups.

Mrs K

Great idea about 4H groups.

I don't have close neighbors and my son's work schedule doesn't work for caring for chickens. Finding options are tuff. But I'm gathering this boat is a rare boat!

 

[Mrs. K]

A lot depends on how many days. If you can do some searching, there are several bucket feeders and large waters with nipples that if safely anchored, I would easily go 4-6 days.

But a lot depends on the size of your coop and the safety of your coop too.

 

[tripletfeb]

When I leave my chickens, they are good for days. I have a feeder that holds a weeks worth of food and the waterer is a nipple bucket so that holds quite a lot too. But my sister will come over to get the eggs and say hi to the girls while I'm gone. Or my mom

 

[PlentifulPrairie]

A lot depends on how many days. If you can do some searching, there are several bucket feeders and large waters with nipples that if safely anchored, I would easily go 4-6 days.

But a lot depends on the size of your coop and the safety of your coop too.

Yeah I have a chicken that is so fat I have to bring them in the coop myself he doesn't fit through the chicken door . He's a Cornish cross, I know they are not meant to keep as pets, long story.. but he is living his best life. ... I'll probably be making another bigger door and my own automatic door.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I used to have my retired next door neighbor do it, but she has since moved away.

My last 2 trips we simply made sure to top off both waterer and feeder, threw out a few pie pans of extra food in the run, and the birds were fine while we were away. We have an auto door and a coop cam, so really the only thing that our set up can't do is collect eggs, which isn't a big deal for a few days.