free range chickens???

[aran]

oh man i hope we dont get 10 males for warmth! what the heck am i going to do with them? What does everyone else do with them?

aran

 

[MarkR]

eat them

Mark

 

[silkiechicken]

Yep, eat them.

Or as soon as you know they are male, sell them for a dollar a piece or just give them away.

I grow up egg layer rooster to about 4 months and sell them for $2 a lb.

 

[Critter Crazy]

Quote:
My chickens free range all day long, whether I am home or not. They love it! I have only had one predaotr attack my chickens during the day, and that was the neighbors dog that got loose, while I was home. But other than that, they are happy and safe. I also do not clip wings, I dont find it necessary, they need their wings, if a predator does attack, it is their only means of escape. Chickens will not run away. they know where home and food is. As long as they are locked up in their coop at night they should be fine. They will go inside at night on their own. Chickens have very poor eyesight at night, so they feel very vulerable. They will al start to head in, before it gets dark.

 

[aran]

well thanks for your thoughts everyone. The chicks are supposed to leave Ideal's hatchery today and get here tomorrow/thursday so we will see what we get. I do like the idea of free range if the chickens are alright...I will see how they go. As far as the rooster issue goes I am sure if I get a bunch of extras that I will be asking your advice on how to get rid of them when the time comes.

thanks again.

 

[Hotwings]

I am a big fan of free ranging chickens. It cuts down on your feed bill, the birds get alot of excersize and I think it makes them happy. Predators are always a risk. A rooster makes a good look out. Once he sounds the alarm they all scatter.

 

[Lunachick]

Did I read that right? Mark - cage your pumpkins til they get big enough? Are you going to free range your pumpkins when they're older? Hahaha

 

[MarkR]

Well sort of. . . I'm going to stick a couple of blossoms through the fence, into the pen. . . then cage them until they're big. . . then take the cage off and let the birds at them. It's fun, trust me.

Mark

 

[AccidentalFarm]

Quote:
My Ideal order will be here tomorrow morning. I ordered 10 pullets, I'll post what extras I get, if any. I'm almost thinking I won't get extras because it is so warm down here already, and the hatchery is only 4 hours away from me.

 

[keljonma]

Quote:
I found out last year that the birds will eat the blossoms off the squash and pumpkin vines. Better to leave them out of chicken's path until they are ready for harvest, or you may not see a harvest!