free range chickens

[bmbi328]

Should I let my chickens free range while I am away for 6 hrs a day? When I am home I let them out the first sign of light and they know when it is time to go to bed. Is is safe for them? I feel bad leaving them in their run for 6 hrs. I haven't seen any hawks or anything of that type during the day that would get them.

 

[Veer67]

If you live in a place with a lot of wooded area there will probably be a lot of foxes, coyotes, and other predators which won't be safe for the chickens because foxes and hawks will snatch away your chickens in broad daylight. By the first signs of daylight do you mean that you let them out before it turns dark? And if you have close by neighbors your chickens could cross their yard and be attacked by a neighbors' dogs, you could also do supervised free ranging or build a fence around their coop.