free-range chicks dying randomly?

[McChooky]

My neighbor turned 40 beautiful egg layers loose as pullets a couple years ago expecting them to survive without human intervention. Sadly they got picked off one by one because they didn't have a coop or run.Nothing like experience to teach us what a wild hungry predator will do to a flock of chickens with no protection.

 

[Anonymous__]

My chickens are only out when we are home and we are outside with them most of the time with a livestock guardian dog protecting them 24/7 and barn cats with some extra precautions. Letting chickens loose with nothing would obviously get them picked off, I wanted to raise them in a semi-freerange environment so they have more experience. I've had indoor chickens before and when I brought them outside they just sat there not knowing what to do and the chicks successfully raised outdoors have thrived for years.

 

[Red Mangrove]

Whatever you've read is false, they're too young and snack sized yet for free ranging. Nobody here is arguing, I'm giving you my experienced and researched advice on something you may have not thought of.

My neighbor turned 40 beautiful egg layers loose as pullets a couple years ago expecting them to survive without human intervention. Sadly they got picked off one by one because they didn't have a coop or run.Nothing like experience to teach us what a wild hungry predator will do to a flock of chickens with no protection.

I have perhaps 40 adults outside and 60 chicks of various ages. I have a party of three right now that are less than two weeks old actually and they're doing just fine. Keep in mind that this is with a den of foxes less than 100 feet away and in a totally free-range setting. My chickens sleep in trees at night and there's far more of them than my family, the foxes, possums and other predators can eat

It's always amusing to hear people on BYC think my normal daily lifestyle is something impossible

All you need is healthy, natural chickens. Not inbred production birds

 

[McChooky]

I have perhaps 40 adults outside and 60 chicks of various ages. I have a party of three right now that are less than two weeks old actually and they're doing just fine. Keep in mind that this is with a den of foxes less than 100 feet away and in a totally free-range setting. My chickens sleep in trees at night and there's far more of them than my family, the foxes, possums and other predators can eat

It's always amusing to hear people on BYC think my normal daily lifestyle is something impossible

All you need is healthy, natural chickens. Not inbred production birds

This is the way old timers used to raise chickens and is still done today.You don't miss the chickens predators eat if you hatch lots of chicks.