chickity-chick
Songster
Hi everyone! I am new to chickens and would love to get some advice on a few questions. So I have my run and coops in my back yard, the majority of the back yard is a pool and a hillside with lots of plants that people have said are poisonous to chickens. Like irises, hydrangeas, hosta's, old english ivy, those bushes that are spiked with berries (what ever they are called) etc... Generally lots of plants that come back every year and that people have said are poisonous to chickens. My run that is on the other side of the pool deck- flooring is pea gravel covered in play sand and is 75 square feet. Since there is no grass or plants I feel like it would be nice to let them out into the yard sometimes- for extra space, to explore, to get to eat bugs, change of ground cover, etc. I currently have 4 chickens, 2 black copper marans and 2 red sex links, but am looking to get 3-4 more (options--> barred rocks, americanas, dominicker, and possibly a rhode island red). If I got 4 more that is roughly 9 square feet/chicken in the run with all 8 in there. But I know it is an 8-10 square foot per chicken number for runs. Basically my question is- would it be bad to let them free range in the back yard for a few hours a week with supervision even though there are a lot of of 'bad' plants? Will they actually eat them or will they know to avoid them? The worry is the really large and 14ft deep pool and all the bad plants, but I don't want them to be unhappy and feel cooped up. Also, would getting 3-4 more chickens be bad considering the accommodations? The two groups would share a run but sleep in separate coops since I have two smaller coops that can hold 4 chickens only each with 2.25 square feet per chicken in the coops. I would absolutely love some advice, I want my chickens to be happy but also don't want to get them poisoned or sick. I have a family of 5 so I feel like I need more chickens in order to get the amount of eggs that would be enough for the family. They would always be supervised if out of the run, but I wont be able to monitor what they eat, only that they don't fall in the pool. Thank you for all who will help me with this dilemma!
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