Free Ranging - Early Morning

[Bookjunkieluv]

Hello,
I’m a newbie to chickens and the country lol
I have three chickens, and they have a predator safe coop, where I will keep them at night, with good ventilation; I was going to go out and open the coop, give them fresh feed and water ;but I need to leave for work, early in the morning while it’s still dark; my goal was to have them free range all day while was at work; but if I leave at 530 am, while it’s still dark, is that too early? Do I have to be concerned that an opposum will come and eat them during that short period of dark? Thank you all for your insights

 

[boskelli1571]

Dawn and dusk are active times for predators, so don't let your ladies out until the sun is up. I wouldn't be so worried about a possum, but raccoons, foxes & coyotes...
You may not see them, but they are there.....

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Welcome to the world of chickens. I agree that leaving your chickens unattended to free range all day is likely to significantly shorten their lifespans. I am home all day, but I keep my chickens safely in their large enclosed run until about 3:00 in the afternoon. By then most have laid their eggs so I let them out to forage for a couple of hours. They free range on several acres. We are very isolated here and have no near neighbors, so there is no danger of stray dogs. We have a very good Sheltie that keeps coyotes away and have rarely lost birds to predators. The chickens go to roost in their coop at dusk and we lock them up for the night.

 

[Ridgerunner]

We are very isolated here and have no near neighbors, so there is no danger of stray dogs.

I had a different result. People abandon dogs in the country. My predator losses were very few to local wildlife but on two different occasions people abandoned dogs in the country. The first time I lost 8 chickens and shot two dogs. The second time I lost 5 chickens and a neighbor shot that dog when it was after his calves. Then I got electric netting to stop dogs abandoned in the country. One really aggravating thing was that it was free to drop the dogs off at the animal shelter. Free. But they had to give me their problems.

@Bookjunkieluv anytime yours free range they are at risk. How much risk, well that really varies. I grew up on a farm where our chickens free ranged from dawn to dusk. Most slept in a hen house but some slept in trees. From the time I can remember until I left for college we had two predator attacks, a fox and a dog. Both were shot.

Some people can go a long time free ranging without predator attacks. Some will get wiped out almost immediately.

I don't know where you are located so I don't have any real idea of what your predators are, but in the US dogs, fox, coyote, bobcat, raccoon, skunk, possum, and many others hunt in daylight as well as in the dark. I was really surprised to see am American possum feeding at my compost pile at 1:00 in the afternoon on a bright sunny day. I really did not expect to see that. Dawn and dusk are high risk times, but no time is that safe.

People have had foxes or hawks take a chicken within a few feet of where they were standing, so you being with them is no guarantee either. Human presence does scare away a lot of animals but not always. I think having humans around all day does deter predators. Doesn't stop them but does slow them down.

There is no cut and dry answer. There is always risk, no one really knows how much your risk will be. I certainly don't. If you want to try it you certainly can, you might be OK. One thing you might consider is an automatic door opener, set to let them out well after the sun is up.

Good luck!

 

[RumneyRoost]

There’s always a risk free ranging, but yes, I would consider the risk higher when it’s dark.
If you have power you could install an automatic coop door. Program it to let them out later in the morning.

My solution is to have a predator proof run attached to my coop. They get to free range when I’m home, otherwise they’re confined to the run.

 

[Folly's place]

Mine go out at slightly different times of day, mostly in the afternoon. I'd never want them out before dawn!!!
Have a big enough coop and safe run, and have them outside when you are home, or when you can enlist a friend, neighbor, or family member to come out later in the day.
Or use that automatic door opener, and hope no varmit is waiting for it to open...
Mary