Free Ranging+Shrubs=Bad idea?

[Iowa Roo Mom]

Meh- I've been free-ranging for over a year and haven't had a bit of trouble. I would worry more about bumblefoot (which I am dealing with now) and predators when free-ranging, not poisoning. Believe me, it's not worth it to spend all your time worrying. Just kick back and let your chickens do their thing. They'll be ok!

 

[wichix411]

Ok so this seems to be a different group of people then when I asked last time so I'll ask again.

I would like to free range mine for most of the day, but a state highway is pretty much in my backyard. The chicken run is 150 feet from the highway, and there's a hill that goes down to a swampy area (not big at all) then a hill thatgoes up to the highway. If I let them free range for like half a day every day, do you think they'd be hood ornaments on the cars passing by or will the cars going 60 mph past scare them so that they won't go up there?

 

[emilyweck]

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I agree! Mine free range and don't even pay attention to the naughty things.

 

[gritsar]

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I would be concerned about the road. We have to watch when moving vehicles around in our yard and driveway. Most get out of the way, but a few run right under the vehicle instead of away from it.

 

[txchickie]

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Now I will likely be shot for this, but right directly in front of my house is a set of 4 chutes for the feedyard and AAAALLLLL DAY LONG (and all night sometimes

) there are dozens of cattle trucks in and out constantly, along with feed trucks, grain trucks, poop trucks, you name it.

In the last 2 years, I have only had 2 chickens ran over

And **I** ran over one pulling over by the mailbox to get the mail and don't know what got the other one...just found her smashed and scraped her off the road

Mine have learned to stay far away from the road. Those big trucks are scary to them! You'll never see them near the road, ever. Mine free range 100% of the time (except my silkies).

 

[wichix411]

Thanks guys. I am concerned about the highway, but i think i'll get over it. My schedule is different all the time, so I can't always be here to let them out before dark. So if i let them out midmorning and have to work at 4, does anybody have any troubles herding them back into their pen? And another thing i'm worried about is cats. We have cats that are around here occasionally. Like this morning down by the swampy area i saw a black cat. I scared it off, but i am kinda worried that the cat will go after them. Does anybody have problems with Cats And Chickens?

 

[Imp]

Herding them can be a chore. Try feeding them at that time or luring them in with treats. Also if you have to herd get a couple long sticks so you can extend your arm length.

Occasionally people have trouble with cats, but the majority have no problem with cats. If your chickens are large full grown chickens, they may terrorize the cats. I have 5 asst ferals, strays, and pet cats in the backyard, and they never mess with the cats. I had a previous cat that loved to sleep in the coop in the winter. I wouldn't trust cats with small chicks.

Imp

 

[Akane]

My house is practically on the road with no fence. The coop is farther away but the chickens wander around the house sometimes and none have gone towards the road.

We've only had issues with one excessively large feral cat. It attacked several chickens and might have killed a bantam before the dog ran it off. Normally cats don't seem to be a problem with adult chickens. We have 2 cats on the property that never pay much attention to the chickens in the coop. I'm sure they'd love to get ahold of the chicks since one has caught birds up to crow size but at around 8weeks old when I move chicks to the coop they are already beyond what the cats seem interested in.

 

[rainbowgardens]

I have a large bed with cotoneaster.

My hens devoured the berries off of it last fall. They looked so funny trying to keep their balance on the arching branches as they hopped around foraging for the red berries. I don't think they will try to eat the leaves.

My hens are healthy and very productive, so I'm sure the groundcover/shrubs are not a problem.

 

[elmo]

Do you mind your chickens landscaping the shrubs?

A friend of ours has shrubs in his yard that have all been neatly sheared by his chickens...from the underside, right at the top height that his chickens can jump. It looks...interesting.

In other parts of his garden, he uses inexpensive push in wire edging panels. Amazingly, these simple barriers keep his chickens away from the plants behind them because they don't want to jump on top of the panel and then jump down into the shrub.