Happy new Chicken Mother.

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brijetterom

brijetterom

In the Brooder
5 Years
Jul 26, 2014
73
0
39
Hello!

I am a new chicken owner and so proud of my girls! I do need help with clipping the wings. My concern is they won't be able to get to their perches or go down the steep ramp we have in the coop.

Any suggestions or advice?

Thanks!
 
Hello there and welcome to BYC!
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Why do you want to trim the wings? This can leave them more open to predator attack as they can not escape fast enough. And usually trimming wings will not keep them from flying over fences. However if you do want to trim, trim one wing only. This will cause them to be off balance and will be less likely to fly if they have no control. Trimming both wings, and on a good day, they can still sail right over a fence.

Keep your roost bars low to the floor. Chickens can learn to roost a foot off the floor. My roost bar is exactly that...1 foot off the floor of the coop. This is good for large breeds too as coming down from a high roost bar can cause sprains and leg problems, as they come down really hard from a high roost.

Good luck with your flock and welcome to ours!
 
Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

X2, yes, clipping wings prevents your chickens from flying up but it also prevents them from escaping from predators. If they free range then DON'T clip their wings. Even though they can't fly far they can still fly to escape from threats. If you are still going to clip their wings be sure to only clip one wing so they can't overcome it and fly up.

Chickens of a heavier status won't be able to roost on perches higher than a few feet high unless they have lower roosts to climb.

Good luck with your flock and glad you joined
 
Welcome to BYC! Glad you decided to join our flock. We are here to help in any way we can. X2 on TwoCrows' question, why do you want to clip their wings? What kind of chickens do you have? Some kinds are much better flyers than others and clipping a wing won't keep them from getting over fences anyway.
 
Thank you for the reply! It feels so good to share my excitement and concern with others.

I wanted to clip their wings because we live on a canyon and if they fly over that fence then its good by chicken! We built the coop and they love their perches, they are not fond of the very steep ramp from the bottom floor to the top. Although a little coaxing with worms does the trick.


My friends own a nursery and they let the chicken roam free RIGHT ON a busy street and they chicken never goes far. I want to let my chicken play in the fenced back yard but its just that there is so many places for them to escape if they jump the fence.

Any thoughts?
Thank you!
 
brijetterom said:
Any thoughts?
Thank you!
Click to expand...
You may be doing this already, but you only need to clip one wing on each bird, not both wings. They actually have more difficulties trying to fly with only one wing as it throws them off balance when they try. Also, you will need to re-clip them regularly before their new flight feathers grow to full size. Good luck keeping your flock in the fence.
 

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