Husband says no to free ranging

[Braedi Acres]

Please help, we have about an acre or so of yard with 4 acres of land behind us. We have 17 hens, a rooster and a lone duck. I want to free range, hubby says no because they ruin the yard. Please help. All that I have read, this is not the case. Also how would one set up a dusting area? Thank you.

 

[Amer]

Please help, we have about an acre or so of yard with 4 acres of land behind us. We have 17 hens, a rooster and a lone duck. I want to free range, hubby says no because they ruin the yard. Please help. All that I have read, this is not the case. Also how would one set up a dusting area? Thank you.

How many daytime predators do you have? Fencing off an area is much better than free ranging, an acre is plenty. Where do you live? I don't have them go outside much during winter, I live in Wisconsin. A dust bath can be as much as a dry area in the dirt beneath a bush (ours prefer this) or you can use a cement mixing tub or a bucket they can get into filled with dirt. Use breeds that are better for free ranging. Good luck!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/free-ranging-your-flock-by-one-who-free-ranges.73488/

 

[Trish1974]

I would be more worried about predators than ruining the yard. Agree with A4R, fencing off an area for them would be best. As for dust bathes, they usually find a spot and dig up the ground to make their own. If you have frozen ground, providing a big tub of dirt and sand would work.

 

[Beer can]

Ruin the yard? nah, lawns pretty tough. We have three acres and the birds only travel around maybe a acre of it and no damage. They do spend much time on our brushy tree line and in a big field behind our house though. When they are not confined to a run they just keep traveling, moving pecking scratching, don't concentrate in one area so no damage.
They WILL mess up a nice flower garden (don't cause much damage but rather annoying), get into vegetable garden and eat. And WILL poop around your vehicles and entry way into your home. Only negative for me on free ranging is the poop, we have a handful of little kids who sometimes forget to take their shoes off at the door...
I don't care about the pooping on the lawn you'll never notice it.

 

[Amer]

Ruin the yard? nah, lawns pretty tough. We have three acres and the birds only travel around maybe a acre of it and no damage. They do spend much time on our brushy tree line and in a big field behind our house though. When they are not confined to a run they just keep traveling, moving pecking scratching, don't concentrate in one area so no damage.
They WILL mess up a nice flower garden (don't cause much damage but rather annoying), get into vegetable garden and eat. And WILL poop around your vehicles and entry way into your home. Only negative for me on free ranging is the poop, we have a handful of little kids who sometimes forget to take their shoes off at the door...
I don't care about the pooping on the lawn you'll never notice it.

I agree. The lawn will do fine, not the garden. As long as there is a large fenced in area, like an acre, they should be fine.

 

[Sublight]

I love for mine to free range, and so does my dad.
But doing this does cause us to loose the occasional chicken and that sucks.

 

[JedJackson]

Please help, we have about an acre or so of yard with 4 acres of land behind us. We have 17 hens, a rooster and a lone duck. I want to free range, hubby says no because they ruin the yard. Please help. All that I have read, this is not the case. Also how would one set up a dusting area? Thank you.

Yeah, I agree that a large fenced area is preferable to free ranging. It doesn't need to be too large, certainly not a whole acre or even half that. Just enough space to keep them occupied and hopefully for them to find some nice bugs and greens to eat. If there are bushes, trees, grass and twigs about so much the better.

Perhaps hubby will agree to free ranging them on occasion if you are with them to keep them off of paved areas and away from any garden you might have. It's fun to watch them exploring new territory and they love it.

As far as a dust bath goes, they will usually find one on their own, but you could make one out of an old bus tub or something similar by just adding sand and some light, loose soil. Put it somewhere where it gets plenty of light but no rain and it can be used any time of the year. Just change out the dirt/sand now and then. Easy peasy.

 

[Kessel23]

Your husband must of confused chickens with feral pigs, chickens do not ruin yards. Ducks will drill tiny holes through wet mud with their beaks and when the mud drys you will have a tiny beak sized hole n the ground but it goes away pretty fast. I live in Wisconsin, if you let a flock of 25 birds free range all day every day and only shut them up at night, your flock would be dead within 2 years. If you do want then to free range then I would suggest letting them out an hour or two before dark, then just sit out there with them until they go in for the night.
The rooster will let you know if any predator attacks, they have two alarm calls, both are used for several different things. The first one is to make the hens look up into the sky, he makes this alarm call every time a animal flies overhead. If the animal is a hawk the hens and rooster will run for cover under bushes and shrubs, they will hide until the hawk leaves. If it is another bird like a dove or songbird the hens will stay alert afterwards but they will not run. Young roosters will even make this alarm call when a airplane flies over. This call sounds kinda like a crow but instead of CockaDoodleDoo it's just a really long Dooooo.
The second call is an alarm call for when a rooster spots a predator on the ground, it alerts the hens and makes them watch the predator. If the hens and roo can keep track of where a predator is then it is much easier for them to avoid when it attacks. This alarm call is also used for when a hen is caught by a predator, all the chickens will again watch the predator, they will keep their distance and will calm down a while after the predator kills the hen and leaves. The rooster will get really close as he makes the alarm call, he will try to intimidate the predator, he will also alert everything in the area that there is a predator. Some roosters will even attack the predator but they will usually end up getting killed to, depending on what it is. This alarm call is very loud and sounds like a loud and deep cluck, similar to the cluck some hens make after laying an egg. The rooster will also make this same call if a hen starts to make it, if you let your birds free range and a hen leaves the flock to lay an egg when she is done she will make this call to notify the rooster, the rooster will call back with his louder call and it will notify her of where the flock has moved to in her absence. If you don't have a roo the top hen will make the cluck alarm call but most hens are incapable of making the the "Doo" alarm call.
So yes, you can let your birds free range, no they will not destroy your yard. It is much more safe to have a large run for your hens, but if you do let them free range then make sure you stay out there with them, you do not have to follow them around, you can just sit out on your porch and listen for the alarm calls the rooster makes and then when he makes them just go and check to see why he has made the alarm.

 

[chickens really]

Only let them free range an hour or two before Dark as you watch over them. Then they will head back to the Coop to Roost. They won't ruin the yard in that short of time out.

 

[Percheron chick]

I don't feel like this is a position worth fighting over. Leave them up.
My chickens love congregating on the deck peering in the front door. Needless to say, they poop all over the deck. If you have children, they poop all over the lawn they play on.. Predators are lurking in the back yard and unless you can stomach the occasional loss, leave them up. I have not found chickens to destroy lawns but they have done significant damage to my vegetable garden. Chickens are a valuable asset to gardening eating tons of bugs and larvae and timing their access will minimize damage. They can also turn mountains of yard waste into valuable compost.
Is there a compromise? Sure. A roll of electro netting that controls were they range and keeps them away from the house and safe from daytime predators is a simple solution.