- Aug 18, 2013
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Hello All,
I am seeking zoning board approval for chickens in a residential area. We live on a little under an acre. Others have received approval so I feel confident that we will have a some chickens in the spring. The backyard is at least a half of an acre and has a 4 foot fence. Since we live in a neighborhood, I'd like to select a breed that is less likely to fly over the fence. We don't want to keep them enclosed in a run, so we are definitely talking about free ranging over the 1/2 acre with 4 to 6 hens...
We do live in upstate New York, so we need a breed that can handle the cold. I'll have electricity in the 4' x 7' coop. We are looking for egg layers; although, we don't need a breed that generate tons of eggs... the single most important quality is "don't fly over the fence." I have read that Silkies don't fly, and maybe we will end up with this breed, but we'd prefer a heavier breed that is less likely to fly and not make a ton of noise or be overly skittish.
The farm down the road has Buff Orpingtons, and I notice that some of them fly over the fence; although our fence is a little taller, and he has a couple of hundred chickens and I usually only see a few percent over the fence at any given time.
Searching through BYC, I did see some comments that Rhode Island Reds tend not to fly over fences. What about a Jersey Giant? Does big bird = bad flyer?
Please offer your advice. I have been doing a lot of reading, but this will be our first time raising chickens.
Many thanks
I am seeking zoning board approval for chickens in a residential area. We live on a little under an acre. Others have received approval so I feel confident that we will have a some chickens in the spring. The backyard is at least a half of an acre and has a 4 foot fence. Since we live in a neighborhood, I'd like to select a breed that is less likely to fly over the fence. We don't want to keep them enclosed in a run, so we are definitely talking about free ranging over the 1/2 acre with 4 to 6 hens...
We do live in upstate New York, so we need a breed that can handle the cold. I'll have electricity in the 4' x 7' coop. We are looking for egg layers; although, we don't need a breed that generate tons of eggs... the single most important quality is "don't fly over the fence." I have read that Silkies don't fly, and maybe we will end up with this breed, but we'd prefer a heavier breed that is less likely to fly and not make a ton of noise or be overly skittish.
The farm down the road has Buff Orpingtons, and I notice that some of them fly over the fence; although our fence is a little taller, and he has a couple of hundred chickens and I usually only see a few percent over the fence at any given time.
Searching through BYC, I did see some comments that Rhode Island Reds tend not to fly over fences. What about a Jersey Giant? Does big bird = bad flyer?
Please offer your advice. I have been doing a lot of reading, but this will be our first time raising chickens.
Many thanks
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