Keeping Chickens Free Range

[ShrekDawg]

One thing the home owner can do is purposefully create chicken friendly foraging habitat.  I am working on that:  Lots of weeds at edge of lawn, with those weeds being left to go to seed.  Wild primrose is a wonderful Japanese Beetle trap crop.  I encourage it in both weedy edges and my wild flower beds.  Berries, both wild and cultivated:  Raspberry, blackberry, wild strawberry, June berry, high bush cranberry, elderberry.  Plant chicken friendly veggies around edge of run:  yellow squash.  Also planted day lilies for a splash of color and shade.  High protein plants:  White clover, Siberian Pea tree, Comfrey (Bocking #14 is a Russian cultivar that does not re-seed.)  Nutrient dense weeds:  dandelion abounds in my yard.  Woody areas with plenty of leaf mold and other rotting debris to attract insects as well as chickens.  Vernal pools to encourage higher frog population.  And in the run:  lots of deep litter.  My goal is to have a 6" deep layer of black spongy compost covering the entire run.  

That's a really good idea!!! I might try that.

Mine don't really get to free range much now but we have about 3 acres, though most of it's woods. Probably about an acre or acre and a half is yard and the rest is woods and it connects with neighbors woods. Right behind the coop is kind of an overgrown area, weeds/tall grass galore, stumps, i think a blueberry bush and raspberries, though the wild birds usually get those, some baby pines, etc. They usually go to the baby pines or edge of woods near there, in a different part of the yard next to the dog house and some more mature/big pines but still young in tree terms, or lately, next to the house in the garden/mulch. The dog house is on the edge of the woods so they get the forage under the pines with lots of leaf litter as well as the woods and the compost pile is over there. there's loads of bugs in all places I'm sure. What's somewhat annoying though is sometimes they go close to the neighbor's property (we have close neighbors we can see through the woods). I go call them out before they get there, though it's probably not necessary. They also don't really go deep in the woods unless I lead them. I guess that part's good but there's so much forage. And that's what's annoying about them going to the neighbors, that side, behind the coop, the neighbors are literally right there, whereas by the dog house, they could go as deep in the woods as they please. And it's still in the same vicinity they hang out in. I wish they would take an interest in those woods. They also never go in the open grass or across the yard and up the hill. There's tons of old compost and woods and forage there and those woods are more expensive but nope. Only the small backyard (most of our yard is in the front/side). I guess that's like a whole new world. I do like keeping an eye on them but i wish they would learn to explore AWAY from the neighbors. And maybe if i let them out more, they will expand their range eventually? They rarely go out as it is and only supervised. Maybe that's it? I used to let them out all day and they went all over but hawks, fox, and coyote around. Theres been two deer around this week and a coyote trailing them.

 

[centrarchid]

The usual way poultry scientists test for feed adequacy is to weigh the chickens frequently -- say, every week. Chickens who are losing weight obviously aren't getting the nourishment they need! That and rate of lay are pretty good indicators. 

One thing that isn't a good indicator is activity level. Underfed chickens forage with great activity until their strength gives out.

Robert

Approach I use is a combination of monitoring ranging behavior and crop fill.

With totally free-range birds when food is abundant and cover is good, regardless of source they do not go far from the roost. As food gets harder to come by, the birds range further. Usually the ranging pattern does not form a circle where every inch is picked over, rather the birds follow edges / transition lines between vegetation types where eats are more abundant and cover is close. As getting to meet nutrition needs become more difficult they keep ranging further. When mine really get out their in harems of 1 cock and three hens, then if you use the farther point from roost to draw a radius to define a circle, then the area of that circle can exceed 25 acres posted by chickengeorge. The birds do not forage that entire area but when I make crude area estimates of actual area foraged then it is multiple acres per bird. The extreme measure represents what I see when demand highest while forage is poorest in late winter.


When birds are somehow confined or in a location where they do not like to get out in the open in part becuase of poor forage, then they can only compensate forage efforts so much. What I look for then is crop fill. Birds eating lots of low quality forage seem to deplete crops faster during the night. Birds having trouble finding food at all have poorly distended crops even when the go to roost. The birds with the delineated ranging that suffer in terms of egg production first followed by weight declines.

Birds having trouble finding eats spend less time loafing and will begin foraging away from cover. Also in some settings like those surrounding pastures over grazed by livestock, the chickens will move to a new roost site with foraging shifted to be around that new site.

When hens are nesting / in lay they move around much less in terms of area foraged.

In most instances I can tighten up ranging habits by simply putting out some whole grain of some sort. This makes me think energy is what they come up short on first, especially when temperatures are low. During summer, while grain like corn does not work as well and sometimes they will barely touch it.

 

[Little Fuzzy]

Excellent.

 

[Beekissed]

I note overall body condition~not necessarily weight, but fullness of muscle tissue around the breast bone and thigh~feather quality, production if a hen~ but that doesn't always indicate much if it's a temporary or full time nonlayer or if they are out of season for laying (brooding, raising young, etc.), and how much they eat at the feeder to see if they are getting what they need out on range.

Since things like laying fluctuate throughout the seasons, it's only a good indicator of health and general conditioning according to each bird's individual cycle within typical laying cycles. Since most backyarders are dealing with birds of varying ages and laying abilities, it's difficult to determine nutritional variances according to production.

From my observation, the distance they range from the coop has nothing to do with nutritional needs but more to do with what's available at that time of day, season, or due to the weather. When it rains they work different parts of the meadow and woods, in the spring and fall they work different parts of the meadow and they even work different areas in the morning than they do towards evening. This also varies according to what's growing now or what bug hatch is currently going on and can even vary due to when these areas are mowed or not mowed, when certain trees or shrubs drop fruit or even when the deer are harvesting fruit...the chickens will encircle them and await dropped pieces of peaches or apples to eat.

This area is very rich in different foraging opportunities in the woods and meadow and that green forage is supplemented by overseeding with White Dutch Clover, usually frost seeded in late winter/early spring, certain grasses in the late summer and early fall are left not mowed until the grass has went to seed and they can harvest it, and also supplemented by what is grown in the garden, harvested in the woods(deer, for instance, and additional apple crops, acorns, wild cherry), canning and table scraps, and other windfalls that chickens can use. Even at butchering time they get to glean meat protein from their fellow coop mates in the form of livers, spleen, ovaries, testicles, crop and gizzard contents and their blood. At fall deer harvest they get much of the same, with the addition of fat trimmed from the meat and made into suet cakes for their consumption later in the winter.

Free ranging isn't all about chickens on grass but chickens ranging over many different foraging opportunities that provide a wide range of nutritional opportunities...I encourage more of their natural forage by overseeding things that provide higher protein, by creating areas where worms, grubs and beetles have habitat that is hidden from the chickens until I reveal it to them~this gives those creatures time to reproduce and create more of the same, and by creating habitat for snakes, lizards, frogs and salamanders. All from which the chickens can derive nutrition that varies with the seasons.

Raising chickens in this manner sometimes takes more work and management on the flock owners part, but the benefits to the flock and the individual bird outweighs the work involved. I'm very confident in their nutritional status and health status when their diet is so varied and rich in content that is easily absorbed and utilized by their digestive systems. I've never seen any flocks over the years range further than a 4-5 acre section of land, no matter how much land or foraging opportunities were available. Anything more is too far from the safety of cover, coop, protection from the dogs and water source.

 

[lazy gardener]

I note overall body condition~not necessarily weight, but fullness of muscle tissue around the breast bone and thigh~feather quality, production if a hen~ but that doesn't always indicate much if it's a temporary or full time nonlayer or if they are out of season for laying (brooding, raising young, etc.), and how much they eat at the feeder to see if they are getting what they need out on range.

Since things like laying fluctuate throughout the seasons, it's only a good indicator of health and general conditioning according to each bird's individual cycle within typical laying cycles. Since most backyarders are dealing with birds of varying ages and laying abilities, it's difficult to determine nutritional variances according to production.

From my observation, the distance they range from the coop has nothing to do with nutritional needs but more to do with what's available at that time of day, season, or due to the weather. When it rains they work different parts of the meadow and woods, in the spring and fall they work different parts of the meadow and they even work different areas in the morning than they do towards evening. This also varies according to what's growing now or what bug hatch is currently going on and can even vary due to when these areas are mowed or not mowed, when certain trees or shrubs drop fruit or even when the deer are harvesting fruit...the chickens will encircle them and await dropped pieces of peaches or apples to eat.

This area is very rich in different foraging opportunities in the woods and meadow and that green forage is supplemented by overseeding with White Dutch Clover, usually frost seeded in late winter/early spring, certain grasses in the late summer and early fall are left not mowed until the grass has went to seed and they can harvest it, and also supplemented by what is grown in the garden, harvested in the woods(deer, for instance, and additional apple crops, acorns, wild cherry), canning and table scraps, and other windfalls that chickens can use. Even at butchering time they get to glean meat protein from their fellow coop mates in the form of livers, spleen, ovaries, testicles, crop and gizzard contents and their blood. At fall deer harvest they get much of the same, with the addition of fat trimmed from the meat and made into suet cakes for their consumption later in the winter.

Free ranging isn't all about chickens on grass but chickens ranging over many different foraging opportunities that provide a wide range of nutritional opportunities...I encourage more of their natural forage by overseeding things that provide higher protein, by creating areas where worms, grubs and beetles have habitat that is hidden from the chickens until I reveal it to them~this gives those creatures time to reproduce and create more of the same, and by creating habitat for snakes, lizards, frogs and salamanders. All from which the chickens can derive nutrition that varies with the seasons.

Raising chickens in this manner sometimes takes more work and management on the flock owners part, but the benefits to the flock and the individual bird outweighs the work involved. I'm very confident in their nutritional status and health status when their diet is so varied and rich in content that is easily absorbed and utilized by their digestive systems. I've never seen any flocks over the years range further than a 4-5 acre section of land, no matter how much land or foraging opportunities were available. Anything more is too far from the safety of cover, coop, protection from the dogs and water source.

Bee, your entire post would be good fodder for a book on natural chicken keeping, but I especially liked the last paragraph. Every year, as I'm tucking plants into my land, and watching it mature, it gives great pleasure. Looking forward to what next season produces in flock and greenery! While weighing birds would be fine for a science based assessment, IMO, a seasoned flock owner can tell more by placing hands on the bird and palpating muscle mass, assessing feather condition, and behavior. Last season's birds had feather quality issues, showing some nutrient lapses as feathers matured. This season's birds have fantastic feathering.

 

[maryann momhen]

I had to keep my flock penned a good part of the summer, only letting them out to range when I could supervise due to constant hawk predation.  Some weeks, they would only get out for a couple of hours total.  Hawk predation has recently diminished, so they are able to get out to range almost all of almost every day. I consider the free range diet to be far superior. " 

Lazy gardener, would you think I'm being overly cautious not letting my birds out when I'm not available to stay close to them? Mine also only get out maybe 10 hrs a week. I hear what you're saying about predation diminishing at times,a and being able to give them more freedom. I've only seen a raccoon once and a hawk actually land nearby only 3 or 4 times in past 2 years, but I think I would be really upset if a hawk got one of them. I feel like if my husband or I weren't out there walking around the hawks would be alot more prevalent. We have lots of bushes for them to run into, so sometimes I think I should let them out more. Regarding depletion, we rake the leaves into an 800 sqft area under a huge lilac that offers alot of protection so there's always alot of worms and bugs in that spot,and the entire perimeter has 10ft deep beds of day lilies and hydrangeas and raspberries in spring but it's hard to tell whether there are enough bugs around. I never have put any chemical at all down,a and hubby rarely mows. There are plenty of weeds. When I hear people talking about 15 to 25 acres and I only have less than half acre taking away the front yard and the house, but we do have a much larger than average amount of plants and shrubs, I used to think my 6 chickens had an enormous free range area but now I feel very inadequate. They're growing and laying and 6 mos old ones love to fly around so they seem happy. I have a ton of frogs but I've never seen my chickens catch one. I'm probably worrying for nothing.

 

[RobertPlamondon]

Quote:
Wow. My hat's off to you. That's about the deepest expert description I've ever heard in the chicken realm.

At the same time, I feel compelled to say, "Kids, don't try this at home!" Learning how to notice and interpret all these signs is valuable to any poultrykeeper, but it must have taken you a while to have picked all this up!

You're right about the grain being the first thing exhausted on range. Back in the old days they did a lot of research on this. First, calories are depleted, then (probably) protein, followed by vitamins in the form of palatable green forage. So the first thing to supplement is calories, usually in the form of grain. (Plus calcium except on calcium-rich soils.)

Robert

 

[lazy gardener]

Lazy gardener, would you think I'm being overly cautious not letting my birds out when I'm not available to stay close to them? Mine also only get out maybe 10 hrs a week. I hear what you're saying about predation diminishing at times,a and being able to give them more freedom. I've only seen a raccoon once and a hawk actually land nearby only 3 or 4 times in past 2 years, but I think I would be really upset if a hawk got one of them. I feel like if my husband or I weren't out there walking around the hawks would be alot more prevalent. We have lots of bushes for them to run into, so sometimes I think I should let them out more. Regarding depletion, we rake the leaves into an 800 sqft area under a huge lilac that offers alot of protection so there's always alot of worms and bugs in that spot,and the entire perimeter has 10ft deep beds of day lilies and hydrangeas and raspberries in spring but it's hard to tell whether there are enough bugs around. I never have put any chemical at all down,a and hubby rarely mows. There are plenty of weeds. When I hear people talking about 15 to 25 acres and I only have less than half acre taking away the front yard and the house, but we do have a much larger than average amount of plants and shrubs, I used to think my 6 chickens had an enormous free range area but now I feel very inadequate. They're growing and laying and 6 mos old ones love to fly around so they seem happy. I have a ton of frogs but I've never seen my chickens catch one. I'm probably worrying for nothing.

Only you can answer the question regarding caution versus risk. Every flock owner has to do their own risk assessment, and that is an always changing issue. During the peak of my hawk predation, I would let the birds out, and the hawks would show up within 10 minutes. There would be 2 of one species circling over head, and within minutes 3 of an other species would show up. I'd no sooner let them out than I was shaking the scratch can and ushering them back inside. As for your habitat, It sounds like you have plenty of cover. Does it keep your birds safe from preds? No. But, it helps. When I've had birds taken, it was in an area that was within feet of adequate brush and weedy cover, but out of sight of the yard that was frequented by us. Hawks are very aware of movement patterns of the people in the yard. They will often keep watch, and strike when the human steps inside for a few minutes. I suggest that you observe their crops. If their crops seem to be empty after they range, give them some chicken feed. If they have been out ranging all afternoon, and their crops are full, you may not need to feed any processed feed. Many people leave feed out 24/7 in addition to letting them free range all day. The birds in that situation will most likely choose the range feed over what's in the feeder. I choose to never have feed out at night, due to potential for attracting rats/mice and other free loaders of the night. My birds get FF early in morning. Bee kissed offers FF to her birds towards the end of the day. I've lately been letting them out for free range, even when I'm at work. So far, so good. How ever, any day, I could come home to find carcasses littering my yard. It's a calculated risk, based on the fact that all of my predation has been from hawks, and the fact that I've not seen dogs out free roaming during the day. However, there is a boxer who has come visiting early AM. So, my flock is not allowed out at that time unless I am home, and out and about. Don't consider the range that you can offer your birds to be inadequate. Instead, be thankful that you have a yard that they can go out in at all. Many people can't even offer this. Now, if you choose to, you can make small changes to improve the range opportunities: as you replace plants that may not work in your yard, consider some of the many fruiting plants that provide crops that both you and your flock will enjoy, or even crops that will benefit the birds, but you: not so much. Perhaps even planting a single bed of chicken friendly crops. There are so very many to choose from. If you have room, you might even do a bed with Sorghum, field corn, sunflowers, and underplanted with white clover, wheat or oats. (I'd go for the white clover.)

 

[maryann momhen]

Lets not get our feathers in a ruffle

Like this?

 

[Flock Master64]

Hello