Letting my new flock free range for the first time

[writerskramp]

I did not mean that negatively in any way. I inherited this coop and took a year and a half to do anything with it due to covid. My Wife and I wanted chickens ever since we got this place, but I wanted to do my due diligence. We raised chickens when I was a kid, but my Mom did most of the heavy lifting. This was in the 60's. We had well over 100 chickens back then, so I thought that 6 seemed quite meager.

Good luck and all the best.

Nothing negative received.. Just thought mine was big comparatively.. to what appears in most backyards.. and I have about 35 hens and roosters.. 6 won't even know what to do with all the space.. perhaps a sectional, a couple table & end lamps.. and a throw rug from the furniture store.. then up goes your property taxes.

 

[TooCheep]

A table to hide under is good. Large open spaces make it easier for the hawks to swoop in. My back yard is very busy with dwarf fruit trees and berry bushes. Having obstructions makes it both easier for chickens to find cover and harder for the hawks to find clear lanes to swoop in.

 

[Chuckie chicken]

Sounds like we're in the same boat. I picked up 8 production reds a week ago yesterday, and let them out of the run for the first time last evening. The coop / run back into about an acre of pine and spruce trees, and are close to our compost pile. Everyone was well behaved, and loved scratching around the forest and compost,

but I did have to collect them one by one when it was time to put them back in the run. The only treat I've found so far is worms, which come from the compost pile they were in, lol, so I'm not sure how to entice them.

I figured it was time to let them out since they've been eagerly trying to escape for the past few days. I let them out again this morning with the same result. We don't have any fencing, so I'll just have to supervise I guess.

 

[AntiqueB]

Mealworms are the ticket to getting them to come, or crickets if you can find them.

I have multiple shrubs and small trees for them to hide under. If you wanted to feed them at the same, plant some blueberry bushes, or let a grape vine meander over some wire over poles. Luckily, I also have a deck that they love to go under when it rains or gets too warm.

 

[jwsmith1959]

Well...I thought I had all my boxes checked, but sometime Saturday night or Sunday morning something (probably a raccoon or maybe a skunk...but no aroma) was able to reach in through one of my chain link areas and get one of the hens by the head. It was able to escape, but the damage had been done and I found it dead in the middle of the coop Sunday morning. They have been so good about either staying under the lean-to or the plywood end of the coop, I really didn't think about the rest of the coop. There is probably 30-40 feet of the coop that is only protected by chain link.

I may have put one of the water stations in a vulnerable area. I walked the entire coop extensively after the fact and could not find where it actually happened, only know that it did.

I do have some dog-proof traps on order as my old Victors are pretty rusty....I may still stake a couple of them out and maybe luck out and catch something. I had an extensive cardiology appointment yesterday, so was only able to get some extra small chicken wire after I was done and will begin buttoning up the vulnerable areas today. I know that losing a chicken periodically is inevitable in my country setting, but was not prepared to have in happen in under three weeks. It was a little bit of a gut punch.

They have found a couple of areas along the property line where the leaves have blown up that they absolutely LOVE. I am guessing small snails, worms/etc. underneath are quite tasty for them. They have for the most part been well behaved and come when called...they can be stubborn and not respond to treats as well when their bellies are full.

I'll keep you posted.

 

[Isadora]

Sorry to hear you lost one of your girls. Always a bummer. I saw you mentioned you were closing up The vulnerable areas with small chicken wire. Anything that's sold and being marketed as chicken wire is not suitable for predators. The wire is not heavy duty enough to keep the predators from pulling it apart or chewing through it. You'll want some hardware cloth.

 

[Chuckie chicken]

Sorry to hear about that, what a drag. Hopefully you can get things tightened up.

 

[jwsmith1959]

Finally getting some rain today with possibility of severe thunderstorms so no free ranging today. I just got back from feeding, cleaning their water stations and adding fresh water. They were none too happy about not being able to go out. There was a short break in the rain, so I took my opportunity. Chased off a small Rat Snake (maybe about 2 - 2 1/2 feet. Small diameter...but he has found the coop. I ran him off pretty quickly. I have seven fake eggs in some of the nesting boxes and I don't think he was big enough to have a go at any of them. He escaped through some of the new small chicken wire I put up.

I have gotten most of the coop buttoned up (the most important parts), but still have some areas that could use an extra layer.

To Isadora...I bought the heaviest gauge chicken wire I could find from Tractor Supply. Squirrels, skunks and coons are the worst chewers and I will keep my eye out for any damage.

Here are a couple of photo's from my happy girls.




They blend in very well with the dried Sycamore leaves.

Thanks again for all y'alls help and comments.

 

[Chuckie chicken]

Finally getting some rain today with possibility of severe thunderstorms so no free ranging today. I just got back from feeding, cleaning their water stations and adding fresh water. They were none too happy about not being able to go out. There was a short break in the rain, so I took my opportunity. Chased off a small Rat Snake (maybe about 2 - 2 1/2 feet. Small diameter...but he has found the coop. I ran him off pretty quickly. I have seven fake eggs in some of the nesting boxes and I don't think he was big enough to have a go at any of them. He escaped through some of the new small chicken wire I put up.

I have gotten most of the coop buttoned up (the most important parts), but still have some areas that could use an extra layer.

To Isadora...I bought the heaviest gauge chicken wire I could find from Tractor Supply. Squirrels, skunks and coons are the worst chewers and I will keep my eye out for any damage.

Here are a couple of photo's from my happy girls.

View attachment 2642625
View attachment 2642627

They blend in very well with the dried Sycamore leaves.

Thanks again for all y'alls help and comments.

If you put the chicken wire on the inside of the run with the chain link on the outside, hopefully it would be protected from anything trying to chew through. Are the holes small enough to keep the snakes out?

 

[jwsmith1959]

No, 1 inch wire can still allow some snakes in. I cannot afford to outfit the entire coop and cover with 1/2 or 1/4 inch hardware cloth. I am generally pretty healthy, but have some vascular and neurologic issues that keep me from working for more than a few hours at a time, so I am a bit limited as to what I can do.

I love my place (about 7 acres) and will just plod along and do what I can. I will relocate snakes that I can, but coons are no Bueno.. they don't get a pass.

Chuckie Chicken ... I will try my best to put the chicken wire on the inside now, but as you know, it can be difficult to work with.