chameleon
Chirping
Hi, I'm looking for some advice on managing a fully free range flock.
I rescued a broody hen that was abandoned by my neighbour. I built her a tractor and let her hatch and raise her chicks in the safety of the tractor until they were 4 weeks old. Before that she had been free and wild for at least 3 years with just 1 rooster for company, and kept losing all her chicks to predators within a day or two of hatching. Her rooster was killed by the neighbour's dog just before she went broody. Anyway, because she was wild for so long, she really hates being confined, and by the time the chicks were 4 weeks old they were all getting very restless, so I secured a section of my yard for them and let them free range during the day, just locking them in the tractor at night. They are very good fliers and I cant keep them in the yard though, so they range outside the yard too.
The chicks are now almost 7 weeks old and last night she took them up into the tree she used to sleep in before she went broody. They really are infinitely happier free range so I don't have the heart to confine them. My tractor is big enough for three chickens to live quite comfortably, as my original plan was to keep two of her daughters to keep her company and sell the rest. With them fully free range I'm rethinking my whole plan.
I have the mother hen and 9 chicks. I am 99% certain I have 4 cockerels and 5 pullets. The hen is an NN bantam and the father is our landlord's GLW, standard size. He doesn't range with them, he has his own flock in a completey seperate area of the property. But after her roo died the hen went over to that side a few times probably looking for company. Sorry for the long history, but the background might be important to the final management plan.
My questions:
Which ones should I keep?
As I mentioned, I wanted to keep 2 of her daughters for company. But because they're free ranging full time now space is no longer an issue and there's the issue of safety in numbers to be considered. So for now I think I should keep the mother, all 5 pullets and one of the cockerels. Other options could be to keep all of them, a smaller number, or pullets only. Any recommendations?
How do I keep track of the eggs?
Is there a way to ecourage them to lay in a specific area or am I doomed to a daily treasure hunt?
The mother is an incorrigible broody and her daughters will probably be the same, so I want to be able to manage the eggs so that I don't end up with endless numbers of chicks to take care of. And I need the eggs to eat. She lays huge eggs for her size, they're the same as medium store bought eggs, and as the father of her chicks was a standard GLW, her daughters eggs will be even bigger, so they are more than good enough for eating. Selling all the cockerels could solve the issue of too many chicks, but I would like to have the option to increase the flock or replace lost birds when necessary. The hen was alone for so long that she does not integrate with other birds at all unless she's raised them herself.
How do I keep them relatively safe and healthy?
Both parents have survived virtually wild with little to no help from people so they are pretty tough, disease resistant and weather hardy in our climate. The mother survived for a very long time on her own so knows how to find shelter in bad weather and from predators and I'm sure she'll teach all of that to her babies. I want to keep them close though so that I can keep an eye on them and intervene/help when necessary. The mom has learned that I am here to help her and that my yard is a safe zone, so she is not wondering too far for now. Will keeping a steady supply of fresh food and water be sufficient to keep her around?
Any advice will be greatly appreciated, on the questions I've asked and anything else I haven't thought of.
I rescued a broody hen that was abandoned by my neighbour. I built her a tractor and let her hatch and raise her chicks in the safety of the tractor until they were 4 weeks old. Before that she had been free and wild for at least 3 years with just 1 rooster for company, and kept losing all her chicks to predators within a day or two of hatching. Her rooster was killed by the neighbour's dog just before she went broody. Anyway, because she was wild for so long, she really hates being confined, and by the time the chicks were 4 weeks old they were all getting very restless, so I secured a section of my yard for them and let them free range during the day, just locking them in the tractor at night. They are very good fliers and I cant keep them in the yard though, so they range outside the yard too.
The chicks are now almost 7 weeks old and last night she took them up into the tree she used to sleep in before she went broody. They really are infinitely happier free range so I don't have the heart to confine them. My tractor is big enough for three chickens to live quite comfortably, as my original plan was to keep two of her daughters to keep her company and sell the rest. With them fully free range I'm rethinking my whole plan.
I have the mother hen and 9 chicks. I am 99% certain I have 4 cockerels and 5 pullets. The hen is an NN bantam and the father is our landlord's GLW, standard size. He doesn't range with them, he has his own flock in a completey seperate area of the property. But after her roo died the hen went over to that side a few times probably looking for company. Sorry for the long history, but the background might be important to the final management plan.
My questions:
Which ones should I keep?
As I mentioned, I wanted to keep 2 of her daughters for company. But because they're free ranging full time now space is no longer an issue and there's the issue of safety in numbers to be considered. So for now I think I should keep the mother, all 5 pullets and one of the cockerels. Other options could be to keep all of them, a smaller number, or pullets only. Any recommendations?
How do I keep track of the eggs?
Is there a way to ecourage them to lay in a specific area or am I doomed to a daily treasure hunt?
How do I keep them relatively safe and healthy?
Both parents have survived virtually wild with little to no help from people so they are pretty tough, disease resistant and weather hardy in our climate. The mother survived for a very long time on her own so knows how to find shelter in bad weather and from predators and I'm sure she'll teach all of that to her babies. I want to keep them close though so that I can keep an eye on them and intervene/help when necessary. The mom has learned that I am here to help her and that my yard is a safe zone, so she is not wondering too far for now. Will keeping a steady supply of fresh food and water be sufficient to keep her around?
Any advice will be greatly appreciated, on the questions I've asked and anything else I haven't thought of.
Considering that every other clutch she hatched on her own never made it past day 2, I'm happy that I've given them a fighting chance and also provided her with a flock of her own so she isn't lonely anymore. She has also learned that I keep them fed and safe so she doesn't wonder as far as she used to, and they come knocking on my window whenever the feeder needs refilling 
I see daily treasure hunts in my future. Oh well, it'll give my toddler some fun exercise outdoors 
There are 2 with very interesting colours that I'm dying to see how they'll turn out. The mom is a NN bantam with wild type colouring and the father is a very handsome standard GLW. I'll see if I can get some pics later.
