We live on a corner lot on 6 1/2 acres of wooded, wild, overgrown land. Our land is a rectangle with our house and driveway in the front corner. We have 23 chickens in a garden shed that we transformed into a coop. It's too close to the house in my opinion, considering the amount of land behind and to the side of us, but that's where the shed was and the husband wasn't going to move it. Admittedly, it's much more convenient to walk there. 
The coop's door opens in the back, facing the lovely and chicken-enticing acreage of bugs and foliage- or so I'd think. Instead, they'd much rather hang around my miniscule front yard. While I'm not too upset about a sidewalk full of poop (I don't LIKE it but we have chickens and chickens poop, so there you go), they are also now beginning to wander out of the front yard and into the road. IN the road. And sit there. Or go across the road (Why did the chicken cross.... Ah, nevermind) onto the neighbor's land. I have tolerant neighbors and we're all in tune with country living, but I hate to push my luck.
Not to mention that we have a fair amount of foot traffic. People walking their dogs, kids riding bikes, etc., etc. and I'm worried that if the chickens stay in that area, I'll have a problem with my roosters getting too defensive of "their" territory. Our neighbor recently put down his rooster for attacking his own kids, so now I'm paranoid I'll have a rooster attack and get sued by an angry parent!
I cannot for the life of me figure out why they won't forage behind the house where it has everything a chicken could possibly want. But the road? Seriously? What is in the road that is so enticing? I don't feed them anywhere but in the coop. They free range all day and always put themselves to bed at dusk. They aren't laying yet (not old enough, they are about 3 months old).
I have thought about putting up a fence just to try and funnel them in that direction, but I know how well chickens can cross a fence. I was hoping someone might have an idea on how I can entice them to explore the great beyond rather than the stupid road. Would it help if I put their food out there instead of in the coop? Will anything help? lol.
The coop's door opens in the back, facing the lovely and chicken-enticing acreage of bugs and foliage- or so I'd think. Instead, they'd much rather hang around my miniscule front yard. While I'm not too upset about a sidewalk full of poop (I don't LIKE it but we have chickens and chickens poop, so there you go), they are also now beginning to wander out of the front yard and into the road. IN the road. And sit there. Or go across the road (Why did the chicken cross.... Ah, nevermind) onto the neighbor's land. I have tolerant neighbors and we're all in tune with country living, but I hate to push my luck.
Not to mention that we have a fair amount of foot traffic. People walking their dogs, kids riding bikes, etc., etc. and I'm worried that if the chickens stay in that area, I'll have a problem with my roosters getting too defensive of "their" territory. Our neighbor recently put down his rooster for attacking his own kids, so now I'm paranoid I'll have a rooster attack and get sued by an angry parent!
I cannot for the life of me figure out why they won't forage behind the house where it has everything a chicken could possibly want. But the road? Seriously? What is in the road that is so enticing? I don't feed them anywhere but in the coop. They free range all day and always put themselves to bed at dusk. They aren't laying yet (not old enough, they are about 3 months old).
I have thought about putting up a fence just to try and funnel them in that direction, but I know how well chickens can cross a fence. I was hoping someone might have an idea on how I can entice them to explore the great beyond rather than the stupid road. Would it help if I put their food out there instead of in the coop? Will anything help? lol.
