No fence, will they run off?

[OhZark Biddies]

... I am afraid they will wander off and not come back...

Welcome to BYC!

I suspect they will not wander off, but they will get killed off.

Read through some of the posts on this forum:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/predators-and-pests.13/

And you will find stories daily of people who loose chickens, and often entire flocks each day.

I would encourage you to figure out some sort of fence for the sake of your chicken's safety.

 

[jvls1942]

when I go into the coop I holler loud. I talk loud, I have no such thing as a flighty chicken
I don't bother coaxing them into the coop.
they learn that all on their own.
BTW, not all dogs are predatory.
both of my maremma LGD ignore all the assorted birds I have. there is no such thing as a stray dog coming after my chickens.. my dogs won't allow it..
I have not closed the chicken coop at night for 8 years. never had a chicken killed in that coop since I built it, over 45 years ago
of course, before the dogs , I did lose lots of chickens outside of the coop..
no four legged critter successfully ventures into our yard without being noticed, even before they get to the yard.
.......jiminwisc......

 

[Northern.Ontario]

Hi, I have chickens that are both 2.5 months and 3 weeks old.

Occasionally I let them out but I stay right with them because they typically scatter into their own groups. Having 36 chickens doesn't make it any easier. I am afraid they will wander off and not come back. They have went into the neighbor's fence but ran right back when the dog went after them.. Any experience or advice?

Get electric poultry fencing or they will be killed by predators!!!

 

[MissChick@dee]

Dogs are about THE best protection if trained or raised with chickens. Dogs are also the number one killer of chickens. I have fencing for mine. I know that not everyone’s situation is the same. Mine could fly over (6’) IF they wanted. They don’t I believe because they know they are safe and it’s Home. Everybody keeps their chickens differently. I think it’s only a matter of time before you’ll be forced to do something. Why not start now before you loose your flock. Sometimes we just have to learn the hard way....

 

[OhZark Biddies]

...
of course, before the dogs , I did lose lots of chickens outside of the coop..
no four legged critter successfully ventures into our yard without being noticed, even before they get to the yard.

That's a good point, if there is a dog to protect them, then the fence might not be needed, but since the OP didn't mention a dog of her own...I did look at her intro post, and saw mention of a Rotweiler that keeps an eye on the chickens.

I will add that as a kid we had dogs that kept the critters away, but they weren't sheppard type breeds, so one day we came home from church to yard full of dead chickens... the dogs had gone off for their own adventure and left the chickens unattended.

I mention this just to point out that while many dogs will keep chicken killers away, Livestock Guaridian Dogs and other sheppard type breeds are probably better suited to the task... we later had a blue healer (aka Australian cattle dog) that was raised around our chickens from a pup, and she would obsess over them and even scatter the flock when a hawk would fly over.

Other posts I've read on this site mention that chickens got killed with the family dog was inside for a bit, and something snuck in killed the chickens.

So all food for thought...

 

[Malikshahzad]

Hi, I have chickens that are both 2.5 months and 3 weeks old.

Occasionally I let them out but I stay right with them because they typically scatter into their own groups. Having 36 chickens doesn't make it any easier. I am afraid they will wander off and not come back. They have went into the neighbor's fence but ran right back when the dog went after them.. Any experience or advice?

I do not kn

 

[Malikshahzad]

I do not kn

I do not know about ur question but I ask to u one question because I m new in Silkie baby chicks one of my baby chick backward and sitting position during drink water ,?

 

[Northern.Ontario]

The dog can't be on watch 24/7. Predators are bold and will sometimes learn the schedule of your dog, then snatch a chicken when the dog is not around.

 

[MissChick@dee]

Too bad that everything loves to eat chickens (me too). A multi-layer of defense seems appropriate starting with the coop on up.
It’s a constant battle. Since the start of time predator & pray. I wish chickens tasted like OKRA! Nobody likes OKRA!!

 

[jvls1942]

The dog can't be on watch 24/7. Predators are bold and will sometimes learn the schedule of your dog, then snatch a chicken when the dog is not around.

not 24/7 ?? I defy any thing or any one to come onto my property at any time, day or night..
You do not know this breed of dog with a statement like that..