Predators and free ranging

[Kwarner12]

Hey all. Recently my husband has been more involved in the chickens than he claimed he wanted to be. He not only is planning a larger coop/run so we can get a few more chickens but he made a comment the other day after discovering we have a rooster in the flock (they're all still young, 3 months) He has always told me we would have to get rid of any roosters, (my neighbors don't want me to keep him either) but My husband brought up free ranging the chickens, and keeping the rooster. I originally wanted to free range, but I'm worried about predators. We have a neighbor with an out of control dog who routinely tries to attack us in our own yard (they have no fence, no invisible fence and do not keep their dog on a leash) She has attacked outdoor cats in the area. Not to mention, we live in an area that is densely wooded and we have a large population of Raccoons, Coyotes, Foxes, hawks, owls... There was even reports of a Black bear seen in the area a few years ago, but I've never seen one. You name it.. We have it.
Any advice for keeping the small flock safe from predators if I do decided to free range? I currently have 6 chickens, 5 hens and 1 rooster. (I already have dogs, but they're not trained guardian dogs.)

 

[abraga]

I think ur biggest challenge is going to be the neighbors dog. If it goes after cats..probly will go after chickens. There is a fencing system u can get that is electric netting type. It comes in green and would blend in to the background..bout 3/4 ft. It us pre assembled with stakes. U could try putting it between ur property line and the neighbor. If the dog hits if once or twice..may work to deter him. Also, feed/water your birds at the coop so they must always come back for feed/water. I free range my birds..but they stay pretty close since I keep food/water inside the coup.and I have them trained to go inside every night for lockdown. Unfortunately..u will lose birds to predation. Those electric netting fences work decent to deter most ground predators. I have had trouble w one neighbors dog...despite living on 29ac...i keep a gun handy...if u see him on my place..i holler at it and shoot in the air at the same time. Works well...but I would not hesitate to shoot it. I put a lot into my chickens...and I will not tolerate an irresponsible neighbor that can't do the right thing and control thier dog. It's just plain ignorant to let your dog destroy other people's animals. I have..n the past at a different location had to get animal control involved in forcing a neighbor to be " responsible" after his chow/ pit mix came onto my place chasing/killing my animals. Got really ugly..but I had small children and it was a safety issue. People DO NOT have the right to destroy your peace/tranquillity on your land..PERIOD!

 

[GardenTillers44]

We are in a remote area with large tracts of state forest around us and every predator Southern Ohio has to offer. We tried free ranging at first and soon realized we were just providing take-out or dine-in service to the locals. By far the worst problem was the feral dogs which scare us (and kill more chickens) more than any other wild animal. We finally decided to use the Premier 1 Poultry Mesh to surround the chickens, garden and orchard. It wasn't cheap, but we now have chicken, eggs and produce for us and not as wildlife food. The fence works well for the dogs, foxes, coons, skunks, possums and so far, mink. We have had the fence up almost two years and have not lost a chicken to a predator since, despite my thoughts that a coyote or bobcat could probably jump the 4' if they wanted to. I know deer could jump it, but never have to our knowledge, but just in case, we have a high fence inner perimeter around the garden which we open up for the chickens at the end of the season. I have seen small rabbits and chipmunks jump through the lower strands and go through, so we just got some extra wire to add a couple strands to combat this. The thing we like about the poultry mesh is that we can move it to provide fresh grazing areas for the chickens from time to time and let the old area recover. We have a smaller 100' perimeter around a few apple trees on the other side of the clearing that doubles as our quarantine area/sick bay for the chickens.

This morning at dawn we heard a pack of coyotes yipping close to the house and watched 5 of them trot through the yard past the coop and into the woods. They run off or kill the feral dogs and foxes, and we feel safer around coyotes than feral dogs, but may not be the best trade-off for the chickens, as I know the fence works on the dogs. Our latest addition has been 2 roos to go with the 16 hens. The roos are 6 months old now, get along with us and themselves so far, and have been great sentrys to warn off and herd the girls into the covered run and coop at the first sign of touble. I have no doubt they would defend the girls and buy time for them to get into a safer position.

 

[Howard E]

What Mary said........X10.

Not sure if it will work for you or anyone else, but I can share what I have put in place, and I have all manner of varmints.....foxes and coyotes.......and an abundance of neighbors dogs. I've never lost a bird to any type of predator.

This electric fence:



I know of at least 3 dogs that have tangled with it and they won't go near it again. If you are having trouble with your neighbor's dog coming on to your property, put one of these up. No fuss, and no drama with the neighbor or his dog. Hard to believe, but it will also keep in the birds.

As a permanent fence, it has to be maintained by keeping grass and vegetation away from it to keep it from grounding out, but also to establish a visible reminder of where the fence is for both the birds and predators. A fence of poultry netting is probably more effective, but maintenance issues are a bigger problem and they cost significantly more. For small areas, it's doable. For larger areas approaching an acre or more, the wire fence is far less expensive.

But if you want to allow your birds to safely roam about your property, this is what I'd recommend.

 

[Folly's place]

I can't imagine living in fear of a neighbor's free ranging dog who threatens me, much less my animals! Animal Control would be involved, and then the dog would be gone. For the chickens; free ranging is always a risk, but the birds so enjoy their time outside, I think it's worth it. Usually. "Good fencing makes good neighbors" is totally true!!! Electrified poultry netting works for most land predators, or multiple strands of electric tape, with a very good charger.
I do like having roosters in my flock, but only keep individuals who are polite to people! Mary

 

[KentuckyRooster]

You need to train those dogs and make use of them. I never felt comfortable ranging my birds until I started using the dog.

I use a heeler to protect my flock. She isn't out all the time but the time she is out is plenty to keep even airborne predators far far away. They don't want to tangle with her. Being a livestock breed as soon as she was shown not to chase them, she adopted them as her charges in place of cattle and guards them furiously. She even knows what chickens and ducks belong to us and which do not. If wild ducks come into the yard she will chase them away.

I also use her to herd the birds if I need to bring them in during the day for some reason. Heelers are bred to work cattle on ranches and it runs in their blood to do this sort of thing, so even though they are chickens and ducks, she loves what she does and takes it very seriously.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Does anyone clip their chickens wings when free ranging or is it better not to so that they can get away from predators by flying into a tree

I can't think of a reason why you'd want to clip their wings if you're truly free ranging them.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

Does anyone clip their chickens wings when free ranging or is it better not to so that they can get away from predators by flying into a tree

If it's a heavier chicken they won't be able to necessarily "fly" away...but full wings will give it an advantage.

We have guinea fowl and I trimmed their wings so they couldn't roost on the joists of the coop over my head last winter. We've have a predator, very confident it's a fox...slowly picking away at the guineas the as they venture farther away away from the yard. It appears the guineas that have been taken have been the ones with trimmed wings.

We have poultry netting on hand for such an event, this is our first time using it. The remaining guineas will occasionally fly out of the fence. But then they will also fly back into the fence if something was to rush at them. We will keep the fence up until the foxes have been taken care of. I may keep it after as well but the flock will be allowed to free range again.

The red dot is where the last guinea was taken from. I was in the yard at the time. Foxes are very brazen.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Does anyone clip their chickens wings when free ranging or is it better not to so that they can get away from predators by flying into a tree

Clipping a chickens' primary flight feathers and free ranging are in no way the same thing. You can give your chickens free and unfettered access to 25 or more acres and legitimately claim that you are raising your birds free range or you can clip their wings, in which case you have removed one of the three dimensions that free range chickens enjoy.

 

[twilightgecko]

i free range my chickens.. i live in the country on 6 acres of woods.. and while i have seen foxes and critters all over my property, even photographed foxes walking right by the coop.. the only "predator" i've had trouble with is a neighbours dog.. a close call with a hawk once.. but even in penned up enclosures, other predators make it in.. and then ive seen hens trapped inside with it..

as for having your own dogs, as long as they don't chase your own chickens, they work great at keeping foxes and critters away..

my chickens free range and are excellent for eating ticks, spiders, bugs..