Prison?

[Jcmaidens]

I have a small flock 6 hens and for the last 6 years I have free ranged them . They go in the neighbors yard I give the neighbors eggs I thought it was a good arrangement and no one has ever said anything until the other day. So now my girls r stuck in the run . Financially I am unable to increase my 18’ x 6 ft run but I feel awful for locking them up. Is there anyone else out there who used to free range and have been forced to lock them up?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Ours have to be locked up when we go on trips for a few weeks. They're eager to leave but it won't kill them

 

[DobieLover]

I have a small flock 6 hens and for the last 6 years I have free ranged them . They go in the neighbors yard I give the neighbors eggs I thought it was a good arrangement and no one has ever said anything until the other day. So now my girls r stuck in the run . Financially I am unable to increase my 18’ x 6 ft run but I feel awful for locking them up. Is there anyone else out there who used to free range and have been forced to lock them up?

Yes. But I lock them up in a 1/3 acre pen surrounded by poultry netting powered with a 10,000 volt charger. They also have a covered, predator proof run for winter use, a hang out for when it's raining and loitering in the morning while they wait for me to let them out.

 

[Acre4Me]

Curious, where-in general- are you located? Climate can have some impact on space, etc.


my chickens live in their run, but it is covered and mostly protected from the worst winds. They love to be let out, usually in the fall and winter as the garden winds down, or early spring. They have roosts, and visual disruptions in the run, so they can get away from each other if needed. There are multiple water and feed spots, so bullying is minimal to nonexistent (still pecking order of course).

In the end, it is always the responsibility of the owner of the livestock or pets to contain/control their animals. So, assuming it was ok for your animals to frolic outside of your property was a mistake. However, now you know. Some of our chickens figured out how to fly out of our run, and sometimes strayed to neighbors property. While they didn’t mind the first few times it happened, we knew we needed to contain the birds, otherwise it would become an issue. So, we erected inexpensive bird netting several feet above the fence and that has kept them inside the run.

good luck.

 

[Ridgerunner]

In two different dog attacks where someone dropped off dogs in the country I lost 13 chickens and I shot two dogs. I did not enjoy any of that, losing the chickens or shooting the dogs. It wasn't their fault, it was the idiot owners that abandoned them in the country. That was several years ago and I'm still mad about it. So I got electric netting to protect them.

What are your options? Lock them up in that run, spend money you don't have to give them a bigger run, or get rid of your chickens. They won't like being locked up but they will still have a much better life than many chickens.

 

[Xaphus]

I started off free ranging, same as you. But after too many jumping of the fence and finding them crossing the road, I decided to keep them locked up, except for a few times a day where I let them free range with supervision. They’ve actually grown used to “we go out and forage” for a bit, “we go back to our pen.” Took a couple of weeks, but it’s pretty easy now to get them to come back when I need to get back to work (show them my closed fist and some chicken calls and they know I have a treat).

also, try letting them out near sunset, mine will still roam but don’t seem as interested in straying too far from then coop. I assume this is because it’s getting late and they know it’s a safe spot.

I use a dried up sunflower stem to herd them away from the fence. It’s easier than chasing them, just a couple of taps on the ground behind them and they move away calmly.

 

[Suzz]

Chicken are crazy I have 20 acres for them to roam on a limted basis and where do they end up? in the middle of our gravelly dirt road which luckily doesn’t get much traffic or sitting in our 3 car garage silly silly chickens

 

[yakitori]

You might feel awful, but they will get used to it. I used to let my 5 pullets free range until they got too comfortable and started going into the neighbor’s yard. That was when I decided they needed to stay in the run for the majority of the day, and free range about an hour before sunset

It didn’t take too long before they got used to the new routine. Now they’re comfortable and happy in their 100sqft run and will only start fence surfing in the late afternoons because they know that it’s nearing the time I let them out for free ranging.

 

[Suzz]

Chicken are crazy I have 20 acres for them to roam on a limted basis and where do they end up? in the middle of our gravelly dirt road which luckily doesn’t get much traffic or sitting in our 3 car garage silly silly chickens

My chickens actually like their run quite alot I guess they feel safe there they often end up in it even when they are free ranging

 

[Acre4Me]

My chickens actually like their run quite alot I guess they feel safe there they often end up in it even when they are free ranging

Mine will too! I’ve left the gate open for a couple of hours while I worked on garden/outdoor things back and forth. Within 10 min, a few are back inside, after 30 most are back in. Within the couple hours some go back and forth, but many go back in and stay!