roo ran off

[tnchickenut]

Yeah, I don't think he "ran off" I think he was taken off. I actually never heard of a rooster running off. Far too territorial and social.

I'm sorry, but if he doesn't come back by dark he probrably is long gone. Sorry, but that is just the way it is with chickens... especially if you allow them ot freerange

 

[emys]

I would like to make it clear that I am not blaming the poster in any way for the death of his/her chicken. If you free range, predators happen. It is a risk you weigh against the benefits of free ranging.

 

[Jenski]

kasey08, do you have silkies penned with RIRs? That might prove a difficult group to manage, as I know those RIRs are much more aggressive and might pick on the silkies.

Now RIRs should be a good group to try to free range if this is something you are interested in. Free ranging has its risks, but there are plenty of folks on the forum who do this with pretty good results. How much space do they have to range in? Is it perimeter-fenced, or is it truly open land? This makes a difference, too.

Some folks who free range try things like:

- running geese or guineas with the chickens as guardians - - they are good at sounding alarms when predators appear.
- limiting the free ranging hours
- tying CDs to fishing line and hanging them around nearby trees, fences, wash lines, etc. to keep hawks away
- placing things in the free-range yard for the chickens to hide under if a hawk appears, like crates, chairs, or other things with a lid that the chickens can run underneath. Bushes work great too!
- running a large, protective rooster with the flock

Unfortunately there are fewer things that can be done to protect against dogs, wolves, coyotes, and big cats. Perimeter fencing is the best thing I can think of. Other folks might chime in with more ideas.

If you do decide to try free ranging again with newer birds, you could try it for just an hour or two at a time, and then teaching the birds to return to the pen when you call them by giving them some scratch or a treat. Extend this free range time a little bit each day until the birds are used to the process and are familiar with the coop location.

As I said, free ranging is risky, and free ranging chicken owners have to be tolerant of a certain amount of bird loss over time. However, it is a much more natural way of chicken keeping that many folks here advocate. Hope that helps. Good luck!

 

[JetBlack]

I have had chickens disappear for days and then come back. I have no idea where they go. Sometimes mine get in the shade, somewhere as the sun starts to go down. It seems like they are in the dark sooner than they think and they start to go to sleep really quick. They sort of roost somewhere they don't usually. Do any of your neighbors have hens? Chickens can hear very well and if he heard/smelled/whatevered them, he may have headed over there to try to collect the "new birds". Then when they wouldn't go, he stayed.

 

[kasey08]

no i dont think there is any chickens around. and also no i dont have the silkies and the rir together different pen for each color/kind. my yard isnt really open there is a horse pasture on 2 sides of me and all grown up around the fence the other side has a row of trees then in front of my house is our drive way so thats the only thing thats really open. is the open from the road to our driveway

 

[tnchickenut]

The driveway may be where your two legged preditor came from!

Around here people steal goats and chickens to eat... especially when the unemployment rate got just shy of 20%

 

[kayri]

I'm sorry about your roo. We do the semi- free range. I have a large electric fence around them during the day when I'm not home. In the summer time they are allright outside the electric fence because we are near the beach club parking lot with a lot of human traffic. In the winter time they are inside my veggie garden ( 60x 40) which is fenced and netted to protect them from the very aggressive hawks and foxes in the area. I don't let them out unless I am actually outside with them, from late Nov/Dec until late May. We have had a lot of predator losses.

 

[kasey08]

yeah i feel sorry for my poor hen all alone i think she might be going broody lol i wil prolly give her back to the ppl i got her from

 

[JetBlack]

Quote:
Or you could get her a new roofriend.

 

[angelique_redhead]

If you were local I'd share. I managed to get 2 roosters when I got 3 straight run RIRs. You would be welcome to one.

: Angelique