Ruining lawn!

[chickarita]

Last fall, the girls suddenly became interested in scratching up parts of our lawn to the dirt. This was a new behavior and one my husband is not loving. How do I stop this habit? There are only 6 of them on about 1/4 acre so they aren't cramped. I didn't see any new bugs. If they won't stop I'll have to pen them.
Any ideas?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

That is what chickens do, you can't change a basic behavior. Sounds like it's time to build a run.

 

[ccrow]

LOL, this is how I got my raised garden bed.

In my case, I did see grubs that they were getting, but yeah, they pretty much destroyed that part of the lawn. I told DH, well, since the chickens dug that all up for us already, let's put in a raised bed! But I did have to put some fencing not only to keep them out of the garden, but to keep them from continuing their excavations next to it. And this year they are back at it... I use plastic mesh fence that I got from Lowes; it's I think 5 feet tall but I cut it in half and set it in place with bamboo stakes threaded through the mesh. They are not very determined and don't jump over it. It doesn't look very pretty but neither does the lunar landscape the chickens would produce.

 

[azygous]

Depending on how large a grass plot you have, laying down chicken wire allows the chickens to eat the grass while keeping them from digging up the roots.

Another option is to re-seed your lawn with bunch grass varieties. These grasses have root systems that grow deep into the soil, unlike sod grasses that spread roots laterally and very shallow. Once established, chickens are unable to dig up and kill these bunch grasses. They also have the advantage of being drought resistant, so they require far less water to maintain.

The option most people choose is to build a run, confining the chickens to that one area so that they don't molest your carefully nurtured gardens and grass areas.

 

[aart]

That is what chickens do, you can't change a basic behavior. Sounds like it's time to build a run.

Ditto Dat!!^^^
Either fence them in or fence them out.....or give them free range (reign) and accept the consequences.

 

[User395221]

Either fence them in or fence them out.....

If you want lawn, those are the only options, IMHO