Run activities

[frogman]

What should I have in the run so my chickens don't get too bored. Or am I overthinking this?? We only let them out to free range when we can watch them so they spend alot of time in the run. It is 10ft x 6ft.

We plan on using sand on the floor but are currently placing all the lawn clippings on the floor each week. Of course food and water are there.

 

[tracecom]

What should I have in the run so my chickens don't get too bored. Or am I overthinking this?? We only let them out to free range when we can watch them so they spend alot of time in the run. It is 10ft x 6ft.

We plan on using sand on the floor but are currently placing all the lawn clippings on the floor each week. Of course food and water are there.

I put up a pole (actually a sapling with the bark on) about five inches in diameter, six feet long, and three feet off the ground across one corner of my run. The chickens like to fly up there and perch from time to time during the day. Sometimes, one will fly up when it's being annoyed by another chicken, and wants a little space. During the late afternoon, as many as five or six will get up there together and preen. The rooster loves to get up there and crow. All in all, it was worth my time and effort.

 

[TalkALittle]

How many chickens do you have and what is the height and configuration of your run? I like to have roosts in my run, preferably 2 and in different areas. It gives the birds a place to perch and preen themselves and a way to get away from each other if they need to. I also have a few bricks for them to rub their beaks on to. The waterer sits on some pavers too. I have some logs that stand on end and will put treats or scratch on top for them to find. I'll sometimes hang a cucumber from a string like a pinata to keep them busy or throw in a flake of hay and toss scratch on it. I have deep litter in the run so that keeps them busy scratching pretty much all through the day. If they didn't get to range in the yard regularly, I'd probably have a dust bath area in there for them but they seem content to use my flower beds for that. An occasional bucket of compost from the pile out back keeps them happy and busy too.

 

[frogman]

Thanks! The run is 6ft high, 8ft long and 6ft wide. 5 chickens total.

 

[TalkALittle]

Oh good. Plenty high enough to put some roosts in. One of my roosts is actually screwed into the logs I wrote about. The logs make secure attachment points and double as feeding platforms.