Run space requirements for HAPPY hens

[2hotchicks]

Reading these replies is a good reality check. Nope, not cannibalizing each other or beating each other up, and since "the incident", haven't lost any to predators.

I had planted lots of grass, and despite trying to keep it up, not a shred is left. I love the idea of rotating closed off growing areas - I'll definitely do that. Also love the idea of buying some live crickets. (They got a mouse the other day - what a chase scene - I cannot believe what serious hunters they are!)

More creative on the enrichment side sounds like the way to go. When it finally starts raining we'll start getting worms - that'll be fun. I do spend time with them daily, and good solid time on weekends, but I'm not much more creative than scratch or some hunks of alfalfa hay (from the horses) - can do better here.

Happy chickens are important to me, as I have them as pets / sanity keepers to help balance out a hectic high tech life.

Mine love the live crickets!

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

You guys should post pics! It helps us get an idea for expansions!

 

[Manhen]

I have 8-15 chickens in a run about 800sqft (40'x25') with about an 8x5 coop. There's even plants able to grow there ever, though usually not. That's plenty of space per bird, even at peak capacity it's around 70sqft/bird in the run. I've got a lot of "stuff" in there, branches, cinder blocks, a couple shelters, etc. They're very content, though they will escape into the yard at any time. And from the yard they'll escape into the great yonder if a gate gets open. So take that how you will.

How high is your run fence? Escapes are flyovers?
Pics?

 

[Aunt Angus]

I don't have unlimited space, but I have more room than urbanites. I used to free range on about an acre. But hawks.... So now my birds have about 35 sq ft per bird, and I feel like they're cramped! But they seem happy. They have lots of ramps and roosts and even a tree in there. I still let them out every day to roam the fenced yard.

I recently added to it, too. It seemed huge when I first opened it up. Now I feel like I need to expand it yet again!

 

[Aunt Angus]

….There IS a thread on "Chicken Math". According to this theory you do need to expand it again.

Yes, I do! I am planning on adding 3 more next spring - LOL! I don't yet have all the yard candy breeds I want. Hahahahaha!

 

[Manhen]

Yes, I do! I am planning on adding 3 more next spring - LOL! I don't yet have all the yard candy breeds I want. Hahahahaha!

The Chickspouse said I had to walk the fence this morning because she heard something awful last night. I should have made the run smaller, long walk. Kept going awhile beyond.

Bye the way, upon walking out early, a coyote howl rang out plaintively a few times.

 

[Duckfarmer1]

I have a 19x8 ft run, but every day at 6:00 AM, the door opens to their fenced area. The fence has the option to be electric, but we haven't had an escaping or predator problem yet, so why put the chickens through electrocution? Their fence goes around I'm gonna say... 60x40 feet? (I'm not very good at estimating length.) BUT... we let them free range almost every day. We have 10 acres but 4 of them are woods. The chickens use around 4 acres of plains most of the time.
We have 12-oh wait, 11 chickens.

We don’t let the adult chickens free range because they are super mean to the ducks..and ducks come first here...lol..but the young ones free range

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

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I don't have a very good picture of the whole pen because, well, it's a whole pen ya know? I usually take closeups of my chickens instead. It's the whole back 25' of my lawn which is 40' across. In the second picture it meets with the rabbit hutch where the blue tarps are hanging. The first picture is old, I've since added a lot of structures for hiding, etc.
The fence has a 6' solid wood privacy fence around the outside of the whole lawn, that is 3 of the walls. The fourth wall "opens" into the rest of the lawn. It's made of a tree, some T posts, the coop, a rabbit hutch, all with a sturdyish 1/2" plastic deer netting strung between. Sometimes the netting gets torn or a zip tie pops etc and the chickens may slip into the lawn that way, and it is extra hard to keep the fence functional over the winter. Usually they have free run of the lawn in the winter because the fencing collapses from snow weight. Flyovers are rare and when we get them I clip wings. The deer netting is 4'-5' tall and buried 1' into the ground to prevent digouts. The wood fence has rocks and logs along the bottom to prevent digging out.
The bottom of the pen is covered with 1' of wood chips to encourage digging and dusting. I get them for free from a tree company.

I see... yah, deer netting is a bit of a pain for sure!

 

[munchkinlover]

Reading these replies is a good reality check. Nope, not cannibalizing each other or beating each other up, and since "the incident", haven't lost any to predators.

I had planted lots of grass, and despite trying to keep it up, not a shred is left. I love the idea of rotating closed off growing areas - I'll definitely do that. Also love the idea of buying some live crickets. (They got a mouse the other day - what a chase scene - I cannot believe what serious hunters they are!)

More creative on the enrichment side sounds like the way to go. When it finally starts raining we'll start getting worms - that'll be fun. I do spend time with them daily, and good solid time on weekends, but I'm not much more creative than scratch or some hunks of alfalfa hay (from the horses) - can do better here.

Happy chickens are important to me, as I have them as pets / sanity keepers to help balance out a hectic high tech life.

I try to come up with fun stuff for my birds and they LOVE to pick to get into the center of a pumpkin. I cut some of the skin off in a few places around the thing and hang it in their run with a string. It takes a bit for them to break into the center, but when they do.....they clean it out and then some. A nice and tasty diversion.

 

[Kellow1]

Flying predators is why I spent the money on a predator-proof run, covered with wire, so that my birds are protected. I still allow the birds to free-range during the day but I have plenty of bushes/trees in the yard for them to hide under! I have lost two birds (over a very short time) during the day to something, still to be determined, a fox is first suspect! I live in a small town in central Illinois so can't be sure what we have here!