Scared to let my girls free range

FL_chick

Chirping
May 12, 2021
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I have 6 chicks that are about 9 weeks old now and I've been going back and forth on letting them free range. If I did do it they'd only be let out for a little bit and under my watchful eye. All that said, we live in the woods and there are a few hawks near us. I've never seen them with anything big in their claws, but I'm terrified one will scoop up one of my girls if I let them out. Would love to hear others experience or advice! Do I keep them in their run until I can set up a completely covered area for them to roam?? Or let them wander under a watchful eye?? Help!
 
I also live in the woods with many predators, including a red tail hawk who does frequent flyovers. That hawk has killed a few of my free-range hens over the years, but Only when my lgd's were not visibly present. I decided that hawk likely had a close encounter with a (coyote), & has no desire to risk its life when my dogs are present.

Having said that, others have said hawks attacked their hens when they AND a dog were only a few feet away. Also, is your chick's potential free-ranging area securely fenced? If not, a fox or other predator is capable of rushing in and grabbing a bird before you have time to react. Predators are usually very stealthy; they watch closely for several days before they make their move. (An exception would be if the predator was literally starving). But a predator may be watching even if u dont know it is there.

It is always a risk to let chickens free-range, no matter their age or the precautions you take. 9 week chicks are still pretty small, so even more vulnerable. Since you are so concerned about letting them out, & since the chicks are so young & dont know what they are missing out on, my advice is at least wait until you feel more comfortable with the idea. Have fun with your chicks!
 
Warning; graphic image below.
I have 6 chicks that are about 9 weeks old now and I've been going back and forth on letting them free range.
Do I keep them in their run until I can set up a completely covered area for them to roam?? Or let them wander under a watchful eye??
I don't let my pullets free range till all are laying in the nests, about 6 months old.

I lost one to a Coopers Hawk last March. She was 10 months old.
A hawk can kill nearly instantaneously with their talons.
They pluck the feathers and eat where they kill if they can't carry.

I was doing laundry in the basement when a pullet ran to hide in the cat house attached to a basement window.
I quickly ran outside towards the chicken coops and a hawk flew out of the bushes.
I found the pullet dead under the bush.
20210310_182144_resized.jpg

The hawk started to pluck feathers but had not begun to eat.

The pullets are kept in a covered pen and protected from hawks so had no fear of them.
The remaining 4 now hide under the raised coop when they see a hawk.
They now know hawks are dangerous.

I've had a Coopers Hawk fly over my head (felt the breeze) when I was walking with my Barred Rock pullets and Golden Comet hen a couple of years ago.
20200422_185126_resized.jpg

They are not afraid of people. GC
 
Warning; graphic image below.


I don't let my pullets free range till all are laying in the nests, about 6 months old.

I lost one to a Coopers Hawk last March. She was 10 months old.
A hawk can kill nearly instantaneously with their talons.
They pluck the feathers and eat where they kill if they can't carry.

I was doing laundry in the basement when a pullet ran to hide in the cat house attached to a basement window.
I quickly ran outside towards the chicken coops and a hawk flew out of the bushes.
I found the pullet dead under the bush.View attachment 2724248
The hawk started to pluck feathers but had not begun to eat.

The pullets are kept in a covered pen and protected from hawks so had no fear of them.
The remaining 4 now hide under the raised coop when they see a hawk.
They now know hawks are dangerous.

I've had a Coopers Hawk fly over my head (felt the breeze) when I was walking with my Barred Rock pullets and Golden Comet hen a couple of years ago.View attachment 2724260
They are not afraid of people. GC
Oh I'm so sorry for the loss of one of your girls! That's awful! I'll keep them closed up for now. They run to the corner of their coop/run and hide when they hear one, so there's some awareness, but I'd be crushed if something were to happen. Thanks for the advice!
 
I also live in the woods with many predators, including a red tail hawk who does frequent flyovers. That hawk has killed a few of my free-range hens over the years, but Only when my lgd's were not visibly present. I decided that hawk likely had a close encounter with a (coyote), & has no desire to risk its life when my dogs are present.

Having said that, others have said hawks attacked their hens when they AND a dog were only a few feet away. Also, is your chick's potential free-ranging area securely fenced? If not, a fox or other predator is capable of rushing in and grabbing a bird before you have time to react. Predators are usually very stealthy; they watch closely for several days before they make their move. (An exception would be if the predator was literally starving). But a predator may be watching even if u dont know it is there.

It is always a risk to let chickens free-range, no matter their age or the precautions you take. 9 week chicks are still pretty small, so even more vulnerable. Since you are so concerned about letting them out, & since the chicks are so young & dont know what they are missing out on, my advice is at least wait until you feel more comfortable with the idea. Have fun with your chicks!
Ugh, I'm so sorry! I'm sure it's tough every time it happened. đź’—

Their free-range area isn't fenced yet, but it's something we've been planning (their coop took forever to build, but was worth it as that thing is like Fort Knox!) and will be our next project. I never even thought about predators hanging out just out of eyesight just waiting for their opportunity - that's terrifying!

I'll definitely be keeping them in their run and coop where it's safe - at least until we can get another separate, secure area. My heart would break if anything happened to them; I didn't realize how much I'd love them or how quickly they'd steal my heart! Thanks so much for your advice!
 
I'm still shocked every time my dogs alert to a lurking predator i had no clue was nearby. (Opossums, raccoons, fox, snakes, etc. They alert to everything else too, including rabbits, squirrels, armadillos, etc. ) i built fort knox coops too, which nothing has ever breached. But since i have 3 separate free-roaming flocks, the lgds are essential to keeping the sweet hens safe!
 
We are rural on a dead end road. A couple of times I have been right next to a bird when a hawk came out of nowhere. Once was in our blueberries. One of my Rhode Island White hens followed me and it happened so fast I didn't have time to react. The hawk killed her but didn't take her. Another time I was standing next to a small temporary pen I had some chicks in and again a hawk came out of nowhere and grabbed a chick. It too happened so fast I didn't have time to react and could only watch the hawk fly off with my chick. I don't free range anymore due to losses from predators in the past. For me it was lessons learned the hard way so now the birds all have nice large covered pens with electric wires around the coops and the pens. Good luck...
 
Thank you @FL_chick and all who responded to this post! I am a new flock keeper currently weighing pros/cons of when & how to start free ranging my pet chickens. I am reading all the free range advice I can find on BYC!

Condolences to those who have lost chickens to predators. Seems it is the main hazard of backyard chicken keeping, but that certainly doesn't take away the hurt of losing a chicken. Your insights & advice are appreciated and utilized by others. Thank you!
 
Ugh, I'm so sorry! I'm sure it's tough every time it happened. đź’—

Their free-range area isn't fenced yet, but it's something we've been planning (their coop took forever to build, but was worth it as that thing is like Fort Knox!) and will be our next project. I never even thought about predators hanging out just out of eyesight just waiting for their opportunity - that's terrifying!

I'll definitely be keeping them in their run and coop where it's safe - at least until we can get another separate, secure area. My heart would break if anything happened to them; I didn't realize how much I'd love them or how quickly they'd steal my heart! Thanks so much for your advice!
I live in FL, in the woods, and have integrated 4 week old chicks into my adult flock, where they free range a potential 4.5 acres +/- protected by electric fencing, on a property of about 30 acres left most entirely wild. We've take a loss or three each year - avian predators primarily, but my fences was defeated once after a storm dropped a tree into some of the lines, shorted it to ground. Whatever the critter was got up before I did.

Based on your emotional response, captured above, i would recommend you **NOT** follow my poultry management practices, and instead build the largest covered or netted run you can reasonably afford for them, reserving just enough on the side to make a mobile chicken tractor in the form of a hoop coop, so they can benefit from our flat ground, abundant greenery, and long growing seasons - since everything inside your run will quickly be reduced to bare sand.
 
I let mine free range the last couple hrs of the day in my fenced in backyard. My three dogs do well in scaring the predators away, but I do have a redtail hawk that has flown by rather low. My one dog, for some reason, very good at spotting them. If I see one, I immediately put them back in there coops.
 

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