I am getting ready to start raising chickens with my granddaughter so we are new to this and have many questions that have been answered in your forum. Do we need to be cocerned about wild birds in the area? We have several bird feeders on our property and I'm concerned that they will bring in in disease and pests. Should I take them down before I get my chicks? We plan on free ranging for the most part. Thanks.
Wild birds bring in alot of diseases, I wouldn't hang bird feeders. The less that are around the better.
I kept the wild bird feeders away from the chicken feeders and didn't often have cross overs - my chickens were "contained" in a fenced back yard-
If your chickens are going to free range they will be exposed to wild birds. No reason to stop feeding the wild birds. Heck sometimes wild birds get into coops too!
I have my wild bird feeders in the front of the house and the chickens in the back. My neighbors feed the wild birds in their back yard. So far I haven't had any problems. Now that being said, you will have sparrows eating your chicken feed, so there will be wild birds around your chickens. If someone knows how to keep the sparrows away PLEASE let me know.
First and from South Carolina. Second, I would not worry about feeders. Like wren said they will be exsposed anyway. I, myself, have tons of bird feeders and have never had any problems.
I have feeders and the chickens will come eat whatever falls out on the ground that the birds drop. I also get birds in the coop. I dont put enough feed in there for there to be leftovers so I dont have much of a problem. Once, I came out to feed, and somehow a robin got in there. He never left. Chickens protect thier food. I dont see any problem with having feeders for wild birds. Rammy