Silly chickens, their idea of free ranging!

[silkiechicken]

Silly birds. I let them out to free range over about 2 unwooded acres with even more if they wanted to go there... and what do they do!!! They make a bee line for the porch, eat the cats food, tip over her water and then hang out in the grower cage for about 90% of the day!!!

They need to get out more often.

 

[ruth]

Hi Silkie - if you are just now starting to let them out to free range they will stick real close to home at first. Guess that's why they call them "Chicken". But soon they'll start to go farther and farther away.

Forgot to add that they will almost always make a beeline for cover. If your 2 acres is "unwooded" be careful of hawks and predators. Mine run/fly if they have to cross open terratory in process of getting from one wooded area to the next. They seem to know they are vulnerable in the open.

 

[silkiechicken]

Oh.

That's not their normal home. Wayy too small for them. That's the pen I put the day olds in when I have them. Their normal home is a 8x8x5 coop away from the house on the outside of the fence. They are very hawk smart and run for cover whenever one is near. I think they have just been enjoying the grower coop since it's cooler near the house.

They all free range from 3 weeks on in the summer and 4-5 weeks on in early spring weather permitting. They know the outdoors well along with the dangers of being in the open.

The 10% of the day they don't spend in the coop is spent down the drive way under the trees there or picking up and eating crickets in the clearing. Most the area they can't get too is filled with underbrush and bramble. I almost lost a young chick in the stuff one year when it fell in between branches and didn't know how to get out.