Social chickens

[tawnya0926]

Need some advice. My free range chickens have recently found themselves into my neighbors yard. Of course it's the one unfriendly neighbor around me. She text me complaining yesterday and I told her we would put a fence up. She said I need to find a way to keep them out till then. I put up the only piece of fencing I have(about 20 ft) for now in the main part they would get to her yard from. I then text her that I did that and we would build a fence asap. We both have a good amount of land so I would need a very large fence and it's not gonna happen over night. I don't have a run for the girls and can't just keep them locked up in the coop all day. They only go in there to sleep. There aren't even any windows in there. Well this morning on my way back from bringing my kids to the bus stop she came out and told me the chickens were back. I grabbed some food and called them and they came. Ugh. The most they're doing is eating all her bugs. I don't know what to do.

 

[Pork Pie]

I'd move my feeding stations as far away from the neighbour in question in the hope that they will hang around there, rather than annoying them.

 

[Ridgerunner]

It should be a lot easier to build a temporary run than to put in a permanent fence. Since you are free ranging you are obviously not worried about making it predator proof. Since it is temporary it doesn’t have to be easy to use or convenient. Throw something up quickly that they can get to through their pop door but keep it so you can get inside the coop to gather eggs and feed and water. Then get moving on a real fence.

How many chickens are you talking about? If it is just a few there may be some really quick things you can do. I’ll assume it is more than just a few. I’ll guess you probably want something covered so they don’t fly out.

Some ideas for a relatively quick run. You do not need wire. Wire is more expensive and harder to work with. Get bird netting. See what widths and lengths you can get bird netting in. That might help you decide how big an area you can quickly throw up. T-posts are pretty quick to install so get some and drape the netting over them. Use zip ties to attach the netting. Lay something on the ends on the ground so they cannot get under it.

Another run that can be done very quickly is a hoop run. A search on hoop coop can give you ideas on how to do this. Basically you take some PVC pipe and bend it to form a half circle. Anchor the ends to the ground so the PVC does not straighten out and maybe run a string from end to end to keep it bent. Tent stakes or heavy boards laid down so you can attach the PVC ends can work. You will probably need to tie the top of the bends together to keep them from falling down. There will be some fiddling involved in getting the bends to stand up but once you figure out how to do it, it should be very quick. Then just drape your bird netting over it.

I’ll ask again, how many do you have? That could help us come up with something really quick and easy. Their age might help too.

 

[lazy gardener]

IMO, you are going to need to build a permanent run. Not that you will need to keep them in the run permanently, but it will need to be a fixture on your property. Then, you can let them out according to your schedule. Perhaps build a compost heap far away from the neighbor's property, and toss some scratch into it for chickie entertainment. I like RR idea of using bird or deer netting to get them fenced temporarily. It is super easy to work with. I simply buy a 7' tall roll x 100' and cut it in half horizontally so I now have 200' x 3.5'. The deer netting comes in 2 qualities. If you can, buy the heavier quality. It's much easier to work with, not as apt to tear, and will last a long time. I use fiberglass posts, and simply weave them through the netting and drive them into the ground. Then weight it down at the bottom with home made staples. (clothes hanger wire, or even cut Y shaped branches from trees, and cut one part of the Y shorter so it acts like a hook to hold the fencing down. It will need to be securely clipped at the top of the fencing also. The beauty of this fencing is it's practically invisible, so the birds bounce off it, run around it, but can't seem to look up to notice that it is low enough that they COULD fly over it.

I love chickens, I love to allow them to free range. BUT... when their freedom encroaches on neighbor's property, I've overstepped my rights as a pet owner. Any property owner has the right to do what ever is necessary to keep tresspassing animals away. My MIL and her neighbors are having a time with free ranging chickens. They are being allowed to free roam, and are traveling at least 1/4 mile away from their yard where they are housed in a tiny little tractor coop. My MIL loves her neatly manicured flower beds, and those chickens wreak havoc on her gardens. I encourage her to use her pellet gun, as the neighbor has had repeated warnings.

 

[tawnya0926]

Thanks for all the input so far. We have 8 chickens. I'm looking online at poultry netting and thinking that might be our best bet. Not sure what to do in the meantime though. I keep looking out to make sure they're staying away from her yard.

 

[tawnya0926]

So I went out and bought 300 ft of deer fence netting and spent the day building a nice big inclosure around their coop. They won't exactly be free range anymore but it's a nice big area at least so I think they will be happy.

 

[centrarchid]

You may need to clip wings if they fly over the enclosure.

 

[Cacique500]

You mentioned your coop doesn't have windows...it is well ventilated correct?

 

[aart]

'Social' is a misnomer here, they are looking for food not 'company'.

Chickens tearing up your yard, especially when you don't choose to keep them yourself, can make you feel pretty 'unfriendly'.
'Free range chickens' is the Romance, wandering destructive birds is the Reality.

A dog in it's yard is a pet....in someone else's yard it can be a predator.
A chicken in it's yard can be many great things.......in someone else's yard it can be a destructive and detested pest.

Having a secure run is a good thing to have for many reasons.
Livestock panels can make great structural components for hoop runs too, more solid and secure than PVC hoops.

 

[lazy gardener]

'Social' is a misnomer here, they are looking for food not 'company'.

Chickens tearing up your yard, especially when you don't choose to keep them yourself, can make you feel pretty 'unfriendly'.
'Free range chickens' is the Romance, wandering destructive birds is the Reality.

A dog in it's yard is a pet....in someone else's yard it can be a predator.
A chicken in it's yard can be many great things.......in someone else's yard it can be a destructive and detested pest.

Having a secure run is a good thing to have for many reasons.
Livestock panels can make great structural components for hoop runs too, more solid and secure than PVC hoops.

Many good points made here.

I edited my previous post to include that the deer netting needs to be securely attatched to posts at top, otherwise it falls down like an old ladie's nylons without a garter!

I absolutely LOVE my cattle panels. They are useful for so many things. This season, I fenced my garden with them. Still need that deer netting to keep the birds out, but the CP make a quick to install sturdy fence, and the spirals sold by Premier 1 make the job super easy. https://www.premier1supplies.com/p/...erchant_feed&gclid=CImt0bHuw88CFVRahgodFVIKzw

The beauty of the spirals is that you can then take down a panel simply by removing the spirals so you can access an entire area of the garden or fenced area with a truck. Will get a few more panels next spring, and cut each 16' panel into 3 sections, leaving the long tangs from the cut in place so that they can be driven into the ground to make super quick trellises. Will still need a bit of vertical support. They will be perfect to use in the BTE orchard. The tomato volunteers that came up there are incredible in quality, so that's where a lot of my tomato crop will be next season! Ok. I'm done advertising for Premier 1. I expect to receive a check in the mail by the end of the week.