Hello All!
I am new to chickens but I have recieved/purchased 12 hens and one rooster and they have been locked in their new coop for about a week. They came to me from friends and neighbors who free ranged them but I wanted them to fully get used to their new home before I let them loose.
We are on a 600 acre ranch and the coop is in one of the fenced paddocks but the chickens will basically have access to go wherever. My plan is to open their chicken door on my way to work every day (approx. 7am) and let them explore, forage, etc and then hopefully by the time I come home from work (approx. 5:30pm) they will have nestled back into their coop and I can just close their door.
Is it silly to assume they will go back into their coop or am I going to have to be running around herding chickens every night? Also, all my layers do their laying in the mid to late afternoon (between 1:30 and 4), will they go back into their nesting boxes when the time comes or will I have to hunt around for eggs?
Sorry for the stupid questions!
Faydra
I am new to chickens but I have recieved/purchased 12 hens and one rooster and they have been locked in their new coop for about a week. They came to me from friends and neighbors who free ranged them but I wanted them to fully get used to their new home before I let them loose.
We are on a 600 acre ranch and the coop is in one of the fenced paddocks but the chickens will basically have access to go wherever. My plan is to open their chicken door on my way to work every day (approx. 7am) and let them explore, forage, etc and then hopefully by the time I come home from work (approx. 5:30pm) they will have nestled back into their coop and I can just close their door.
Is it silly to assume they will go back into their coop or am I going to have to be running around herding chickens every night? Also, all my layers do their laying in the mid to late afternoon (between 1:30 and 4), will they go back into their nesting boxes when the time comes or will I have to hunt around for eggs?
Sorry for the stupid questions!
Faydra