To Free Range Or Not To Free Range, That Is The Question

[bcmama]

We are new parents to 6 (hopefully) hens, 4 large fowl and 2 silkies. We are building them a coop approx. 100 square feet total including the run. I was planning on not letting them free range unless I am outside, because of many raptor type birds and the dogs are put up. How do they do in the coop most of the time? Are they going to be unhappy campers if they only go out every once in a while? Any one have their chickens cooped up most of the time?

Thanks

 

[DanEP]

I used to free range the girls for most of the day but a guy down the road from me decided to get some cats and just let them roam and breed, he just feeds them out back so we now have a problem with feral cats. I lost almost 40 chickens to 2 big old toms. Now they only get out for a couple of hours in the evening. they will do fine in a run as long as the run is big enough.

 

[bcmama]

How do you get them back in? Do they just follow you back in?

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

How do you get them back in? Do they just follow you back in?

They should go in on their own as it gets dark. I have been letting my 12-14 week old pullets out every evening for a few hours to range around the yard. I want them to have good laying habits before I let them out in morning. But as night approaches they go into coop/pen on their own, that is home.

 

[bcmama]

Do you lock them up in their hen house at night by closing the pop door? If so what time do you typically do that and then what time do you open it in the morning? I'm new, new, new to this.

 

[cadeschicks]

How do you get them back in? Do they just follow you back in?

I have to let my chickens in and out of their run multiple times a day because they can't be in the yard at the same time as our dogs. So, they go out for a few hours in the morning, then back to the run while the dogs get their turn, lather, rinse, repeat...

To get the chickens back in the run, I just bring out a box of raisins. The go nuts for them. The important thing is they know that I only give treats in the run, so they better get in there. Even if I am not putting them up and just bringing them some veggie scraps the treats are always doled out in the run. Sometimes, if I'm in a hurry I can get away with just going to the run with out treats, but they always look pretty steamed when the realize I've slammed the door without making an appropriate offering first.

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

I have 5 6x6 dog run panels that are their coop/pen. I just close and lock the door when they all go in by themselves or I use rake and shoo them in. I don't let them out in mornings mostly because I am sleeping(night worker) and when they start laying I want them to make it into the nestboxes. I won't let them free range all day until I am getting all eggs in boxes regularly. And right now I am dog sitting my father in laws dog and he is very interested in eating my birds. So I supervise while they are out in evening and put him on a much shorter chain.