totally free range chickens

[Beekissed]

The oldest dog, 8 months is ok. The puppy 3 months I still have to watch, she wants to play with them. But over the past week she's made progress with leaving them alone. Now the chicks are a dirt floor "shed" the rooster is free ranged day and night. Since we moved in even before we got the guard dogs

I don't think those two are going to be real effective at the present time...maybe the older one. Do you leave them out day and night?

 

[donrae]

I agree predators will be the largest issue. Setting that aside, I don't see a problem with your set up. Predator safety is the only reason to coop birds, in your climate. As long as the have basic shelter, protection from wind and rain, you're good to go.

 

[alicek4]

I am confused about this as well. If the chickens are only cooped up at night, how big does the coop have to be? We have a dog and 2 roosters, so we let them have access to the whole 100 acres, but they are secured every night. My husband is building a 6x8 foot coop and now I am wondering how many more I can add, safely and humanely -- they are really pets after all (although I love to think that many less chickens are not treated poorly to supply supermarkets) . Currently I have 9 and the sister wives evenly split up with their respective roos in 2 hutches designed for 2 to 4 chickens (got them at TSC when I first bought the birds). Sometimes most of them like to cram all together in 1 (maybe when they have a tiff with their roo, I don't know). It would seem in the winter they would be fine to snuggle for warmth but in the summer a bit stuffy on the hotter days. He is taking care to ensure it is well ventilated. Would love any comments -- I know about the '3 square feet per bird' rule, but isn't that if they are kept cooped?

 

[Beekissed]

Not really...if you live where the snow would keep them indoors for a day or longer or even heavy rains, not to mention if you need to be gone for any length of time and the birds need to be confined while you are gone...these are all things to consider when building a coop and thinking about stocking rates. Then also you need to factor in where you will keep their feed and water....if there is ever any chance they will need to be confined to coop for any reason at all, you need to have space for feed and water for the duration of their time in the coop.

Build big, stock lower, and you will never regret doing either thing. Build too small or stock too heavy and you will always regret it.

 

[oweirdo]

Snow rain.... What are these things you speak of lol.

 

[superdeluxe]

I have a rather large "shed" I think it was horse stalls originally. It's closed in on 3 sides, open to the southeast. I was thinking of using that for our roost and laying area. And letting the chicken be totally free range, as the rest of our animals are. Most people I've talked to don't like the idea, I am being told the need to be cooped. I know of 3 neighbors let their chickens roam free and tbey love it. We are way out of town, no restrictions. I don't see the harm! Any advice?

Are you suggesting that you would not even be cooping them up at night? I'm guessing most of your other animals are large enough so they won't become food. Your hens will become food if they are not locked up at night. Just a thought.

 

[oweirdo]

No they are locked up at night. I open the door around 6:30 and close it that afternoon when they are all back inside. Normally around 6-7 pm

 

[centrarchid]

We used to keep self-sustaining flocks totally free-range without nighttime confinement. Production was adequate to support seasonal harvest of eggs and fryers without feed set specifically for birds. Dogs were key and fencing helped.

 

[jennyg]

I have six chicks, four six weeks old and just added two tiny once today. My big ones usually free range 2-3 hrs a day. I started that a week and a half ago. The ladies are huge and do not fit through the yard fence. The smaller ones are Ideal 236 and are supposed to be three weeks old and are tiny so I will confine them till they are used to the coop and gain some weight.
Our jack Russell still chases the chicks but our lab Shepard could care less. The cat would eat them if he would be allowed outside while the chicks free range