Wandering chickens

[JamminCats]

Hello all. I got chickens last spring and had no issues with them wandering. This spring, however, they have been wandering into the road and way too far from home. This year my rooster is fully matured and it seems he’s always with the few hens I find down the road. Is it the rooster leading them off? Do roosters wander? It’s not the entire flock wandering, usually the rooster and two or three hens. I’d hate to have to lock them up in the run all the time but if the issue is the rooster I may look to rehome.

 

[nikolairapunzel]

I have no idea if it is the rooster leading them, but we had the same problem. We have a 2 acre yard. Our chickens were always heading to the neighbors and kept going back once they did it once. We spent 2000.00 and fenced the rest of our yard in. We now only have an opening at the driveway. They have still wandered out, but just one chicken a handful of times now. Good luck!

 

[JamminCats]

That sounds exactly like us. 2.5 acres and they choose not to us it. I like your fence idea but the problem is they keep going through my driveway so that wouldn’t work for us

 

[nikolairapunzel]

That sounds exactly like us. 2.5 acres and they choose not to us it. I like your fence idea but the problem is they keep going through my driveway so that wouldn’t work for us

It sure is frustrating. I joked we needed the underground fencing like for dogs! Maybe put something out there they wont like. Like a flapping in the wind flag or something? Maybe it will program them to stay away long enough to reset it in their memory? Good luck!

 

[centrarchid]

It is not just about available acreage. Look at what the acreage does and does not provide.

 

[CraftyHen]

Could you fence a portion of your property for them? We have a fence starting at the coop and going out to the back of the property. It corrals the coops, rabbit barn and gardens and allows them plenty of roaming.

 

[JamminCats]

I just want to know if this is rooster behavior or not?

 

[centrarchid]

Not necessarily.

Ranging habits, regardless of gender or age, is dependent on how much traveling the birds must do to get enough eats, water and other resources they need. Nutritional demands promoting a lot of traveling associated with egg production. Broody hens can not move as much until offspring more than a couple weeks old.

Based on my experience, when birds range a long distance, they have needed resources that are more or less linear in arrangement. Like what you see with road margins and fence rows.