What are your opinions on free ranging?

[SummerTheAnimalGirl]

Hello everyone! I was wondering what everyone’s opinions on free ranging nowadays are? There was a time where there was no other way of raising chickens, but I know that has changed. Especially during the midst of avian influenza. So what are your opinions?

Personally, I am all for free ranging, and can’t imagine raising a flock any other way. I believe my flock would pick a short happy life of freedom, versus a long life of enclosure. But this is just my personal opinion! So I was curious of what you guys thought!

Thanks for everyone that takes my poll!

 

[Battlepants]

Too many aerial predators around here. They got one and came back for more. Not losing any more to them.

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

I'd love to free range my flock full time, but I don't know if I dare to due to risk of a predator. I do, however, let them free range a lot when I'm outside. I'd say some weeks my birds are 50/50, half penned, other half free ranged.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I free range. Lose a couple to predation each year. Unavoidable, unfortunately.

/edit to clarify.
My (usually 80 or so) birds have two open houses, and open run of roughly 2200 sq ft, almost two acres of pasture, and another near three acres of thinned woods inside my electric fence. With great frequency, they hop, dodge and limbo the electric fence and its gates, and enjoy the acre cleared for my home and the rest of this corner of my 30 acre property. They don't leave my property.

...and nobody elses birds enter my property. If they did, they would be put down as quickly as I can manage, and then burned in a very hot fire. I take my biosecurity pretty seriously, for someone who free ranges.

 

[Brooks_]

I would like to and would accept the risk that comes with it. Chickens don't understand property lines and there is little fencing here. They still get 2-3 hours of free time most days.

 

[Coops Dad]

Our chickens and turkeys have 6 acres of tall grass pasture as their base of operations but some of the more flight prone hens clear the 5' goat fence and stalk the 2 acres of cut lawn around the house. One of them includes the front and back porch lights on her early morning patrol to collect the June bugs.

We rarely have predators because I'm diligent in controlling the four-legged ones, and I have plenty of structure around to give shelter from the aerial ones. Our two roosters are real skywatchers and sound the alarm for hawks, buzzards and crows, and the hens scamper for cover.

 

[Battlepants]

Another clarification that might be worth noting. there is "free" range where they are confined to a large yard, but have barriers stopping them from entering other properties, then there is true free range where they go anywhere and everywhere. Hopefully they know their way back.

 

[AngelinaThePekin8]

My chickens and ducks have to be free ranged my setup doesn't allow for them to be enclosed, so they are always able to go wherever they want on the property all year round.
They even go to the neighbors sometimes or into the road I try preventing them from going places other then my property but sometimes I cant always call or chase them back right away, but they don't leave the boundary very often it's maybe once or twice a month that they will leave the property if at all.
I don't have very many hawks or other daytime predators where I live at least I've never lost any to predators during the day dogs have killed some during the day.
I haven't had any predator losses in about four years now.

I also never knew (until I joined BYC) that some people keep their chickens (or ducks) in runs. So I will always free range unless there is something that prevents me from being able to free range my current or future flock(s because that's how I've always done it and always thought it was done for the most part.

 

[mowin]

Many different levels of free range. I've got 2 acres of my 8 fenced in and patrolled by my 3 dogs. I only let them out of the coop while I'm home and then only the last few hrs of the day. My main concern is hawks. Although I've had fox and coyotes jump the fence on occasion, but that's only happened while they were in the coop.

 

[3KillerBs]

I don't free range because I like my garden.

I don't free range because we share the property with my sister-in-law who would be FURIOUS if my chickens ate her beloved flowers and dug the mulch out of her carefully-tended beds.

They even go to the neighbors sometimes

I would be very upset to have someone else's chickens wandering into my yard to damage my garden and my SIL's flowerbeds even "only" once a month.

Not to mention the possibility that they might bring disease to my flock or that a neighbor's rooster might fight my roosters or try to lure my hens into his flock.