What do you consider free range?

[exicy2]

Just kinda wondering what everyone considers free range to be. I keep my 60 chickens in about 3750 square feet. Before there was no fencing but the hens didnt want to lay in the nesting boxes and decided the garden was a tasty snack. I'm planning on moving them into the forested area with it only fenced off to keep them out of the main garden. Surprisingly my cats enjoy being guardians over the flock and keep most of the predators away.

 

[orloffer]

We have a relatively small backyard, so "free range" for my hens is anytime they are let out of the run and walking around on the grass.

 

[orloffer]

Surprisingly my cats enjoy being guardians over the flock and keep most of the predators away.

Wow! It must be great to have natural flock guardians like that.

 

[PippinTheChicken]

Free range is when I open the gate and the chickens can explore the garden

 

[JacinLarkwell]

My free ranges are the ones at risk of aerial predators. Everyone else theoretically could be taken by a land predator if they tried hard enough, but the free range are open to sky attacks

 

[PippinTheChicken]

My chickens don't free range unless there is someone at home

 

[ReelFaster]

Same here, free range is when I open the gate and they go running out to explore. I have a bit under an acre which backs to the woods they can explore. I free range part time mostly under supervision.

 

[thegreenestacre]

We do half days of penned/free range right now. I have a flock of 26 and was letting then free range all day, but they stopped using the nesting boxes and I lost so many eggs! They also began destroying my garden. So I keep everyone in the coop and run until mid-afternoon and then let them out to free range until they go in for the night. We have 10 acres but they mostly stay on the 3-4 acres closest to the house and barn.

 

[neo71665]

I have 2 runs. One is a 10x20x6 foot chain link dog kennel with a tin roof. The other is a 20x25x5 foot uncovered chicken wire pen.

Bad weather or I'm not around they stay in the covered run. Nice weather and I'm home they "free range" meaning I open the kennel gate and they go play in the grass. They can easily fly over that 5 feet chicken wire and it aint keeping anything out. I've yet to have one get out. The heat of the day they run back in the shaded run. I only have 12 birds

 

[Isadora]

My chickens and guinea hens are free range, meaning they have a coop to be locked up in at night but when I open the pop door in the morning there's no fencing to keep them contained. I have quite a bit of acreage out in the country and the coop is set back far from the road. I would think most people would agree here that free range would mean letting them out of their typical enclosure to forage around in the yard, regardless of how big that yard may be.