Why do I feel like I'm mistreating them?

[LeahOregon]

Thank you so much everyone! I'm glad I'm not the only one feeling this way, and you've given me some great ideas to keep my girls entertained in their yard. I think the first thing I need to do is give them a place for dust baths. They got out yesterday and all made a beeline to the dustbathing area next to my raised garden beds. As soon as the ground dries completely we're going to do a thick layer of sand, so I'm sure that will help. I also loved the idea of a suet feeder with treats in it.

Leah

 

[nursemeh]

Leah

ppl have already shared some great ideas!

perhaps you can find a happy medium between free ranging and them being in their yard. We have found that works well for our family. The chicken poop was just getting on everyones nerves.

They all LOVE to come out early, so I am in a routine of going out at sunrise and letting them out, they run past their free access feeder to chase bugs around, then they are penned up for the better part of the day. I have noticed that at the hottest part of the day, they just all dust bathe and then sit and conserve their engery anyway.
Sometime in the afternoon, evening, we let them out again to scratch around until dusk- they love it! I am usually making dinner, looking out on them thru the kitchen window while the kids are playing around in the yard.

Its a nice balance between free range ALL day vs penned up ALL day.

Whatever you decide, you have nothing to feel guilty about- they have a safe place to live with plenty of room! Just throw them some black oil sunflower seeds scattered aroudn their pen- chicken JOY is found hunting and pecking sunflower seeds in my humble opinion- and relax and enjoy your chickens!

 

[fla_native]

Dont feel bad! We have 20 that has a 200 sq ft coop and a 1200 sq ft run and we still feel sorry for them! To make things worse, they free range every other day all day long......now that I think about it , heck, those chickens have a better deal than I do!

 

[nsanywhere]

Quote:
One way I let my girls dustbath in the pen is to put contractor's sand in a kiddie pool. Sometimes I also add ashes from the fireplace. It can be easily covered if rain is on the way, but mostly I leave it open for them to bathe in. They love it!

 

[sookiesmom]

I have two hens & they don't free range alone. They have a great set up, what my stepdad calls their Taj Mahal. When I have time I let them out & I stay with them. But the best thing about them being in their pen is that they're not in danger. Last summer me & my mom were about 8 feet away from our 2 month old chicks when they ran into a bush & JUST missed getting grabbed by a hawk. From that point forward, they only come out when someone is there to watch them. So just think of how safe they are!!!! And they are happy!!! Good luck!!!!

 

[shandiane78]

I know what you mean! My chickens have a VERY large yard of their own, but they have still managed to destroy all the grass in there. I used to let them out all the time, but they started going to the neighbor's house and driving her dogs crazy (thus driving her crazy). Now I have to keep them in most of the time. I usually try to let them out an hour or two before dusk...Figuring they can't get into too much trouble in a couple hours. But it's not enough time to let the grass in their yard recover. I feel bad because I would like to let them roam our acre, but they won't stay away from the neighbor's yard.