Would it be ok to leave my chickens locked in the coop for 3 days?

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

I would have someone check in on them at least twice a day just to be safe. They may get overheated even having the window open if it gets hot where you are. Good luck! I would do it if I lived close to you. I love checking in on my friends pets for them.

 

[patandchickens]

Seems to me there are really TWO different things here.

1) whether to have someone come check on the chickens every day,

and

2) whether to leave them shut in the coop or whether to have the person let them in/out.

Personally I think there is no question but that you should have someone check on them -- animals dehydrate, or die of treatable injuries, way too quickly for it to be really fair (IMO) to leave them alone for more than a day.

OTOH, I think that if the coop is large enough and stays sufficiently cool and well-ventilated (buy a max-min thermometer, leave it in the coop for the next day or two, and see what happens), it is not at all unreasonable to leave them 'in' if you can't get someone you really trust to be thorough about the in/out business.

JMO,

Pat

 

[thechickenchick]

I am sure you can tell by reading the posts that it really is a personal preference thing! I have left mine for 2 days twice without a problem. I agree with silkiechicken to try a "test" vacation. It has not warmed up here in MT yet so cold was my worry, not heat. I put my heater on a timer. Extra waterers and plenty of food. Of coarse there is always a chance of something going wrong. However that same chance is there if you are home and its the middle of the night. It prob is better to have some one check on them, that is not always possible though. Our closest neibors are not friends(and are 3 miles away) and our closest family think having chickens is stupid!!! Take all the precautions you can and try to relax! You deserve a break too!

 

[dangerouschicken]

Quote:
Agreed! We were out of town 4 days & because I had left plenty of provisions, they were all fine. I even had 4-day-old chicks in the brooder, still with food & water, when we returned. I think you have to trust your judgement, the soundness of your coop & run, and how much you prepare for them in advance.

 

[GopherBoyFarms]

Quote:
I agree! Totally!

 

[warcard]

I agree that it depends on your personality a little. Will you be a constant worrier? If so are you really going to enjoy your vacation?

We have left our birds for a three day weekend with extra feed and water, no problems.

We have left home one day for work and come back to dead birds

Like someone said anything can happen anytime. Just make sure they have water, food, and shelter (that won't roast them) and you should be fine for a couple days. After that we try and have someone come to check on them, just make sure you leave idiot proof instructions

Homegrownacres: Yeah if we had anything more than the birds I probably couldn't do a vacation either. Our dogs go everywhere with us, and I always worry if I put them in the kennel. If you have milk cows or goats I just don't see how you could ever get away.

 

[opihiman911]

I have regularly left my hens on their own when I have to leave for work and be gone 2-3 days at a time each week and have been doing that for the last 10+ years.
My family is home but they have no interest in my chickens other than eating their eggs. Even then they won't collect eggs unless there are none in the refigerator for breakfast. My daughter will go in a play with them while I'm gone so I have child proofed the door so it always closes and lock behind her.
I don't have the extreme tempatures that you guy have on the mainland, my temps are always between 65-95 day in day out. I do have 2 automatic hanging water bowls and a 25# hanging feeder that I always make sure are clean and topped off before I go to work. I have had a water bowl get plugged, but never both at the same time. I have never had a problem, my coop is pretty much self running. I have never come home to find my chickens in trouble.
Even when we go on long vacations, I have my friends come over every 3-4 days just to collect the eggs, top off the feeder & clean out the water bowls. I have never had a rotten egg before. Remember that hatching eggs have to sit for 10 days and still be good, i.e not spoiled, to hatch. I have found that my coop can go over a week without running out of food. The only problem I have had is too many eggs in the 1 nestbox and a couple getting crushed, never mind they have 4 boxes to choose from.
If planned and designed properly you can easily leave your girls alone for a couple days. Now there may be some seperations anxiety at first, but I'm sure YOU will get over it and have a great vacation.

Aloha,
Cory

 

[purr]

i think your probably like me , i would worry sick. I'm so sorry there isn't any one to check on them for you. i have my grown daughter's best friend housesit for us we have known her since she was 15 and therefore a member of the family. i was away for 10 days and she sat for my 13 yr old lhasa. sometimes you have to give people a chance to prove themselves , the first time she sat it was for an overnight the next time 3 nights so we were very comfortable with the 10day stay when it came time.
Maybe there is someone in your life that your forgetting that could help.

 

[Cetawin]

Quote:
I do not think I could leave 4 week olds in someone's care without them really knowing what to do. But...that is me. I am a worrier. My girls are inside living in a hot tub because I am a worrier. They go out in the tractor during the day and inside at night...

I think it depends on how you feel when you talk to them and instruct them and whether they seem to be interested enough to follow your instructions.

Good luck with that decision.



As to leaving them for 3 days locked up...I would not, especially this time of year. I would have someone check on them and possibly let them out for a bit and put them back in the evening.

 

[antiquebuff]

Find someone. Better safe that sorry!