Chickens wandering too far while free ranging.

[ptkds]

We have 6 hens. We have a pretty good sized pen for them, but they prefer to be out of it. So we let them out everday and lock them up in the evening. The problem is, we live in middle of town. We have a HUGE yard with a chainlink fence, but they jump over it and go all over the area. We don't know how to keep them in! The neighbors are getting upset with having chickens in their yards all the time. When we leave them in thier pen all day, they start to get bored I guess and start picking on one or two of the other hens and pull their feathers out. So I feel like I have to let them out.

How can I keep them in the fence? We have already clipped thier wings, and it hasn't helped. Anyone have any ideas? We don't have very much money, so something expensive is out of the question. We love are chickens and don't want to get rid of them.

Thanks!
ptkds

 

[LyonFuzz]

I had to clip the wings of our newest mille fleur because I found her out of the pen and on top of our barn. Maybe you just didn't clip them down enough? We also let ours out of the pen and we do not have a fence, but do have a couple acres. I just don't want them to go too far and upset anyone either. So far though, they just hang out right around the pen anyway.

 

[cherrychicken]

I have almost an identical situation.
I do not have a problem with flight though, only hawks.
I do not want to risk my chickens, so every time they go out, I go too.
That's right I watch my 6 hens every time they come out.
I'm sorry I can't be more helpful, but I'm sure you'll come up with a solution.

Best Of Luck

-jenny

 

[sunnydee]

My six girls get out when I am home. Me or the kids are always out with them, too. I have about 1 acre that they are able to roam around, but the seem to love to go into the woods which I have two acres of with thick trees. So, we are always out with them keeping an eye on them.

 

[Barn Maid Ann]

We have 25 acres. Our chickens are fine, so far. They stay in the immediate area of our house/barn. But when we had Guineas last year, they followed the wild turkeys (we assume) to a neighbor who had bird feeders. They were attracted to the fallen seed under the feeders. She didn't mind at all and called to let me know of the situation. BUT my next door neighbor hated them. And they cut through his yard to get to the other neighbors. They ARE noisy by nature, plus he said they were digging up his yard. We finally had to get rid of them. We hated to as we had raised them from chicks. They had never been confined except as babies. So I really couldn't coop them up. We got them for tick control, so it would have defeated the purpose, anyway. It really sucked.

What kind of chickens do you have, ptkds? I have some flyers, but my golden Comets could never get high enough to clear a 6' fence. If you were to get heavier chicken breeds, you'd probably be okay.

BTW, I still have neighbors who tell me how much they miss the Guineas. But it only takes one fussy one to cause trouble for you.

 

[digitS']

We do just what Sunnydee and Cherrychicken do. If they are out, we are watching them. If we can no longer watch them, they go back in with a treat to make them happy.

Even with cold weather, the chickens are out most days - at least, for awhile. They also seem to want to stay around to watch us

. And, there's no roo.

Steve

 

[Dar]

i was letting the hens out to free range in the morning and has this problem...i started to let them ut in the afternoon now thay dont have time to wander cause it gets dark early they rarely even make it to the front yard

 

[happyfeet]

We have six acres and our chickens think the grass is greener on the other side. There is a waterpark across the street and the neighborhood joke is: why did the chicken cross the road, to go swimming! HAHA, not funny anymore. my hens free range. unfortunatly one has been hit by a car while crossing the road. i have been told if you clip one wing they will be unbalanced when trying to fly and not succeed. maby try putting electric fence on the top of your fence, it is not expensive at all. good luck, if you figure anything out let me know.

 

[Feral]

We're having the same issue.

We have 4 ft high birdwire fence enclosing their run. They pop over that pretty readily.

Would running a hot strand of poly-wire around the top of the current fence contain them?

(I could even run 2 strands of it if I had to.)

 

[Msbear]

I used to let mine out all the time and when they would be up, they would get bored and pick...but now I have three different breeds and three coops

with 3 roosters who will fight so I have to alternate them. My cochins only get out a couple times a week now. They are used to their schedule and no longer pick.

Try giving them an apple cut in half or some other thing they can peck at to occupy themselves for a few days then they should get into a schedule...Also, let them out in the evenings a couple hours before they roost. This will keep them near their coop.

It's ashame people complain. I'd love to see some chickens frolicking around in my yard...but as we all know, everyone is different....and some are outright strange