hsbaby Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 So, we just moved to some land with an existing coop. We really want to get some chickens to help with our tick problem (eggs too!). I want them to free range to eat as many bugs as possible. This may sound dumb, but won't they wander away? We have 22 acres.....only a fairly small area is fenced. Do we need fencing all around? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 once they learn where home is, you can shut them up at night in the coop and they will always come home to roost! You will need to look out for predators, like dogs and foxes. My blog in my siggie has quite a bit of chicken info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saraha Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 No, they won't wander away.:001_smile: The chickens will stay pretty near their coop, even during the day time. At night, they will put themselves to bed, you just need to shut the door. Easy-peasy. Fencing is nice to keep predators out, but not necessary. We don't have perimeter fencing, and to be honest we have lost a chicken here and there to stray dogs, but you don't need a fence to keep them in. If you would like more info about raising chickens, Storey publishing has great books, but if you are like me, you might just want to learn by doing. I can answer probably a lot of your questions, if you want more advice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 The furthest ours have roamed is about 100 ft from the coop. The ducks however we have found a couple of houses away... Dogs are our biggest problem here. In the county owners don't have to keep them fenced in their yards. In 2 years my next door neighbor has lost all of his chickens twice to a roaming dog. The last time the dog tore into the fenced run and was found inside with the dead chickens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyB in TN Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 I had chickens for a year and our favorite thing was to see if we could make it to the porch in the evening to watch them file into their coop. They just knew! We would get home and sit on the porch and watch them file into the coop like someone had set an alarm for them. It was hilarious. Having chickens is just fun. We did have a lot of predators so we kept them fenced but you may not have to, just expect to lose one here and there. My neighbors kept a dog or two or a donkey to keep the coyotes away. We had a terrible time with raccoons. We only had our farm for a year and sold it. I am a realtor and am married to one so everything is always for sale. :D I gave the chickens to a man who did odds and ends jobs for us. He took the coop and all and set it up at his place. I hope it is still there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beaners Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 Our chickens don't roam too far, but if they are making a dent in our tick population I'm not seeing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geo Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 My chickens know where home is, for sure. They do free range during the day, but always come home. Guinea fowl are supposed to be excellent tick removers...AND they're homely, call it a two-fer. :D http://www.guineafowl.com/fritsfarm/guineas/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsbaby Posted June 4, 2012 Author Share Posted June 4, 2012 Thanks everyone! I really didn't want to wait to get them until we could fence the whole thing! You know, I heard about guineas for the ticks, but I also heard they are very loud. I wonder what's more annoying....ticks or loud guineas:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Critterfixer Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 I wonder what's more annoying....ticks or loud guineas:) The ticks in my book. I've never gotten Lyme disease from a guinea. But guineas are very loud. We have a coop, a chicken yard and the garden is fenced, so they have access to that. I've had to make sure the guineas go up in the evenings, although by night-fall they are up, but the chickens are as regular as the clock. In fact, one evening when I needed to put them up earlier than usual, when I stepped into the coop I noticed one hen was still out. Before I could say anything, the rooster took one look at me, ran out and brought his girl in. Chickens really like their roost I guess. But I don't think that they would help with the tick problem. Grasshoppers on the other hand... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishboneDawn Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 Thanks everyone! I really didn't want to wait to get them until we could fence the whole thing! You know, I heard about guineas for the ticks, but I also heard they are very loud. I wonder what's more annoying....ticks or loud guineas:) Our neighbours have guineas and they'll visit up here to forage for ticks and steal our chickens' food. :D They are VERY loud. We keep considering them but the chickens (we currently have a grand total of 55 chickens although 17 will be heading to freezer camp in another month or so) seem to do a decent job with the ticks. I think a mowed lawn is the best defense myself. We just have wood ticks though and they're not such a big deal. Easy to spot because they're big and not carriers (around here anyway) of anything horrible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommie_Jen Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 I am not a chicken owner, we live in town and can't have them. I never really wanted them until recently. We have new friends who live just outside of town and have 6. We love to go visit the chickens! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texascamps Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 I have 9 chickens and I agree with the advice about them. I'd also add that if you free-range them they will poo on your porch and scratch the mulch out of flowerbeds and attack the garden. . . or get into your car through an open window when you don't know it and drive with you to the bank and wait to show themselves only after you have stopped at the teller window. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aggie Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 or get into your car through an open window when you don't know it and drive with you to the bank and wait to show themselves only after you have stopped at the teller window. :lol::lol::lol: Although, in our town, the teller wouldn't even flinch.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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