The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: elliemai on July 15, 2010, 11:55:36 am
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I've been offered a small part of a farmers field to keep chickens in. I'd love them to be free range but I'm worried about foxes. Does anyone keep them in a similar environment?
My other question is sometimes I start work very early - about once a week and I know you have to collect the eggs so they don't get a taste for them. Are there any coops where they drop out of reach?
Many thanks
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You'd be very unlucky if a fox took one in the day - they generally come at night so as long as they're tucked up securely at night, I'd let them roam.
You can get 'rollaway' nest boxes which do exactly what youwould think - when the egg is laid it rolls away out of reach from the hen. Never tried one myself so can't offer an opinion!
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Foxy is smart. If there are foxes in your area and nothing to stop him getting in your field you will lose them by day. We had foxes running down our fields regularly till we let the dogs out. No self respecting fox wants to be caught by a German Wirehair and 6 Brittanys believe me!
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Our chooks just roam around all over the place, in the house through an open door, in the garden, in the sheds, on the camp field infact anywhere within a few hundred meters, touch wood never had any fox attacks yet. We have a little dog that scents everywhere so this may help, there is also someone on the yard working every day in the daytime so they are quite lucky having human protection too.
I spose it really depends on whether a fox finds them or not. I guess we are lucky as the foxes I have seen dont seem to come round this part of the farm.
Ta
Baz
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HI, we keep ours free range and in at night, HOWEVER we do loose chickens to the orange vermin especially this time of year when vixens have cubs,so all our girls are confined to barracks for a few eeks,Foxes take just as many during the day as at night,they are the most slyest craftiesd predators ever.so if u want to keep yours free range u will have to be prepared to lose the odd chicken every now and then if foxes are in your area,and i have yet to hear of anywhere that they aren,t >:( if u have a large enough run don,t feel guilty about leaving them in if u think they are at risk or u have to go to work early morn,many chickens live long and happy lives semi- free range if u understand what i mean,don,t let it put u off haveing them,it is most satissfying collecting and eating your own eggs.
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We have completely free range chickens. The fox did come in the middle of the day and kill 3 out of 4. We still have that one, a lovely Black Rock, and 9 others now. Since we got a dog two years ago we've had no more fox attacks. I think something about the dogs urine stops them from visiting. I don't think that was a coincidence.
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They do come in at night though :D and have one of those little electric doors :D
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We had a fox den? in our garden last year and the vixen had 7 babies. We came home one lunchtime and saw a fox asleep on top of our shed.
We live in the middle of Birmingham too not far from spaghetti junction.
Ian
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According to my friend there are more urban foxes than country foxes in UK now.
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According to my friend there are more urban foxes than country foxes in UK now.
I bet thats true! we dont see many around but when i go to grimsby visiting there just pondering around bins and alley ways etc early evening! dont even look at people walking past them!
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I kept my chickens in the field at the back of our house. WE had no trouble with foxes for over 18months and then this year he has just cleaned me out. First he took 16 6 week old chicks during the night and thne over the past 6 weeks or so he has take nevery one of my birds. He comes at all times of the day and night but mostly just before dark. He went into the house one evening just as the birds were thinking about going in and ambushed 2 of them. SO whilst it is great to see the birds really free range and on grass and your yolks are lovely an yellow I am afraid that based on my experience they need to be kept enclosed.
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My girls go through a secret hole, which I can close, into a nine acre field. I call them in several times a day just to check on them and I make sure they are in before dusk. If I am going to be away at bedtime then I don't let them out on that day. They queue at the gate around 9.30 am to be let out!