Visited a big chicken farm near Austin and changed my mind about free ranging

I went to a place called Happy Hen Acres outside Austin last weekend. They keep 200 birds in a covered run system with rotating pens and the chickens looked HEALTHY. No predators, no lost eggs in the weeds, and zero mud issues. I have 12 birds free ranging my backyard and I lose at least 3 eggs a week to who knows what. Plus I had a hawk take one of my hens last fall. Everyone in my local group says free range is the only way but after seeing this setup I'm thinking about building a big enclosed run. Has anyone else switched from free range to a covered run and saw their hens get more relaxed?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_vera2d ago

Built a 30x40 covered run last spring after losing three hens to a fox and honestly the girls are way calmer now, they don't spook at every shadow and I'm finding eggs in the nest boxes instead of under the bushes. The key is making it big enough with lots of dust baths and perches so they don't get bored and start picking on each other.

loganhart1d ago

oh man that's a good size run, my buddy did something similar last fall after his neighbor's dog got into his flock and he said it was night and day for his birds too. he went with a 20x40 covered run and put in a couple of those plastic kid pools filled with sand and wood ash for dust baths and i guess they love that stuff. he told me he used to find eggs hidden in the weirdest spots like behind the waterer or in the bushes but now they all just use the nest boxes. i think having that covered space lets them feel safe enough to actually relax and do their chicken thing instead of constantly looking for trouble. the boredom thing is real too, he said his rooster started being a jerk until he added more perches and some hanging cabbage for them to peck at. so yeah it sounds like you nailed it with the size and the enrichment stuff.