1st time free ranging/bedtime

[Flummery]

Pellets contain exactly the same as mash - mash is just ground up. It's better for the person who had to clean up, that's all!

[Lemon]

Our girlees spent first day in their house so they would always know where that was.
By the second day we wanted to give them freedom but we were still making the enclosed run, so they went in my raised veg bed which we covered with netting. They spent 2 daytimes there, we put them in to bed at dusk, until we finished their run.
They are good girls and put themselves to bed no trouble. Today I went in garden to get something and was alarmed as they were no-where to be found. I looked in their house they'd gone to bed! It was only 7pm!??!
They are up early though and as it's not as cold at night we leave their house door open and they are already down in their run before 7am. They start complaining if we leave them in their run too late in day - so much for a lie-in!

Our lives are now run by the chickens!

[Bephlam]

Welcome to the Vine Daisy...!

My girls put themselves to bed around 9.30, but rush out if they hear anyone in the garden just on the off chance they'll get a treat!! Soooo greedy!!

They'll eventually get the hang of it....! They are cleverer than they first appear!

[DaisyDiamond]

Welcome to the Vine Daisy...!

My girls put themselves to bed around 9.30, but rush out if they hear anyone in the garden just on the off chance they'll get a treat!! Soooo greedy!!

They'll eventually get the hang of it....! They are cleverer than they first appear!

Ahhh, I don't feel so bad now as mine are going to bed later and later but 'Cagney' is reluctant to go without some encouragement and it's still rare for her to put herself to bed. Instead she gets a little flustered and clucky. On the few occasions she has been in when I go to shut them up she comes out (like you say, no doubt hoping for a treat as I initially tried to bribe them in) which then makes 'Lacey' come out again too.

Having read some other posts I now wonder if it is because the other chook has nicked the best sleeping space - by the looks of things in the nest box though. Maybe she doesn't want to be on the perch on her own! I see some suggestions about blocking the nest box to stop them sleeping in it but is that a no-go if they are laying before I open them up at 6.30am.

Any advice welcome.

[Glutton4...]

The automatic pop-hole opener/closer thing is a godsend. It is set just right by the factory too, just like they said it was! Because of my insomniac Dog I was there to witness the opening at around ten to five this morning. They go to bed about ten minutes before it closes too, no problems.

I now don't think it was expensive, as I'm not a morning person, so getting up at 4:30 in summer was no option!

[bluemoon]

Our lives are now run by the chickens!

I can relate to that! Up at 5am, on the plot to let them out and sort out food and water by twenty past, home for six, back to bed for 2 hours, up for work, home via lottie to check on them at 2pm then back to the plot at 7pm to give them their bed-time treats before finally shutting them away for the night at about ten past nine. This is in addition to the time I'd normally spend at the plot, time which I now tend to pass watching chickens instead of doing any gardening.

[DJ_Chook]

1st time free range

My first posting here

6 girls - 3mx6m run - chicken gym - branches - bushes - 1 chair (for me) - Every other bit of chicken gear I could buy & make (chooks mental health, stimulation). It's a big enough pen for them to be in it fulltime but I want them to have more fun and explore the garden too.

Last night was the first time I let them free range.

4 weeks, they've been here, imprinting... getting used to the place. They have me fully trained, I wait on them hand and foot. Set food time regime, happy mix of mash, gloop, pellets, treats.

They follow me around the run, I feel so adored, I feel like their mother.

As they go to bed at approx 8:45 no problems, I figured that 8:30 would be a good time to try their 1st time out.

So I let them out of the run. They follow me for 2 minutes then they run, that's it, legged it. Ok let's stay calm, sit in the run on the chair, pretend to read a paper, eat something tasty.. they'll want some and come back in the run (yeah right)...9pm send husband to kitchen for sweetcorn. This will definitely work - no it won't. I laid a trail of sweetcorn into run and up into house. Then I went inside and sat looking through windows, staring around garden waiting 30 mins for them to take themselves to bed.

Where did I go wrong? Don't they like me? Do they think I am soft? Is Icelands frozen (defrosted) sweetcorn not good enough? Did I leave it too late in the evening? Is the garden too big, should I restrict their access to a comfortable distance around their house & pen? Should I leave them to it, go back inside and just chill?

Can you electronically tag chickens?

DJ Chook

[Flummery]

Oh dear! They aren't playing the game are they? And welcome to the Grapevine.
Sorry not to be able to give you any useful advice - we've had ours for only 5 weeks (seems like forever though). Ours don't actually free range. They go from their run out onto a patio and into a grassed area which is also enclosed. We have a serious fox problem here and they can easily get from the garden to the paddock at the end and we'd never get them before Foxy did. Once they learnt where the grassy area is, they take themselves in for a good dig and scratch session - and eat the most disgusting things imaginable! Yesterday I went into their run to tidy it up a bit and they all clocked me going and ran out after me and back into the run! I'd like to say they love me but I'm just the provider of grub, and I know it! They were rather miffed to find I hadn't got any. I took them back to the grass though. I'm not that mean!

I'd suggest that you restrict them initially if they have a huge are to roam in. Otherwise it's goig to be hunt the chicken every bed-time! I'm interested in what others will have to say.

[MaureenHall]

Hi and welcome to the vine.

So what happened in the end? Did you have to physically pick up each chook and put her to bed?

I would have suggested letting them free range about mid-afternoon, or an hour or so before "treat time". Then do exactly what you did, sit in the run with their treats so they have to come to you for them rather than the other way round. They've got you well trained Come to think of it, all our chooks have us all well trained don't they!

[DJ_Chook]

On the 1st night they did what I wanted them to do.... they eventually went to bed. Last nights 2nd time free ranging, was easier for me as they didn't go as far from the run and followed me back into it. I plan to restrict their free ranging area. I think I paniced a little, I didn't expect them to wander off so far from their house and run.

[MaureenHall]

All sorted then That's good news