Thoughts please!

[Fungus]

There is a possibility we may manage to aquire some rough pasture nearby.
We are very keen to get some hens on there but ideally, like to not have to feed them (much)...

...is this even possible?
How much land do 2 / 4 hens require to not be fed?
If they went being fed, then would they lack minerals/ vitamins they require?

Lots of questions!
Thank you!

[chris]

Rephrasing...

I don't think they would survive not being fed and just left to eat whatever grass/insects they could find within the rough pasture.. You'd need to feed them proper chicken feed (depending on what you wanted them for (eggs/meat)).

[Nicos]

We see occasional 'wild' flocks of hens in the fields over here.
As they totally free range they can move on to pastures new in search of insects etc when they have munched their way through the easiest accessible thereby fulfilling their dietary needs.

They are clearly not fed any pellets, but I do wonder what happens to them in winter when there are fewer insects available due to frost/snow.

I'd have thought a lack of a balanced diet would affect their egg shell quality or the number of eggs they produce????

[petal]

you will still need to feed them but probably not quite as much as penned chickens. They will also be more vulnerable to fox attacks. Seems a bit cruel to me to leave domesticated animals to fend for themselves.

[Jardiniere]

I dont suppose you intend to leave them totally to fend for themselves? You will provide them with a secure fence and somewhere to roost/lay? If you only intend to eat the eggs yourselves and not sell them then you CAN feed them scraps.(Greens veg, apple cores etc) Also you can collect slugs,snails, worms from your garden and give them those too.They should get enough grit to not worry about their shells but I would feed them some chicken feed from time to time. As Nicos says you see almost wild flocks here ....but they do have somewhere to roost.

[RichmondHens]

Why do you not wish to feed them? Sounds slightly odd to me. They may do ok during the warmer months just foraging but will suffer badly in winter. They will need some sort of supplementary feed to just keep warm. They will also not lay you many eggs and I presume the aim of keeping chickens is to get eggs, or am I missing something here? Rough pasture on its own won't yield a great deal for a chicken, they will do better in woodland or scrub areas.

[petal]

This is true- also the fact you are in Cumbria makes matters worse! I have seen semi wild chickens in greece, Cyprus etc but they have a nice climate and herbs etc- ?

[Fungus]

Hello,
Thank you for all of your comments. I really just wanted to explore the idea and see if it was possible.

My husband does conservation grazing with cows over here - turning them out onto land that is less commercially producive (such as fell tops and rough pasture) as a land management technique...which is where the idea came from.

Of course we would provide them with a safe area and somewhere to roost and scraps, but it sounds like we shall need to feed them suppliment feed too.

Thank you for all of your thoughts!