Free ranged chickens are pretty happy chickens. They can explore and snack as they go. At the end of the day, they go back home and hop on their roost bar. Our chickens have always free ranged. It supplements their feed requirement, they manage my insect population and they scratch and till my garden. That being said, the more they free range, the bolder they grow. I’ve had chickens cross into the dogs wireless fence area. Last summer, Tiny, our Leghorn, fell into our pool (she was not amused and pouted all day). Last week, they pulled all my mulch out in one of my gardens three times.
Enter fencing for free ranged chickens! My husband was not a fan of this idea in the beginning but he is also not a fan of repeating mundane tasks multiple times a day either. There are a few ways to do this and it really depends on what works for you in your area. Today we’re going to go over tractoring your chickens, using plastic or mesh fencing and installing electric fencing.
Tractoring
Tractoring your chickens can give you a lot of freedom. There’s really no mucking out coops, just move 5 feet over and your mess is gone. Your chickens can double as tillers and clean up or clean out areas you just haven’t had the time or energy to weed and prep. And depending how often you move them, you can always supply them with supplemental plants and insects. A tractor will also protect your chickens from predators, both on the ground and in the air.
But, you have to move them every few days if not daily. And if your tractor is as heavy as mine (which I hope it’s not), coordinating that move is going to get old real quick. If you don’t have a lot of space, you’re going to run out of places to move. Brooding may get tricky in a tractor if you’re moving mama hen so much.
Plastic/mesh Fencing
Plastic or mesh fencing is low cost compared to other fencing options. You can give them some decent square footage without breaking your bank account. With reusable stakes, you can map out a certain space for so long and then pack up and move when that space gets a little tired. And since it’s lightweight, you can do it with one person pretty quickly.
What plastic or mesh fencing won’t do is protect against any animal determined to go through the fence. You’re still back to the same risk of just free ranging your chickens and hoping no predators come along. And depending on what type of fencing you get, it’s not going to last like a hardwire fence would.
Electric Fencing
Electric fencing may give you the best of both worlds. It can protect your chickens against predators on the ground but stay in place longer than a tractor. Most are light weight and reasonably portable. Some electric fencing can be attached to solar power so no worries over a power source. Premier makes a good quality electric fence and has a starter kit that will include your posts and solar charger. (Check it out here.) If I had infinite dollars to spend on my farm, I would probably get that one. If you’re not ready to spend so much on fencing, here’s a cheaper fence one that I’m leaning towards by Starkline.
Unfortunately, electric fencing is going to cost you more upfront. And the solar panel boxes generally have to be recharged at a certain point which makes your electric fence just a regular fence while it’s doing that. And while it’s protecting your chickens, it can also shock your family pet or your kids, or even yourself.
So what to do?
This is really dependent on where you live and how much you want to spend. Where we live, we have some raccoons, skunks, an occasional fox, coyote and stray dog. Since our tractor is heavy duty, it has definitely protected our meat birds the past few years from predators. However, that thing is a heavy sucker and not really designed to live in through winter. Plastic fencing is cheap, really quick to set up and easily moved. However, depending on what animals you have in your area, these can get pushed through and chewed up. (The farm down the road had rabbits eating the bottoms of their fence). Electric fencing may give you the best of both worlds, deterring bigger predators from coming through the fence and giving you a quick, portable solution when your chickens need new space.
Thanks for stopping by!
Nicole