Scaredyhen Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 (edited) Hi all Total newbie alert. And still a newbie because I'm just too chicken (excuse the pun) to take the plunge and go ahead with getting some hens. We have a lovely potential home, a huge garden, and I would ideally like the imaginary hens to free range whilst we are at home. The thing is, we are semi-rural, and I am just too scared of the fox. Every time I think we should just bite the bullet, I come and lurk on a forum like this, read a "lost all the girls to the fox" thread, (more and more so "in broad daylight") and it makes me so sad! I'm basically already upset over not yet losing my imaginary hens to a fake fox. The garden surrounds the house, so it isn't all visible at once, and I'm worried they will be taken from under our noses. I feel like I would be getting chickens just to give the fox some lunch. Am I just not cut out for it do you think? Do I need to be harder than this?! There are a fair few foxes around here I would think. We back onto woodland, and I did see one at the bottom of the garden only last week. Plus the dog always seems to find fox poo to roll in, so they must frequent the garden at night. I'm also slightly over-whelmed at the whole not-knowing-anything-about-it-ness, although I have managed to have two children and have kept them both alive for several years so far without any prior knowledge. So I think I can get over that part. Its just the damn fox...... Can someone give me a quick slap round the face possibly? Tell me to man up and get on with it, or just forget my hen dreams? Edited June 30, 2014 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 My mum is very rural, the Fox has a den at the top of her field and is currently feeding cubs. She sees it every day checking out her chooks who 'free range' in an orchard inside a 50m electric fence. The only time she ever loses a hen to the fox is when the fence stops working. I'd say get an electric fence and take the plunge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvachicken Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 You can have your hen dreams come true by having a fox proof house and a fox proof run or some kind of electric fencing. I know it looks nice having them potter round the garden but their safety should come first. Mine never get to come out - mostly because of the huge cat problem near me and of course we do have a fox visit every now and then. If I were you I would take the plunge They are not difficult to look after except when they get poorly really. They need a good daily check over, some nice food, a nice space to play in and above all feel safe. There will be things you don't know but everyone on here is fab and you can never ask a silly question. You know you want to get some really don't you ? Just make sure you show us any pictures Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scaredyhen Posted June 30, 2014 Author Share Posted June 30, 2014 I do really, really want some. We have been in this house for nearly two years now and I have talked myself in and out of it daily since then! So electric fencing, is that portable, or does it need to be dug down? Is that the kind of thing I could leave them in whilst I pop out for, say the school run, so out for nearly an hour? Or should they put away properly in the run at times like that? How hard is it to get them back into the run once they are out?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackian Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Just do it. You won't regret it. I have had chickens now for 4 years and when I got them after years of dreaming just like you ..I had never had a pet as a child or as an adult in my life. I had always wanted them and i am in my 60's i did not know anything about them at all and was scared to pick one up.they changed my whole outlook on life . I have a wood at the bottom of my garden and live in a terrace block of houses .They are as safe as can possibly be but have no electric fence. I have gone from two chickens to five and love them all to bits. One evening my husband said " I reckon we could find a place for chickens down by the pear tree" before I knew it I had ordered a coup and did not know where to get chickens from He or she who hesitates is lost . if you don't do it now you will never know. Jackie x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scaredyhen Posted June 30, 2014 Author Share Posted June 30, 2014 Ahh thanks Jackie I just need to do it don't I. I've even been thinking of names so it is quite serious I'm just totally over-thinking it all! And so, if I were to get some, is there a good time of year to start? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisonFamily Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Hi, I also live with a house that backs onto the woods - I have lost 3 hens to foxes - each time they were free ranging and one of those time it was 3 o'clock on a summers day with 8 children in the garden, My hens now have a cube and a secure walk in run, they come out every few days to a fenced off portion of the garden next to the house where I can watch them - to get here they have to walk approx 100m up the garden which they do quite happily as I have a tin of meal worms in my hands - when we go back they often get to the wir first and wait for another treat - they will do most things for food. Mr fox will take when ever he gets the opportunity so free ranging when you are not on guard is not a good idea, I would also recommend rescuing some hens as they are so much friendlier and funny than others I have bought. Also if Mr Fox does get them you would have at least saved them for a while and given them a happy home !!! Get some girls ..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaspersmum Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 (edited) I think you're right - you're overthinking it (I know I did - for YEARS) - that's good because it means you're taking it seriously, but now be brave and go for it! I dithered for ages, my husband really wasn't keen, I thought we wouldn't have enough room and worst of all that I'd break them some how. I crept down the morning after we collected our first hens convinced they'd have all escaped/died/been stolen in the night - and there they were happily scratching about oblivious to the fact they'd been taken home by a pair of complete numpties. 6 years and almost 20 ladies on, my husband now adores the girlies even more than me - I can hardly get a look in with them these days! We keep a mixture of hybrids and retirees and we've just collected our second batch of rescue ladies this weekend. You can keep a few hens quite simply and very happily in a permanent run; when we started we had romantic notions of our ladies pottering about free range in our cottage garden - ha ha! Unless you live in huge field they will destroy your garden in a matter of weeks - honestly, it will be a crater filled mud patch in no time, with twigs where the plants used to be. We also had terrible trouble with foxes and after we lost one bird to them we thought never again and they now live in a walk in run all the time. Providing they have space (at least 1 sq m per bird) and lots to do (dirt baths, a selection of perches etc) they're very content. The turning point for us was doing an Omlet introductory course, a few hours one Saturday morning meeting someone who's been through it and emerged the other side - still sane and with perfectly healthy hens, was all we needed to take the plunge. I hope you decide to give it a try, if you do there are lots of lovely folk on here with loads of great advice to help you through. Good luck! PS. You can start any time of year - hybrids are pretty much available all year round...there's no time like the present! Edited June 30, 2014 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eggasperated Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 I have a large garden backing on to farm fields and woods, I keep my hens inside 75m of electric fencing - they are in there all day whether I'm in or not, I do shut their houses up at night to keep them extra safe but at this time of year they are out for over 15 hours. We move the fence about 4 times a year to give the ground a rest but I don't think that is essential. It can be a bit of a faff keeping grass clear of the fence to ensure it always works well, we also have two of virtually everything - batteries, energiser, leads etc, so we always have a spare of things and one battery is on charge whilst the other is connected to the fence; it's not cheap but it's the only way I could keep hens happily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 I've kept hens for 7, nearly 8 years in an urban environment (and believe me, urban foxes are much bolder and less scared of humans than rural ones) and never lost one yet. I have a secure walk-in run, and free ranging is under supervision. I am not complacent though - I could nip in to put the kettle on and the fox could take one, it's a perpetual risk with hens. Don't overthink it, and take good precautions - you won't regret getting hens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scaredyhen Posted June 30, 2014 Author Share Posted June 30, 2014 Thankyou all so much for taking the time to reply. I think thats it, I have this romantic notion of them pecking about the garden, and yet I know just from reading, that it would be a very risky way of keeping chickens. I suppose I have never thought of them being content in a run. I love the idea of getting some ex-batts too We do actually live in a small field! There aren't many plants as we are new to gardening as well and nothing much wants to grow for us yet. There is a nice wooded side, some leafy hedgerow, wild raspberries and brambles, but mostly it is grass. I don't know how much damage they do, but is quite an extensive area so I was hoping it wouldn't be too obvious.... However giving them an area fenced off when I am home sounds like a nice compromise, and saves the plants we do have. I think I'm coming round..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scaredyhen Posted June 30, 2014 Author Share Posted June 30, 2014 So the electric fencing is pretty fox-proof? Even a determined one? I could potentially leave them for an hour or two if necessary and not have to worry too much? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 I wouldn't say they'll 100% be safe but my mums stay inside the fence (which is not dug in) all day whilst she's at work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaspersmum Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Great news! We're also urban with a very small garden so it just couldn't cope with relentless chicken led gardening, poor girlies were just enjoying themselves. A properly fenced off area (it must be electrified - foxes will leap a 6ft fence with no problem) would be absolute bliss for them if you have the room. I haven't used it myself so can't vouch for how effective it is. I worried a lot at first about keeping ours in a run all the time, now if we accidentally leave their door open they peer out and might come out for a quick scratch but they are all back in voluntarily within minutes. We also worried about making sure they had enough room in their run, but invariably we now find them all asleep in a pile in one corner or up on one of the perches together, regardless of how much space we give them. They do need plenty of sleeping space at night though - it's so easy to buy a hen house that's being sold for far more birds than it can really cope with - and you will need to make sure you have enough nest boxes for laying, that's the only time ours have squabbled. Some people are brave and get rescue hens right away, we waited until we'd had our hybrids a while and got used to them, retired ladies can need a bit of special looking after at first. Our first rescued batch had between 18-30 months of happy retirement and it's a lovely thing to be able to do for them and great to see them learning how to be proper chickens. Let us know if and when you take the plunge! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickabee Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Hi, I too am semi rural. I started 4 years ago with 3 hens. I now have 13. Some of them free range all day every day. I lost some a few years ago to a fox attack, but that was at dusk and they weren't in a large enclosed run like they are now. The ones that free range get put away before dusk, they have their own secure runs, so I leave the pop hole open. That way they can get up at dawn and start eating and scratching. You will not regret it. They enrich your life in a strange way. Most of them are quite nonchalant, but have their own personalities. When they start laying eggs for you it's a magical moment. I even know which egg belongs to which hen (mad hen lady) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clucky the Great Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Go for it!! I got my first chooks (rescued barn birds) in January. I want to be a vet and knowing nothing and not really liking chickens I went on a weeks work experience at a poultry farm with 100,000 chickens. I came back besotted and tried for months to persuade my parents to let me get some. I then went on to get 8A*s in GCSEs and 2Bs and my parents asked if I wanted anything for a present so I said chooks! So 4 months later and lots of planning I got 6 birds from the farm! They do have times where they scare the life out of me when they have there 'ill spells' for no apparent reason but all are going well 6 months of freedom. I have a cube with 5m run for 6 birds and I feel they have ample room as they had 9 birds per square metre at the farm. It is totally fox proof and then I have supervised free ranging on the lawn when I am about which isn't totally fox proof but they love it. As for going back to their run, mine are great I can have them out for 30 seconds to change water or something and wave my arms and say bed and they will go running back really quickly - but may need shoving in a few times at first Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scaredyhen Posted June 30, 2014 Author Share Posted June 30, 2014 It all sounds doable doesn't it? Good luck with the becoming a vet Clucky. I'm a Vet Nurse (but we don't 'do' chickens. I'll have to change that!) An exhausting job but worth it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickabee Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Yes it does Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Do it, do it, do it (and then post pictures) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Thomson Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 It was my other-half who suggested that we get some ex-bats and I was initially a bit sceptical about the idea (mainly because I knew I'd be the one getting up early to let them out!). It's seven months since we collected our three little chickens from the BHWT and I think it's fair to say it was one of the best things we've ever done, I really can't imagine living without them. They're just wonderful little girls, they have such interesting and distinct personalities, they're so much fun to watch going about their daft little antics... honestly, they're just great. We have a large urban garden and initially (well, after a few weeks) we fenced off a large section of the lawn with some plastic netting so they could semi-free-range all day. This was fine for a few months, until we had an incident with a cat. Thankfully little Milly survived but it made us realise we'd been chancing our luck, and an electric fence soon arrived in the post. This seems to do a pretty good job, the neighbours cats all keep a good distance and we haven't had any problems at all (apart from the silly little chickens ocassionally reminding themselves what 10,000 volts feels like - but a couple of minutes of squalking and all is well). I let them out at 5:30am, they run about all day, and I shut them away after they go to bed (10pm at the moment) - doesn't seem too bad a life to me! Even though they've got about 150m2 of nice safe garden to run about in they love being let out to explore the rest of the garden, but only under strict supervision. Today I had a long and stressful day at work but came home and let the chickens out for an hour. I'm sure the neighbours think I'm mad chaperoning three little chickens around the garden but watching them scratch around the borders is such a good way to unwind and forget about the stresses of life. They're just fabulous little creatures. Get some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparkysmum Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Couldn't put it better. Will just add my tuppence worth to add to the stats. We are also semi rural and back onto a huge field. have kept hens for just over 6yrs, free range all day, every day. no fox problem yet. I realise of course that we may just be lucky, but for me it is a risk worth taking. Ax Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvachicken Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 Have you ordered the chickens and their house yet ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daxigirl Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 How about visiting a chook keeper near you, there's bound to be some. There might even be an Omleteer on the visit a Cube/Classic page. That way you can get a feel for set ups and ask all the questions you like. My mum spent 18 months asking why on earth do you want chickens (so many chickens)? Who's had chickens for 2 years and is just as daft over them? Oh yeah, that would be my mum. Also see if there's any County Shows in your area, They often have a chicken show so you could take a look at the breeds and talk to their owners. You should do it, they're funny wee things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patsylabrador Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 I am very, very good at talking myself out of doing things and overthinking things. But my desire to try and have chickens was stronger and you sound the same. I have fox worries and cat worries from an urban perspective and the best thing I bought was a fox proof WIR. They are safe and happy but when they come out to play it's so nice to have them pottering about. I've had them 5 years and so far have not had to go to the vets. Initially I found it all scary and felt out of my depth but they really are nice pets and because they're not terribly needy for human company they are pretty easy too. I've had a dog, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs and hamsters for pets and I have to say that chickens are my favourite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scaredyhen Posted July 3, 2014 Author Share Posted July 3, 2014 Not yet, but I have been looking! There is a poultry farm not too far from here which looks like they have everything a beginner needs. Im going to persuade oh to go for a visit as soon as poss. Good news is that I am definitely going to do it, no backing out this time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
