By Community Chickens on July 16, 2012 Visit Community's Website.
Our chickens, for the most part, are free range. Every morning I let them out the front doors of the coop into the yard. They can scratch and explore our 14 acres, take sand baths under the pine trees, and drink from the small fountain pond we have in the perennial flower garden. While the chickens are out, the doors to the coop stay open and they can wander in and out as they please. I keep their food and water in the coop, and the girls can use the egg boxes as they see fit.
When we decided to let our chickens free range, we knew there was risk involved. While roaming around the yard, they have little protection against predators. We’ve seen coyotes, foxes, raccoons, stray cats, stray dogs, hawks and owls on our property. Our chickens are left to the hands of instinct, survival skills, protection of the coop or tree branches, and a bit of fate.
Some of you might wonder why we would take such a risk with our birds. And, to be honest, sometimes I worry myself. But I see how much our chickens enjoy roaming, doing what chickens are meant to do. I would rather our flock live a happy, free life, even if it means that nature might come into play. We’ve lost a couple birds to hawks and coyotes. But I have respect for these beautiful predator animals. They are surviving off the land just like we are trying to do. They are trying to feed their families, just like we want to do. We brought the chickens here, so if we choose to let them roam, we must be ready to deal with the consequences. We moved to the country, to live in the country … all the country, not just the country that’s convenient for our setup.
We’ve seen tracks around the coop on occasion, so we will keep the girls in their “backup” fenced-in area. We let the dog relieve himself around the run in the hope that any hungry animals might pick up on the scent. When the threat of danger seems to pass, the chickens eventually get the run of the yard again.
Among our many chickens and varieties, we have one Silkie hen. She’s always been an odd sort of chicken. She keeps to herself, and marches to the beat of her own little drum. She’s never quite fit in with the rest of the chickens. On top of her quirky little personality, she’s just … well, odd-looking. She went through a molt the second year we had her, and her head feathers never grew back right. She is the most vulture looking chicken that we have, and has all sorts of “isms” that are just strange.
A couple of weeks ago, it occurred to me that I hadn’t seen her in the coop in a while. We waited until evening to do a head count. As the sun sank lower in the sky, one by one, the hens and roosters left their favorite scratching places around the property and started toward the coop. A couple of distracted hens that were chatting in the grass line, were soon rounded by one of our roosters, and sent running to their appropriate evening perch.
Once it seemed everyone was tucked in for the night, I went out to close up the coop and check on our Silkie. Much to my disappointment, she wasn’t there. I looked in the wing of the coop where we keep the teenagers, and sometimes the brooding chicks, and she wasn’t there, either. I checked the big barn, the corn crib, the silo and the turkey pen, and still no Silkie.
I watched for her over the next few days. I listened for her particular cackle, which is sort of frantic and high-pitched, but she was gone. Disheartened, we figured the worst and decided that a predator had taken our little Silkie away. It was sad, but part of the way things go sometimes.
Over the next couple weeks, we kept a close eye on the chickens. We kept them in their fenced run to see if we could spot a raccoon or fox returning to their place of capture. But nothing seemed to show. We figured it might have been a hawk or an owl. I’ve seen a Red Tail Hawk drop out of nowhere, pick up a bantam, and carry it away without even so much of a feather left behind.
I dropped the dish towel and ran outside to meet him halfway. “What’s wrong?” I called. He answered that I would just have to come see for myself. I braced myself, expecting to see blood and feathers scattered around the chicken yard.
But instead, I was greeted with just about the cutest thing I’d ever seen. Our Silkie had returned from the dead, and this time toting five adorable bantam chicks, freshly hatched and still boasting their egg tooth. She was proudly strutting around the yard, showing them bits of this and that, and squawking at our other girls to stay away from her newest accomplishment.
She must have set up nest in the tall grasses somewhere in the yard. She had been diligent to her babies and stayed on a nest for the whole 21 days.
I was so happy! Especially for our little Silkie, who is always out of touch with the rest of our chickens. She has never quite belonged, but now she has a little family to keep her company. I’m particularly interested to see what these little chicks will grow into. We don’t have a Silkie rooster, so they are some sort of cross between a French Black Copper Maran, a Lavender Orpington, Blue Laced Red Wyandotte, or a Coronation Sussex. So far, they are pint-sized and have feathered feet just like their mamma.
I’ll keep everyone posted on the Community Chickens Facebook page with photos and updates as the mystery babies grow. Maybe you can help me guess what breed they are mixed with.
Have you any recent pictures of the chicks?
How did they turn out?
I just put a photo of one of the roosters that resulted from this hatch on the Community Chickens Facebook Page. The hens look just the same but without that rooster strut! Ha!
I let my girls free range on our farm. Our four roosters watch over them and warm them when hawks or eagles fly over. We lost a hen and her chicks one night. Not sure what got them, but free range is still the best.
What an awesome story. Love this little chicks.
What a relief! The babies do look adorable… I look forward to future posts to find out the mystery roo – and if any of the babies are baby roos, too.
Do you have updated pics of the chicks? I would love to see them!
Congrats to you and the proud mama! We also let our chickens free range on our 22 acres, although they probably only cover about 5 of ours (and maybe another 2 or 3 of our neighbor’s!). So far we have lost one hen—completely gone without a trace—and had 3 attacked by a local dog (a JRT that’s probably smaller than all of my chickens). The 3 have recovered and taken up residence back away from the road now, back by our house. Every time I hear coyotes out there I worry about the girls and Roo, but I agree with you that I feel better knowing they had a good happy life on our land.
Oh I do love a happy ending!
I have Silkies and I love them! We let them free range but, our backyard is fenced. That doesn’t mean that Hawks can’t get them or even something jumping the fence but they are so happy and the hens I bought are laying really well. The chicks that someone gave us, four of them, are growing and hopefully they will integrate well with the hens. Right now they stay on separate sides of the yard and they stay in a cage inside our house at night. They are 3 1/2 months old. They are actually getting too big for the cage. Congrats on your new brood of Silky X.
I have a black silkie too, it is about 4 months old, and just week decided to start crowing! He is the smallest in the flock a mere 4lbs (wet) and has already tried to jump our hens.
How fun! I love a good mystery chicken. All the combos sound pretty but I think the Black Copper Silkie would be really cute. Can’t wait to see more pics as they age. And coudos for letting chickens be chickens.
That is the cutest story ever! The babies are so precious. Such a happy ending!
What a great story! I can’t wait to see what they become either!
What a relief to note that other chicken keepers realize that free ranging means just that…free to range everywhere, anywhere, anytime, regardless of risk from predators. This is why we let our Baby Mama’s *set* every couple of months. Our chickens are *mutts* for the most part but very hardy and learn skills from mom. Yes, we have lost chickens to coyotes, hawks, snakes, neighborhood dogs. When I relate these stories to my friends and family, their reaction is most often…*you should just shoot that hawk (well, I think they are protected by law) or dog or fox or coyote*. Do my chickens have permit to roam where other critters do not? The coyote is so thin, the fox perhaps with kits close by, the hawks rid my property of rodents also. The dogs? I had no patience with them & annoyed their owners until electric fencing went up (we have 7 acres of cyclone fencing). Its trite, cliche…but truly, it is the cycle of life here on our farm.
Wonderful story!! Thanks for letting others enjoy your experience.
You’re so LUCKY!! That’s adorable.