PROTECTING YOUR CHICKENS

Too many beginning chicken-keepers find out the hard way that chickens need to be fenced in. For one thing, you may want to protect your garden (not to mention your neighbor’s) and other vegetation from the chickens. More important, you certainly want to protect your precious chickens from predators such as hawks, raccoons, skunks, weasels, cats, dogs, kids, and cars. We’ve heard many a sad tale of the disappearance of feathered pets. The following accounts offer examples of what happens when chickens are exposed to the cruel and hungry world.

GRIM TALES

We frequently see hawks flying around our area, and several times, we have managed to chase them away from our yard before they did any damage. But one year, before we put up a covered run, we witnessed a hawk carry off our little black bantam hen. One minute, she was happily scratching the soil nearby, the next minute, she was in the hawk’s clutches, disappearing into the sky. Some of our friends with hawks living on their properties are certain that the raptors would never touch their chickens. Maybe, maybe not. Trust us—all it takes is one swift and sudden swoop to result in the loss of a beloved pet.

In earlier times, chickens commonly ran loose in people’s yards, and, in some areas, you still see flocks foraging along the road. Initially, our own chickens ran loose in our yard, and occasionally a mother hen would take her brood across the road to cultivate the neighbor’s petunias. One day, an old farmer in overalls stopped his vintage pick-up, watched the chicks cross, and then drove on with a toothless grin on his face.

But, traffic can be hazardous to a chicken’s health. Soon after we started raising chickens, we experienced rapid population growth in our area and the accompanying advent of fast-and-furious traffic passing our suburban home. Nowadays, drivers with patience and understanding are rare, and the traffic is so bad that we get nervous just crossing the road to the mailbox each day. To protect our chickens, and our own mental health, we constructed a proper coop with enclosed runs all around.

DOGS AND KIDS

People tend to believe that, if they raise their dogs and chickens together, the dogs will learn not to go after the chickens. One of our neighbors told us that his dog let little chicks play between his paws, and take naps under his chin. He said the dog even kept the chickens away from his unfenced garden. We were so impressed that we went out and got ourselves a puppy. We thought that we would train him to help keep our chickens in line. We thought that the puppy might also protect the flock by keeping away nighttime marauders, or at least alert us to them by barking.

All went well until he was about 4 months old. Then, one day, when we went out to feed the chickens, we found half a dozen recently killed cockerels lined up in neat order. We called the puppy over and told him how upset we were and explained that he mustn’t do it again. The dog seemed to understand, and for some time didn’t engage in any more chicken-killing. A few days later, we saw him chasing chickens again—this time with his tail between his legs. The puppy knew that what he was doing was wrong, but he simply couldn’t resist.

In the long run, the neighbor, whose experience had initially encouraged us to get a dog, didn’t fare well with his dog either. The dog got a bit too frisky with the chicks and killed some of them by accident. He was so ashamed that he buried the bodies. Our neighbor didn’t know where his chicks had disappeared to until a few days later, when he came across the loose dirt.

And that dog went on to do more gruesome deeds. One night, he broke out of his yard, headed straight for our show bantams, and chewed the legs off several of our best hens. He was a canine Jekyll and Hyde.

As for kids—well, we never understood what they get out of it, but some children seem to find great fun in throwing stones at roosting chickens, or chasing chickens around the yard until they’re frantic with fright. Youngsters who help care for their family’s flock usually develop a love and respect for the birds. But, the chickens might still need protection from not-so-well-behaved visitors.

We could write a whole book detailing the gruesome demise of various poultry pets of our friends and neighbors. Suffice it to say that a nice, strong pen will keep your flock safe from most such fates.