Free range chickens for eggs following cattle.

[som farmer]

the cheapest mobile housing for chicken, is old caravans, unfortunately, planners and customers, don't like them ! Not to far from us, there was a biggish free range egg unit, the 'housing' was big bales, and tarpaulin's, very cheap in housing, but much more labour intensive. Change over, and cleaning out, was easy, a match ! But, the system worked, was cheap, easy, and practical.

 

[hillman]

Just out of curiosity what are folk charging for these eggs is there a premium above free range ?
For winter how do the mobile hen caravans work , ie for heat , daylight hrs etc ?
Have also been mulling this idea over ?

 

[britt]

Most on about £1.20/half dozen for farm gate FR eggs around here.
I have an armoured cable trailing out over the field for power for lights and fence energiser so it can mover with the house. Water pipe with it.

 

[Grassman]

we use these.

Chicken layer sheds

Find out about the Pukka Pens range of economical chicken layer sheds.

www.pukkapensltd.com

 

[Beekissed]

Like @Poorbuthappy we've been playing around with pastured chickens behind cattle. It works really well, customers are practically fighting over the eggs, the chickens do really well on the system...but it is a fag moving the netting and now the fox has learnt their habits, we haven't got many chickens left. We borrowed a neighbours alpacas for a bit. They kept the foxes a bay, but it got too complicated keeping them away from the beasts.

We're trying to think of a hybrid system, maybe fox fencing a whole area (with no footpaths...people and dogs aren't that chicken friendly) and moving the hutches within that. Keeping them on the move saves food, spreads fertility and keeps disease down. Work in progress.

Was wondering why you couldn't use a livestock guardian dog in your field and eliminate the net fencing altogether. The chickens won't range far from the shelter and the dog could cover the whole area. Much easier to maintain a dog that will eliminate your fox problem than it is to keep a llama and netting. Of course, the netting insures all your eggs are laid in the coop instead of out in the bush, so that might be a factor.

 

[Poorbuthappy]

Was wondering why you couldn't use a livestock guardian dog in your field and eliminate the net fencing altogether. The chickens won't range far from the shelter and the dog could cover the whole area. Much easier to maintain a dog that will eliminate your fox problem than it is to keep a llama and netting. Of course, the netting insures all your eggs are laid in the coop instead of out in the bush, so that might be a factor.

We tend to have lots of smaller fields with hedges and wooded areas over here, though martian's fields would be larger than ours. Hens do wonder off into the hedges etc where they are not under the protection of guardians of whatever sort.
Guardian dogs are not common here, perhaps not least because of the number of footpaths/ public interaction?

 

[Beekissed]

We tend to have lots of smaller fields with hedges and wooded areas over here, though martian's fields would be larger than ours. Hens do wonder off into the hedges etc where they are not under the protection of guardians of whatever sort.
Guardian dogs are not common here, perhaps not least because of the number of footpaths/ public interaction?

Do you still have perimeter fencing around the farms or do people traipse through your land willy nilly?

 

[Poorbuthappy]

Do you still have perimeter fencing around the farms or do people traipse through your land willy nilly?

Scotland has a "right to roam" whereby people can walk pretty much anywhere. Rest of uk is a network of public footpaths and bridle ways across farms, which people sometimes stick to!

 

[Beekissed]

Scotland has a "right to roam" whereby people can walk pretty much anywhere. Rest of uk is a network of public footpaths and bridle ways across farms, which people sometimes stick to!

Wow! That wouldn't fly here at all. Trespassing is what it's called here and it's a huge no-no and can even get one fined. In some places it can get one severely chewed by dogs or a warning shot fired nearby. State parks are for walking about, not privately owned land.

Since your biggest predator is fox, a simple farm mutt would suffice and you could contain him with the type of fence we often use here to contain LGDs....just electric containment that we fasten to the existing fence or run under the soil, some lay it directly onto the soil and let the grass take it over if it's going to be in an area that doesn't get mowed. The dog wears a receiver collar and gets a shock if crossing the fence, but people can walk on it all day long with no worries.

A nice Lab or two would be friendly to folks walking by but still take care of your fox problem. Wouldn't likely bite anyone, either.

Around here we use the heavier force of the LGD breeds due to bigger predator situations. On my land we have coyote, bobcat, black bear and fox~as well as stray dogs, often the worst predator of all~ while other people in the states are also dealing with cougars, lynx, wolf, brown bear or grizzly.

 

[Netherfield]

Try to spread the age of the birds, then they aren't all needing replacement at the same time leaving you with no eggs at all. Although you would probably need leg rings to identify which are which.

 

[Poorbuthappy]

Try to spread the age of the birds, then they aren't all needing replacement at the same time leaving you with no eggs at all. Although you would probably need leg rings to identify which are which.

I've stated before, but my daughter usually runs 2 batches, changing alternate ones each year at the end of summer/ early autumn. This way she doesn't use any lighting but they lay very well through winter. 2 batches means no bullying with mixing too, though does increase workload over 1 large batch.

 

[anzani]

Fair comment.
But maybe the first tractor wouldn't be too much heavier to shift if a few feet taller to accommodate perches?

Take a look at this:

 

[Chasingmytail]

Just out of curiosity what are folk charging for these eggs is there a premium above free range ?
For winter how do the mobile hen caravans work , ie for heat , daylight hrs etc ?
Have also been mulling this idea over ?

we sold ours organic £2 for 6 and tray £8.50 but that was pushing it for overheads.

In the winter the caravan came inside the shed and heras fencing some soil bungles, sticks etc. We set up lighting with strip lights. No way can you leave them out once it get muddy and wet they get miserable and dont lay plus the eggs get so dirty. Our system worked well but that wouldnt work now as we have no free shed space. If you dont use the lighting then the drop in production makes it pointless. Also getting rid of birds was a bit of a nightmare. The system has to be the same they all have to go. I was doing bungles of min 5. I did get rid but it took time and a lot of timewasters.

When we had that bad snow a few years ago it blew into the shed I was glad most were in the caravan but some perished outside as it was so cold and snow deep. All in all they were happy with the set up over winter plus they didnt need to be shut in because the heras fencing kept them safe.

 

[Chasingmytail]

Back to the question at the start we were going to move them with the cattle but that became impossible. Time we moved the cattle set up water, jigged the electric, etc etc no way was there another hour to move the caravan. Also for us we contained them within an electric fence system and because of the goshawk attacks ended up putting netting over. All of this took about 1hr. Ended up moving them from every 2 weeks to 6 weeks it just became too time consuming. Our fields would be wet and impossible to get the tractor on the field, the mess. The hills and dips. Also there are too many footpaths and areas where I wouldnt leave the chickens. They had to be contained within a walking distance to shut them in at night and away from the public.

 

[Dan@JF]

I'm toying with this exact thing. Have tried a couple of different drag chicken tractors but don't really like them. On the look out for an old cheap livestock box. Will fit in IBC and external drinker and a "safe zone" pull out electric fencing area. I have found netting for a whole paddock on daily moves is almost impossible (it has to be simple). Shut in at night and open in morning with an auto closer.

Forgetting the practicalities, the way they spread and "harrow" the cow sh!t is mental. (although not when too wet)