My grandmother lived in a log cabin in the woods of northern Ontario. Her rooster loved to forage deeper in the woods and the hens would follow, but not all came back. Annoyed at the steady losses, she tied a long rope to the leg of the rooster and the hens would always stay in his general area. No more losses.
@@LivingThatSimpleLife This was during the depression when jobs and money were hard to get. They lived at the top of Lake Superior and grandfather got a job sweeping out the Canadian Pacific rail boxcars of wheat after they transferred the load to eastbound Canadian National boxcars. He swept everything into sacks that he'd take home (hitching a ride on a northbound CP train). Grandmother would clean some wheat to make bread, the rest was free chicken feed. It wasn't a prestigious job but it fed literally everyone.
Any suggestions for young hens to know where to lay. I let them start free roaming at about 5 months in the fenced back area. But now at 7 months they're not laying either in the coop or the surrounding area that I can see. They also don't sleep in the coop but on top of the hoop coop. I do keep food bowls inside of it. Can't pen them up right now because of the 110 degree weather in Arizona😔
Do you have a rooster? I noticed he tends to keep my hens in line. When I intergrate I will most likely put the adult hens in the closed in pen with the 6 month old chicks. they they will show them where to lay in the coop. I will keep them all together in the coop and fenced area for a good 2 weeks. Once the youngins are laying I will give everyone more freedom. Once the weather is cooler get them back in the coop and leave them there for a week or 2. They are pretty easy to retrain.
@@LivingThatSimpleLife yes I have two roosters for fourteen hens. I had started feeding them outside of the coop, so your suggestion about only feeding inside might work. I have no mature hens that are laying. A neighbor has the Hen that had all of the ones I have.
My grandmother lived in a log cabin in the woods of northern Ontario. Her rooster loved to forage deeper in the woods and the hens would follow, but not all came back. Annoyed at the steady losses, she tied a long rope to the leg of the rooster and the hens would always stay in his general area. No more losses.
This story made me chuckle. We learn as we go and you do what you have to do...LOL LOVE this!
@@LivingThatSimpleLife This was during the depression when jobs and money were hard to get. They lived at the top of Lake Superior and grandfather got a job sweeping out the Canadian Pacific rail boxcars of wheat after they transferred the load to eastbound Canadian National boxcars. He swept everything into sacks that he'd take home (hitching a ride on a northbound CP train). Grandmother would clean some wheat to make bread, the rest was free chicken feed. It wasn't a prestigious job but it fed literally everyone.
Any suggestions for young hens to know where to lay. I let them start free roaming at about 5 months in the fenced back area. But now at 7 months they're not laying either in the coop or the surrounding area that I can see. They also don't sleep in the coop but on top of the hoop coop. I do keep food bowls inside of it. Can't pen them up right now because of the 110 degree weather in Arizona😔
Do you have a rooster? I noticed he tends to keep my hens in line. When I intergrate I will most likely put the adult hens in the closed in pen with the 6 month old chicks. they they will show them where to lay in the coop. I will keep them all together in the coop and fenced area for a good 2 weeks. Once the youngins are laying I will give everyone more freedom. Once the weather is cooler get them back in the coop and leave them there for a week or 2. They are pretty easy to retrain.
@@LivingThatSimpleLife yes I have two roosters for fourteen hens. I had started feeding them outside of the coop, so your suggestion about only feeding inside might work. I have no mature hens that are laying. A neighbor has the Hen that had all of the ones I have.