The Downside of Freerange Chickens

I wrote before about protecting freerange chickens from predators but sadly, as I noted at the time, if you keep chickens, you are always likely to loose a few. In fact, as Marye has already noted in her post on chicken tractors, unless you keep your chickens permanently inside a coop or run, you will inevitably lose some to hawks, raccoons, dogs, and whatever else.

My wife and I resisted the inevitable for a long time, allowing our hens to roam free during the day, enjoying the fact that chickens provide great bug control, not to mention the fact they act as natural garbage disposals. But this Thanksgiving morning we were greeted with a sight that made us change our minds. Only an hour after I let the ladies out on a beautiful holiday morning, my wife stepped into the backyard to find Henrietta and Kitchen, our two favorite hens, laying dead, apparently killed by what we suspect was a dog. (The birds were not eaten, and had been shaken about some—which suggests to us a creature not hunting for food, but rather 'playing' with our babies.)

WATCH VIDEO: Steve Thomas explores why you should keep your chicken coop simple!

While we do accept that losing a few hens here and there is the inevitable downside of allowing them to roam free, this blow was a little too much for us

Need proof that it's possible to balance being green and still be a supportive partner and parent? See how Ed Begley, Jr. does it on Planet Green TV's Living with Ed.