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by Shatzee coming back? on August 20th, 2009
Yes, that would be considered free range. Many egg laying hens spend their life in a cage so small they cant even turn around. On your acre they would have a place to roam and scratch and dust themselves. Things chickens do naturally. The number of sheds you have should depend on the size of the shed. The birds will naturally roost together for safety, so you may consider one extra large shed or at least 2 good sized sheds.
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You're reading Are (is) 270 chickens on an acre sustainable would this be considered Free Range? Do they need one coop or would they use 9 smaller "sheds" or cluster in just one?
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I read that chickens do not roam far from the coop. So I wanted to spread it out a bit. I was thinking 9 smaller 'sheds' in a semi circle from a central 'pond', a 12 to 18 inch deep pool of water. Each shed has a floor space of 15' by 9', each with 24 nesting boxes and two rows of roosts. It is my understanding that chickens tend to share nesting boxes.
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I was thinking Rhode Island Reds with a separate hatchery/chick area outside of the acre. Too much?
by Athrael on August 20th, 2009
I would recommend you doing some more research on it. I am going by my own personal experience of raising chickens on the farm I grew up on. But we did not have that many chickens. You could maybe start out with the smaller sheds and watch what they do. Do they use them all or do they all try to cram into one together? And whatever fencing you use, make sure it is strong enough to keep out any predators and also placed into the ground far enough, nothing can dig under the fence.
by Shatzee coming back? on August 20th, 2009