Chicken & Cats ?

[argeybargey]

We have been wanting to get chickens for , oioh , about three years now. Anyway we are finally close to biting the bullet ....but want to make sure that everything will be ok for the chickens befdore we go ahead...what do we need to consider as regards chickens & cats (we have three) ? Also are chickens content with a spacious run (rather than access free style to whole garden - which we can't do even though we would like to due to neighbours/boundaries etc)? Also (sorry-lots of questions)will the chickens get spooked /stressed by the cats and be too unhappy to lay ? We'd rather no chicks than unhappy ones...any help appreciated , thankyou !

Hi, try the chicken keepers section too - or the omlet forum elsewhere.

My chickens chase my cats and they keep a respectful distance from one another.

My feathered ladies have a large run on their chicken house (eglu cube) and a fenced area to free range in at the top of the garden.

Ours are in a run approx 12 foot x 15 foot & seem reasonably content (still grassy & they haven't turned it into a total mud bath so far after a year there) with a wooden ark inside. We chuck in plenty of extra vegetation to keep them happy (ie any weeds that shouldn't go in the compost heap!)

Cats - have never known them to interact at all with fully grown chickens (have had completely full range chickens together with pretty feral cats in the past). I wouldn't leave a cat that likes hunting with free access to small chicks though

We also have a cat who is very respectful of the chooks.
Never seen her go near them tbh - they have their own fenced off section of the garden, with a wooden ark/run as well for when I go out, or something.

Having only recently got ours, I never realised before quite how much I wouldn't want them copped up in the tiny run all day...it's 6x4 under the roosting bit, like a tringle shaped one, but every day when they come out the give a good old wing stretch and run about, they really do need to scratch about somewhere interesting.

I think even a large covered run would be fine, or an enclosed bit of the garden - is this feasible? There were some great pics on here a few weeks ago of someone's enclosed run. Can't think of her name now.

Our area is about 30x40 and they seem really happy.

the area we use is semi cleared woodland, so plenty of dry earth to scratch in and i also seeded about half of it randomly with grass...bought a bag from scats! They just like the mud mostly but do eat the grass.

they like some shade and some sun, somewhere to have a dust bath, etc

some types fly less and run less...ask your local farmer. leghorns not included in this!

My cats would never go near my chooks when they are fully grown but they would have a go at chicks/pullets.

Our cats and dogs have never troubled our chickens or pullets, and visa versa! Our's free range, or long range is more like it, has been known to see one of the cats stretched out asleep in chickens dust box! Bearing in mind one of our cats regularly brings us baby and juvenile rabbits (wild not pet )I don't think you need to worry.

By the time chicks are old enough to go outside, they are big enough to take care of themselves, although we don't let ours free range at this tender age,we have them in a run until they are a little older.

A good sized run is fine for the chickens, you don't have to give over all your garden to them, some greens help keep them amused, and if you get a moveable run and ark type of housing then you can move them around the garden to rest the grass if need be.

Have fun