[psychobabble]

Hi, i have for some time been considering getting a couple of chickens, the only thing stopping me is what to do with them when we go on our hols!

I was planning on building a run attached to the coop, the run would be an enclosed box of wiremesh buried in earth and I was thinking of also digging down a fair bit and sinking some concrete or breeze blocks around it to further attempt to fox-proof it.

I guess my question is - would this be adequate to keep foxes out most of the time, and hen we do go away will the chickens "put themselves to bed" - if I can make it secure enough would it be OK to leave them?  I could easily get someone to come and feed them, but its the letting them out and putting them away that's the problem!"

Many thanks!

X
   

[joyfull]

if you can get somebody to check on them, feed and water them, collect the eggs then for a weekend it should be ok.
You could always invest in an auto pop hole opener so whoever goes to see to them can come and see to them at anytime and your girls will be let in and out at a regular time and no risk of draughts overnight  .

[Tigerwren]

Hi Psychobabble, your ideas sound great and you are obviously putting a lot of effort into ensuring that  your girls will be safe.  A lot of people use automatic pop hole openers so that would ensure that your girls were let out and put to bed safely.  Most chickens will go into their coop at dusk (if they don't prefer to roost).  I have four girls, three of which put themselves to bed no problem, the other I have to go and get.  
As to the wiremesh, there are threads on the forum which discuss the type and size of the mesh so that might help.  Will it have a roof?  Foxes can jump/ scramble quite high..
Will your girls stay in the run all of the time?  What would you do about fresh water and food?  Would your friend check on the water etc for you? You also need to think about how long you are going away for.  Would your friend collect your eggs for you and give your girls the once over to check they are ok?
You can definitely do it, and ensure that your girls are safe.  I am sure someone much more knowledgeable than me will be along very soon with advice.  Good luck!

[Lindeggs]

Hello and welcome, psychobabble (may we call you psycho for short?  )

When you go on holiday is it only for a day or two at a time, and only in summer?  If you could be really sure that your run is fox-proof then in summer you should be fine leaving the pop-hole door open and the chickens can put themselves to bed.

There are lots of threads on here about fox-proofing your run, but it sounds like you're off to a good start.  It's a hot topic so I'm sure others will be along to give you more details.  

There are also threads about how to make your own automatic pop-hole opener.  Even if you're not planning to have one right now, it is worth considering what's required so you can choose a coop that can be easily retrofitted.  

Then if you have someone who can check food and water and collect eggs daily, you can start planning your next holiday.  

P.S. while I was typing I see there are more answers along the same lines.  We're not really robots though.

[joyfull]

some of us just type short messages to get there first 

[Tigerwren]

Haha Joyful!  You must have done that whilst I typed (slowly)!!

[joyfull]

 

[jamima]

 Am sure some kind neighbour would be able to help you out in return for some lovely eggs 

[grumpydad]

depends where you are in the country, there are several chicken boarders, who will look after your chucks when you are away, usually up to 6, and will either use the food you supply or your own to maintain their normal food chain

[craig1981]

i just googled pet sitter and my local area and hey presto i now have a local pet sitting company who come and see to my girls twice a day when im away . They do whatever i ask of them and even collect the eggs and date them for me . They charge me £8 a day for the 2 visits

[hennyandpenny]

We went away for a week last Christmas,I''ve got a good sized run attatched to their house and I never shut their door. The whole run is wrapped in chook wire and fine mesh,just got my mum to collect eggs every couple of days and top up feeder/water(put large feeder+water in so did'nt need topup)They used to go in at night but now sit on there outside perch(well its like a porch area).

[ManicMum]

Try neighbours with small children (to teach them where food comes from) or local teenagers (always glad of a bit of pocket money and often animal-mad). 

People who keep chickens themselves will often help out on a swapsies basis.

Loval vets may be able to suggest other chicken keepers locally and would probably know the animal-mad youngsters