PSA: My neighbor's free-range flock gave me a reality check on biosecurity

I was bragging about my 6 hens having the whole backyard to roam, and my neighbor Mike (he keeps 30 birds) just shook his head. He told me about losing 4 to avian pox last summer because wild birds were sharing their feed. Now I'm looking at my open feeder and thinking about that $25 roll of hardware cloth sitting in my garage - maybe I should actually use it.

2 comments

2 Comments

thea24623d ago

That neighbor Mike sounds like he learned the hard way. It's one of those things where a small shortcut turns into a big problem later. Reminds me of how folks will skip changing the oil in their truck for six months to save fifty bucks, then end up with a seized engine. Same with the neighbor who never cleans his gutters until the water's pouring into his basement. We all know the right move, but it's easy to figure it'll be fine until it isn't. Hardware cloth is cheap compared to losing a whole flock.

jadeg8123d ago

Nail some hardware cloth over every possible gap before you even get the birds. Check around the bottom of the coop where they might dig out too. Saves you a lot of heartache later.