29/06/2025 00:00
The Guardian
Disease and predation are problems in populations that are allowed to roam but animal advocates argue those issues can be mitigatedSign up for the Rural Network email newsletterNear Lake Macquarie on the central coast of New South Wales, Belinda Stauner-Dawson is running what appears to be a chicken utopia. Her 60 egg-laying ISA Brown hens – a popular laying breed – have the run of a 1.4-hectare paddock. Each day they have access to fresh, green pasture and they come and go as they please from a chicken caravan – a trailer with a water tank, feed and roosting perches. Keeping a watchful eye over them are two permanent guardian maremma dogs. Stauner-Dawson prides herself on happy chooks and their eggs, with golden yellow yolks, which are sold to farm-gate customers and to an organic butcher.The utopia is not without challenges. Stauner-Dawson worms her “girls” twice a year and moves the caravan regularly to reduce parasites, and is wary of diseases, such as avian influenza, which may be introduced from wild birds. Predation has also been a major problem in the past.Sign up to receive Guardian Australia’s fortnightly Rural Network email newsletter Continue reading...
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