Everyday flock-care basics for UK keepers

Good flock care is mostly routine: a dry house, clean water, the right feed, and a keeper who notices when something changes. This is a short checklist built from the government's welfare guidance and the RSPCA's advice on keeping chickens, with links to the originals.

The welfare needs you're responsible for

In England, GOV.UK's guidance on looking after farm animal welfare explains that under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 owners must meet their animals' needs. For a small flock, those needs come down to:

• A suitable place to live: shelter that keeps birds dry and safe.
• A suitable diet, with water always available.
• The chance to behave normally: scratching, dust bathing, perching and laying in a nest.
• Company, or separation where that's needed. Chickens are flock animals.
• Protection from pain, injury, suffering and disease.

Defra's poultry welfare recommendations go into much more detail, and are worth reading if you keep more than a handful of birds.

Housing

The RSPCA's chicken care advice asks for a house that is warm, dry and well ventilated, with perches and nest boxes. Ventilation and draughts are different things. Air should move above the birds' heads, not blow across them on the perch. Check for damp bedding, a musty smell or condensation, and fix leaks before winter.

The RSPCA advises making sure all your chickens are in the coop at night. It also notes that ordinary chicken wire won't always keep predators out of a run, and suggests welded mesh instead.

Feed and water

Laying hens need a complete layers feed, insoluble grit, and constant access to clean water. Check drinkers every day, and more often in a freeze, because a frozen drinker in the morning means thirsty birds by lunchtime. The RSPCA points out that it's illegal to feed kitchen scraps to chickens, because of the disease risk.

Company and normal behaviour

The RSPCA recommends keeping at least three hens that get on together. Give them room to scratch and a dry spot to dust bathe.

Health checks

Look at your birds every day, not just the eggs. Watch for a bird that hunches, hides, stops eating, or has discharge from its eyes or nostrils. Lift the perches now and then to check for red mite. A daily egg count helps here too, because a sudden drop is often the first sign that something has changed.

If a bird seems unwell, ask a vet rather than guessing. Avoid treating with medicines you have to hand unless a vet has told you to. If you suspect bird flu, the law requires you to report it immediately, even if the signs are mild. GOV.UK explains how to spot and report bird flu.

Simple biosecurity

Most of what keeps disease out is cheap and dull. GOV.UK's bird flu prevention guidance covers it in full. The basics:

• Keep feed, water and bedding covered, where wild birds can't reach them.
• Keep a pair of boots just for the run, and clean them before you go in.
• Fence off or net ponds and standing water that wild ducks and geese visit.
• Keep ducks and geese apart from chickens where you can.
• Keep new birds separate at first, and check their health before they arrive.
• Limit visitors to people who need to be there.

Bird flu rules change

Shows and sales can also be cancelled when gatherings of poultry are banned. Our shows directory links to each organiser so you can check before you travel. And if you keep birds in England or Wales, make sure you're registered with APHA, as GOV.UK requires.