I used to keep chickens and only stopped because of a crazy neighbour who claimed to the HA that they were so noisy they were stopping her sleeping (she walked up to the coop, at the end of the garden, out her phone next to the coop, recorded the clucks as they laid an egg, and claimed that was the constant noise she heard from the bedroom). They really, really weren't - chickens aren't noisy unless you have a rooster - by my HA is shit and my neighbour is insane. I was technically protected by the Allotment Act 1947, which has never been repealed and means anyone can keep chickens or rabbits as long as they're not a health hazard, which three chickens in a large garden are not.
My other neighbours were disappointed the hens had left and I plan on getting them back again once the neighbour moves out.
Anyway...
Be REALLY strict with the digging down to stop foxes getting in - the guidelines is to think of anywhere there could a gap big enough for a squirrel. Foxes are skinny fuckers that can squeeze through small gaps. Almost every new hen owner loses some hens to start with until they get used to how strict and safe you have to be.
Get an automatic feeder, and if you can afford it get an automatic waterer. Hand treats like cabbages off hooks to give them some enrichment activity.
Clean them out a little every day when collecting the eggs (and collect the eggs every day, or they might either start eating them or fruitlessly trying to hatch them). Chicken shit is not a big deal - wear gardening gloves you keep just for that purpose, scoop out the poo from their sleeping and laying area, and some of the straw, and throw it in the compost. Then do a proper clean once a week or so.
If you can make the run human height it makes it far easier to clean.
Limewash the inside of any wooden areas - it helps protect against mites and helps with light levels.
Write the date on the eggs with a biro so you remember which ones are the newest.
Don't worry about getting them into bed at dusk; they will go in of their own accord. However, I did bell-train my hens. Rang a bell every time I gave them a treat, like watermelon or fresh veg or whatever, and then when I rang the bell they'd all come running to the coop.
With ex-barn hens - and some of these might be ex-battery hens due to confinement due to bird flu - it's not hugely unusual for one to just die within a couple of weeks. They were unhealthy hens and it would have happened anywhere. That's one reason you need three; solo hens are unhappy, and they need at least one other hen, preferably two, to snuggle against at night, or they will be really cold.
They are usually very friendly. Hold them firmly when you pick them up and they'll sit there quite happily. They will also sit on your lap, but only let them do it on a blanket, because hens shit a lot.
They can eat most vegetable scraps but NO onions or anything similar, no spices, no dairy, and no meat - they are omnivores but only in very small amounts, and they'll be getting that when pecking around for worms etc. Hens like porridge oats (no milk!) in winter. Camomile tea is nice for them too. They cope with snow really well.
If you want them to free-roam, you can't let them do it over the whole garden, because they have sharp claws and will destroy everything. You could cordon off an area of the garden and put up a wire fence that's dug into the ground. A green wire fence (green chicken wire - very cheap) isn't very visible. I also put fairy lights on the top of mine, so it actually looked quite nice.
If you have a broody hen, you can give them a fake rubber egg and they'll be quite happy with that, but they will stop laying, and might stop coming outside long enough to stay healthy. Generally it's best to just make sure you're removing the eggs quickly enough that they don't get broody.
I think that's it...
They are lovely animals, tons of personality and character. I miss mine a lot.
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