Tucson, AZ predators

[harpojaeger]

Hi there,
I'm a new BYC member, but I've been raising chickens back at my parents' house in New England for a long time. I've just moved to Tucson, AZ, and would appreciate some advice from other Southwest BYCers about what kinds of predators I need to be thinking about out here. I'm designing a small mobile run – basically a large-ish tractor with one shaded side – for only about 4 hens, and I want to figure out what sort of house to buy or build to lock them up in at night.

The run will be enclosed, so birds aren't an issue. I don't know much about what kinds of mammals (or reptiles) are present out here. Any advice appreciated!

Thanks,
-Harpo

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

Hi Harpo, welcome to Tucson and

Unfortunately, Tucson has a rather high density of predators. You'll have to build to protect against dogs, coyotes, bobcats, foxes, raccoons, skunks, hawks and owls. Here in the center of town coyotes have been the biggest problem and they regularly try to get at our birds. I had one grab a bird right in front of me in the middle of the morning. Have a look at the "My Coop" page link just under my avatar for a discussion on the predator proofing I've done for the coop and run. Over the next few months, the heat will be as big of a threat as predators, so be sure to build in lots of ventilation and shade. As you make plans for your chicken enclosure, stop by the BYC Arizona thread and ask lots of questions, we like to help.

 

[harpojaeger]

Wow, thanks! I looked over your coop design – impressive. I don't have the space or resources to put something like that together right now, but it seems that the essential elements are good protection from diggers, and shade/airflow. Coyotes are big enough that I probably want something a little tougher than standard chicken wire; I like the idea of 1/2" mesh.
Realistically, and since we're only getting four birds for now, the coop will be quite small, with only one nesting box. And given our space constraints, I'm thinking a wood frame with wire on every side, including the bottom, simply sunk a few inches into the ground (and with a door on one end). This has the advantage of being fairly mobile, too – we may be moving within a year, and we'd be able to just dig up the bottom and bring the thing along with us.