1st shot at a portable playpen for my hens ... made of PVC pipes

[Bratty477]

New to this backyard chicken movement and so excited that I had to share my first portable playpen for my hens ... made of PVC pipes, chicken wire on the side and bird netting on top. I wanted them to be foraging around different parts of my backyard without worrying about hawks or the stray animals that tend to show up here and there and this is what we decided was best at the moment. It's not too heavy so the kids and I can easily move it and I recycled an old toy rack for them to roost on (with perfect square bars which they seem to love!). The top actually opens up (or flips up for ease of access/closure). Lots of zip ties though!! LOL

Anyone else have portable runs they want to share?? I'd be interested in looking to how I can make improvements to this thing...

 

[rougerage16]

That toy rack is a great idea! I love it.I do not have a portable run but wish I did, this looks easy to make. Thanks for posting!

 

[dheltzel]

Looks good. A few "concerns" if I were doing it.
- not super predator proof, a dog can nose under it and get in quickly. Big trade off in terms of weight to fix that though.
- no shade or rain shelter. Adding a tarp over top would help with that, but might turn it into a giant kite with some wind.
- zip ties tend to get brittle and break, some brands, types are worse than others. Get ones that are made for outside (UV safe), or better yet, use wire, galvanized or my favorite, leftover copper wire from the last wiring project.

None of these are terrible if this is a short term, somewhat supervised, playpen. I'm just pointing out where it could go wrong before it does, hopefully saving you some grief as a result of my experience.

 

[Bratty477]

Looks good. A few "concerns" if I were doing it.
- not super predator proof, a dog can nose under it and get in quickly. Big trade off in terms of weight to fix that though.
- no shade or rain shelter. Adding a tarp over top would help with that, but might turn it into a giant kite with some wind.
- zip ties tend to get brittle and break, some brands, types are worse than others. Get ones that are made for outside (UV safe), or better yet, use wire, galvanized or my favorite, leftover copper wire from the last wiring project.

None of these are terrible if this is a short term, somewhat supervised, playpen. I'm just pointing out where it could go wrong before it does, hopefully saving you some grief as a result of my experience.

Great suggestions!! Thank you so much for sharing! At the moment, they're still supervised but will continue to make improvements...like the ones you mentioned!