Adding a bottom and possibly tractoring a prefab coop

sweethavenarts

Hatching
8 Years
Jun 16, 2011
3
0
7
Hello. I live in uber suburban colorado and recently discovered the HOA now allows chickens. So I read through all the rules, filled out my paper work, and I've been approved for chickens.
I'm so excited I could scream. :cool:
I bought a prefab coop because it meet the specific requirements. Now I'm trying to make it more chicken friendly.
This is the coop I bought (and by the way, only paid like half of that price). http://www.chickencoopsource.com/ch.../precisionpetproductshenhousechickencoop1.cfm It has no bottom. I think it need some sort of bottom. My first thought was to attach some sort of wire mesh to the bottom. Is there one that is better than another? The coop itself has a 1 inch (aprox) square mesh all around and I was thinking of getting something similar. Yes, there are predators to worry about, we have a wandering cat in the neighborhood and I've seen some predator birds in my back yard. There have been fox and raccoon sightings in the neighborhood because we are close to open space, but I have never seen them or evidence of them in my back yard.
I'm also thinking of converting it to a tractor. It's pretty light. My first thought was to just attach some boards along the long sides to pick up. I also wonder about some sort of wheels but I'm not sure what.
I'm pretty handy with the power tools, though I've got three little kids so my time with said power tools is pretty short. (Hence the prefab.)
And as an aside, I have to paint the main part of the coop to match the house. Yes really. And I'm probably going to paint the asphalt shingles on the top so they match the shingles on my house. YES, REALLY.
 
I am not good with power tools but I bought an ark with no bottom and knew I had to do something to keep predators from burrowing underneath, especially living on a hill as I do. Even in city limits I see raccoons, rats, skunks and possums as well as hawks and crows. I just bought a roll of hardware cloth and some poultry staples and metal snips at the Home Depot and hammered that hardware cloth to the bottom leaving an apron around the sides. I hit my thumb with the hammer a few times and it is not the prettiest thing ever but it did not take long. I'd say the mesh is half an inch, not as tight as the sides of the ark.
A few weeks ago something did tunnel under the bottom (skunk I believe) and I was so glad I took that precaution. After that I piled some large rocks where the digging took place and that seems to have ended the unsuccessful attempts. Have fun!
 

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