but, but...if coons can pull doors off hinges, are locks failsafe?

[Shelly_WNC]

You have a great coop, I agree with crosbygroup just add a few more heavy duty latches and LOCK them daily to be safe.

I am now very afraid of raccons getting my chicks and they aren't even outside yet, but from the horror stories I read - yikes!

 

[ivan3]

Nice Coop. Both your main door and the horizontal swinging door can be reinforced with lengths of 2"x4"'s (run lengths along outside edge of door below window/and on wall adjacent to it (just under your window frame), Your `walk-in' door could be framed with same around inside edges of door and frame of door formed by the interior walls. This would allow you to use longer fasteners (bolts running through both 2"x4"s and walls), would leave no `wiggle room' betweens doors and walls, this also allows for your `locks' to be attached to the 2"x4"'s instead of a thinner product. That is probably overkill. You could also run strips of 1"X4"'s around the outside edges of both doors (might be more attractive), so ~1.5" overlap the edges and cover any gaps - excepting hinged side of walk-in door = 2"x4" along inside of door; coons then can't spend time splintering away the edges of fissures, when doors are flush to walls and locked down.

Coons, in my experience, are only as smart as they are hungry. Easy meat in a trap trumps burning up that otherwise hard to obtain `energy' trying to noodle out a `latch'.

 

[silkiechick05]

If you are talking about running electricity to the coop for the electric fence, that isn't necessary.

My electric fence is solar powered