Chickens dig tunnels?!?

[kwhites634]

Oh geez!!! You have naughty chickens!!! My temporary hole blocks only lasted three hours I went and found ollllld shingles and have made my own skirt around the coop, again only temporarily.

Shingles sound like a good idea. Never thought of that one.

 

[HuskerHens18]

Shingles sound like a good idea. Never thought of that one.

It worked through the night! There are a few extra, I might try burying them in places and see if I can get this to last a little longer. Because that would be great

 

[kwhites634]

It worked through the night! There are a few extra, I might try burying them in places and see if I can get this to last a little longer. Because that would be great

Pleasant surprise, for a change.

 

[HuskerHens18]

Pleasant surprise, for a change.

Haha yes! I am not sure the last time I had a pleasant surprise. Usually they're all terrible surprises, like finding your dog wanted to get up earlier, so he became the hulk and made a giant hole in the side of his wire kennel, then had a few accidents on his way to find you.

 

[cmom]

I have had a few dig out over the years but I stake down the wire and put some 1 ft. chicken wire around where they dug out.

 

[Coop de Grass]

I have had to wrap a skirt of 1" chick wire on almost every fence on our big property. They can breach the perimeter if they can dig on both sides of the fence as well. Some runs we have placed retired telephone/utility poles along the fence lines. As the birds dig under the fence line, The cut sections of telephone poles drop deeper- eventually filling the holes with the section of poles. Lite birds go over- big birds go under!
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Mine haven't started digging out, but when I see the craters that develop from dust bathing, I'm not surprised. My predator proof run is about 30x30 so they aren't desperate to get out, but I just added back the exterior run because it has green stuff growing. They are all very excited. Now I just have to put up the netting... already saw a hawk.

 

[Coop de Grass]

I just discovered this, too!! I found two of my chickens this morning meandering around the run even though the coop was locked up for the night...further investigation led me to discover a tunnel they had dug under the sand box beneath their roosts, the entry to which was obscured by their plastic feed tubs!!!! The tunnel stretched a few feet under and out into the coop behind the bench and treat area.

Seriously, chickens?!?! They've even started to dig a hole under the front door of the run to the outside world. It turns out that chickens' worst predators might be themselves.

Might be time to name your coop Alcatraz!

 

[Lazy Farmer]

already saw a hawk.

Place wild bird feeders around your property and keep them full. Black birds/mocking birds/blue jays will nest near a food source. AND then they will protect the nests by chasing off the hawks.

 

[CCUK]

 

[Coop de Grass]

Place wild bird feeders around your property and keep them full. Black birds/mocking birds/blue jays will nest near a food source. AND then they will protect the nests by chasing off the hawks.

We do feed the birds, lots of feeders all over the place, but we also have a large area of lawn, mature trees on the boundaries of the acre and the house up towards the street on one side. The darn hawks have swooped down above my last dog who was 15 lbs... they get down and realize they don't want him and just swoop back up! He never even noticed them diving! I think they got down to about 3 feet over his head! Lots of Crows and Jays, and even the occasional Grackle... I haven't lost one to hawks in a long time, because of the netting. Once it is up the the hens just do this: ! and I do this: