Concrete base for coop?

[JaneDeere]

Hi there, I'm new here. I'm from Alberta and my husband and I are planning to get some chickens in the spring - we have 9 acres here and it's lonely without animals

We have a problem with Badgers, Skunks, Racoons and coyotes. I have two Great Pyrenees who would probably do a great job looking after them but I still want them to be safe especially since the dogs haven't met chickens yet and they do like to dig as well so until they have been formally introduced and trained to protect, they are predators too.

Do I need to have a concrete base for my coop to prevent predators from digging underneath? We will be doing this on a budget so will concrete patio blocks work just as well?


Our coop is going to be attached to the barn which will house Sheep and a donkey on one side and the chickens on the other so I have about a 10x24' space for the coop and a small run plus a huge area for them to free range off grass.


Thank you for the help, this is a great site!

 

[Bullitt]

A concrete base will work, but it is more expensive.

You can have hardware wire on the ground around the coop. Put it about a foot out from the coop, and cover the wire with soil. This will prevent animals from digging under the coop.

 

[thomasboyle]

I have a 12x16 shed with a concrete floor, and it is the best, longest lasting, most secure floor you can have. Being on a budget, I would look at cement board instead of concrete patio blocks. Animals could dig under and move the concrete blocks and manage to get inside. Cement board is like plywood and accepts nails / screws, but is made of concrete. It comes in 3x5 sheets in various thicknesses. 1/4" or 1/2" should be good. If you made the floor of pressure treated 2x6's covered with 1/2" or 5/8" plywood topped with cement board, you would have a very strong, very secure floor that should last many, many years. Cement board is not too expensive, it is $0.66 a sq ft at the local big box home improvement store.