Coon Question

[JessHall]

Our birds are still young, and we hadnt' started our coop yet. We got way too comfortable and we lost a duck and a chicken the other night to a raccoon. Stupid rookie mistake, I trusted our temporary day time enclosure for night time use. The "playpen" was not built correctly at all. I should have known!

Well, this lit a fire under our rears to not only get started on the coop, but to build one that could keep the devil himself out!
I came up with a little idea that has made the wood to hardware cloth bond almost impossible to break. (wood, staples, mending brackets, and another piece of wood. The mending brackets do a good enough job however, the extra wood sandwiching it all together not only looks nicer, but it adds even more stability. We are building the strongest Henhouse/ open run that we can possibly build... I mean STRONG!!! My husband made a mistake and had to cut the hardware cloth off just to adjust the wood!

My question is this: Do I have to lock the chickens up in the hen house at night or if we properly skirt wire 2' outside the entire thing in addition to our bomb proof coop structure, are they ok to go in and out as they please?

By the way... if any other rookies are reading this... Just because you or your neighbors think you don't have raccoons does not mean SQUAT! My husband shot at and I think got TWO! Moral of the story, just because you don't see them does not mean they aren't there!

Thanks for your help and for listening to me ramble!

 

[Salve&Fluffer]

I always lock the chickens in the hen house at night just to be safe, but you do not have to if the coop is secure enough.

 

[jqs birds]

Your pen sounds pretty safe to me, You may want to wrap your corners with metal so that they cannot climb up the corners and get in on top. But you can probably let them uase there run whenever they want.

 

[Bizzybirdy]

>>My question is this: Do I have to lock the chickens up in the hen house at night <<

ABSOLUTELY! Better to be safe than sorry. You should see my chicken run, like a fortress but I still lock my chickens in their houses EVERY night. Have lost way too many before doing this....and I have a 6" hot wire outside the run too.

Cannot be too careful when dealing with racoons or dogs!

 

[AmyRey]

Quote:
I vote yes. They'll want to be in the coop anyway at night if they have some nice roosts. Why not lock the door? I let my girls back out pretty early in the morning (7:00ish) and if it takes me a few minutes longer than normal, I figure they can wait. I throw some sunflower seeds in the coop for them to scratch around in while they wait.

 

[SurprisingWoman]

I didn't see anything about how you are enforcing the strength from digging.

I would be careful. Those raccoons are so darn clever.

 

[sadieH5836]

Lock them up!

I got lazy thinking I had a safe secure run and coop.
This is a mistake I will never make again.

I have lost 11 of my 16 girls in the last 3 weeks.

I have done major renovations to my run and coop to make them safer.
And I set a hah trap every night when I lock them up!

I have caught a racoon and a opossum, so far!

 

[xfilesnumber1fan]

Here is my set up..Its a dog kennel 10x10x6 welded pipes and wire across the top..Not just a tarp I dont have any wire underground the cage has settled a inch or more..I have 2x2 wire mesh 24 inches from the ground up..Have live traps set around the cage also..Got a baby oppusum other day the the neighbors stupid cat...I let them out durning the day when I can stay out side at all times to watch them I have 4 kids to help also..And they are padlocked at night inside..I do have a few mice running in and out stealing food...

 

[chickinxing]

I would about 18" of 2x4 wire on the bottom of my pens to keep anything from digging in. also, live traps would help tremendously. I keep 3 live traps set at all times around my place. I trap coons, opossums and house cats on a regular basis, and have even traped a red fox. Also i have 4 dogs that help guard my chicks.

 

[The Chicken Lady]

Lock them up tight in the coop every night. Chickens cannot see very well in the dark to escape a predator. It just isn't something I would recommend risking.