Do I need to lock up the coop at night?

[gritsar]

Quote:
Uh yep. They say if a 2 year old child can open it, then so can a raccoon. My chickens are locked in a predator proof coop at night, with a lock that even gives me fits at times.

 

[GardenGranny]

I have seen several coops pictured in different threads which are 3 sided sheds with roof that are open to the run. These seem to be in warmer areas of the country. How do these folks secure their chickens? by making the run as tight as possible? Any ideas?

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Yup.

And it makes sense, b/c overheating is a surer killer than the chance of a predator getting in

Pat

 

[Dixiedoodle]

When I became interested in chickens, I began making lists of what my coop/run NEEDED to be to keep them safe.

My run is completely enclosed w/ heavy duty, chain link fencing, it's buried 2 feet deep and placed in a two foot wide ditch and laid in an "L" shape then covered with cement and back filled with dirt. There's over 2000 screws, each seam is covered by 1x6 decking boards, bolted on and screws every 3",the wire is attached by huge fence staples. I have a 3' apron of 1/2" hardware cloth around the entire bottom... I have three locks on my gate,cement is poured under the gate to keep anything from digging under. We used 6x6 posts and 2x6 on the roof to attach the fencing to.

BUT I would never leave the door open to my coop at night.. I have chain link fencing and 1/4" heavy gauge hardware cloth on my windows, it's made out of 1" plywood and wooden siding, has a cement floor and a roof of metal over almost 1" plywood--everything is screwed in/together And I still worry about some determined predator getting into the coop......

 

[sotelomary]

I feel very comfortable with my coop. It has 1 inch hardware cloth, built on a brick foundation and my chickens are always locked in their coop unless they are free ranging under my supervision. I leave the pop door open 24/7 because it is inside the locked coop. Everything is like Fort Knox. I've made sure that there are no loose areas or weak areas where predators can come in.

I am always on this website trying to learn as much as I can and yes, I have spent many hours reading the predator section. I do believe that we can keep our chickens safe. It is important to learn as much as possible and to do all that we can. I don't get "paranoid" about every little thing.