Dog friendly chicken barrier?

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

Hi folks. I’m looking for some ideas to keep my chickens off my deck. I have a large container garden, and the girls are beginning to discover it when they come up the steps to visit. I do not have a way to keep the plants safe from the chickens, so I need to stop them from climbing the stairs. For the time being we’re using a baby gate. The problem being that the dogs can’t access the yard if there’s a gate on the deck (sort of defeats the purpose of the doggy door we just installed).

I’ve tried training the chickens, but if I’m not around to see them, I can’t chase them away, and the deliciousness of my kale and cabbage (or what remains of it at the moment) keeps them coming back. Is there anything that might work to deter the hens but permit the dogs access? We might try a curtain or flag-like thing as they’re scared of any flapping material. I just don’t know how long that will last or if they will get used to it. Thoughts?

 

[nchls school]

Plastic garden netting would work as a curtain. Dogs and cats can be shown how to go under it. I used such a curtain on my serama coop so the door could be left open on nice days and I could lift and enter. My dogs soon learned how to follow me in. The serama never did figure it out. I put weights on the netting end to keep it in place.

I use a lot of plastic garden netting with the flock-good stuff!

 

[centrarchid]

Distance over open ground.

 

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

Thank you so much for your suggestion! My husband crafted this “gate” with the plastic netting. So far so good!

Plastic garden netting would work as a curtain. Dogs and cats can be shown how to go under it. I used such a curtain on my serama coop so the door could be left open on nice days and I could lift and enter. My dogs soon learned how to follow me in. The serama never did figure it out. I put weights on the netting end to keep it in place.

I use a lot of plastic garden netting with the flock-good stuff!

 

[nchls school]

You're welcome. It looks much like the gate I have.

 

[centrarchid]

Thank you so much for your suggestion! My husband crafted this “gate” with the plastic netting. So far so good!

Keep us posted on its efficacy.

 

[aart]

Thank you so much for your suggestion! My husband crafted this “gate” with the plastic netting. So far so good!

Cool Beans!
How long for dog to figure it out?
Have chickens 'tried' it?

 

[centrarchid]

My games would find away around by flying directly to handrail from ground. American Dominique's might be stopped by it very well unless the try to push through gap thinking the whole thing is vegetation. With latter, possibly increasing weight a little might keep birds out.

 

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

The gate has been effective. A few times I've found chicken poops at the top of the stairs, but no one has been on the deck. And I haven't found poo in a while, so I suspect they're giving up. 1 dog figured it out immediately (pictured). 2nd pupper took a couple days as she didn't like the feel of the plastic. But she figured it out. Unfortunately the pictured pupper tore his other CCL so now we're back to a solid dog proof gate to keep him from running up and down the stairs like the psycho that he is. But it'll be nice to go back to the chicken gate once Jasper is healed up and back to normal.

 

[shawluvsbirds]

Distance over open ground.

What is this even supposed to mean?