fence question

[Cluckatar]

I have a question about the fence adjacent to my new chicken coop. I will be building a run that attaches to the coop, but eventually I want to let my hens have a larger ranging area.

The fence in the picture here has wrought iron bars that are about 4" apart, the other side has a steep slope down to a creek. The fence is about 5' tall. Will full grown hens go through that fence? I'm still debating whether I will need to trim flight feathers later if I want them to free range in the yard.

I'm a chicken newb this spring. We have 5 seven week old pullets, and 2 three week old babies. The older girls moved into the coop last night, and the younger are still in the house in a brooder.

Thanks for any input

 

[Spunky~Chick~Mom]

What breed of chickens do you have?

Heavy breeds?

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Mine sure would. So would a number of predators (raccoons, foxes, possums, and a lot wider variety of loose dogs than you might expect, if there is the incentive of chicken-dinner on the other side)

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[Cluckatar]

Oh sorry, that does make a difference

3 welsummer, 1 barnevelder, 1 turken, 2 EE's

 

[highcountrychickens]

That's tough - nice looking fence, but it's really not predator proof... and I think that my girls would eventually find a way to squeeze through

Maybe you could put carpenter cloth (mesh) or some tidy looking but 'tighter' fencing on the outside of your fence to make it more unobtrusive but still protect your birds.

Great coop!