Flying over 6 ft fence at 6-8 weeks?

[moodybubbles]

So my coop is 6X8 (well smaller since I have enclosed them with an interior door for added security and ease of feeding and watering) and I have just built a new run which is 16 X 16 with cattle panels on the bottom and 1 X 2" welded wire along the bottom 3-4 ft and chicken wire along the top 3-4 ft so it totals 6 ft and overlaps a bit. I have to make it impenetrable for the dogs who murdered my entire flock in the Great Chicken Massacre of 2010. So I attached the cattle panels to the posts with U nails and covered that with a 2X4 so the dogs shouldn't be able to pull it loose. I also buried the cattle panels 3-4 inches to hopefully discourage digging under by the dogs. Being that it is so wide at 16 ft, it is hard to cover easily. I have no other supports except for the landscaping posts at the corners and the posts put in around every 8 ft for extra support for the cattle panel. I ran 2 X 4's along the top and stapled the chicken wire to it and hoped to attach some kind of netting or wire but toyed with the idea of clipping wings when they get old enough. They are fully feathered now but are still smaller so i guess 6-8 weeks old. Can I clip wings now? I had one escape yesterday the first day in the new run. The bottom seems to be tight so I think she flew over the 6ft fence. She tempted her fate but managed to go undetected by the murderous canines. When I observed them flying they only seemed to be getting 3 ft or less off the ground. Do you think she actually flew over it? How could I cover it? Would deer netting work?

Also I am wanting to enter said coop and run as little as possible so I have a homemade feeder inside the coop (which can be reached by just opening the second door in the coop) and want to do a nipple watering system that will be fed by a 5 gallon bucket perched upon cinder blocks and using the nipples and PVC hopefully they will fully drink from that and I can fill the bucket from the supply area I made when I put that second door in. There are 7 chickens, hopefully all hens, and I have made 2 nesting boxes that I can access from outside the coop. Would they need water available in the run as well or just the nipple system inside the coop will be sufficient with the 4 nipples? They will have access to the coop at all times. Right now there is a temporary roost made from a closet rod set only about a foot off the ground but would a couple of 2 X 4's staggered in height make better roosts?

I also have a chicken tractor rigged up but it is only going to comfortably house 2-3 full grown chickens but I could let them in it somehow (gotta figure out the how of that as well) and move a few to another area to graze. They would have to walk along with the tractor though as I move it.

 

[moodybubbles]

 

[moodybubbles]

I am no carpenter and my husband was busy with projects of his own so I did this all myself. So of course some of it isn't square and those center posts weren't put in with cement, only tamped in the dirt a bit so they seem crooked and ill aligned with the other posts. Don't make fun of my carpentry

 

[Folly's place]

Good work! Any building project completed is a success!!! I think you can find netting to cover the entire run, or use chicken wire attached together with zip ties. Hawks are a threat, so covering the run is a wise move anyway. Mary

 

[Hokum Coco]

. Can I clip wings now?

My run is about 4 ft high. If you clip the feathers on "ONE WING ONLY" of each bird it will help.

Make sure there is no blood in the shaft of the feather before you clip or your bird may bleed to death.

On some birds you may even have to clip a few secondary flight feathers.

One wing throws the bird off balance and is more effective than trimming equal amounts off both wings.

 

[moodybubbles]

What is the minimum age to clip? I was checking out their wings and I can see where to cut approximately but it does look like there is brown in the cartilage hat goes to the tip of the feather but that is closer to the body. Does that count as blood in the shaft?

I have applied the deer netting but I doubt it lasts more than a few months. The birds will be bigger by then and I wouldn't think hawks could still get them full grown. The 2 X 4's along the top may be alluring to them as a place to roost. I can see them eyeballing everything. It is cute. If he netting doesn't hold up I will be clipping.

 

[vintagegem]

I am no carpenter and my husband was busy with projects of his own so I did this all myself. So of course some of it isn't square and those center posts weren't put in with cement, only tamped in the dirt a bit so they seem crooked and ill aligned with the other posts. Don't make fun of my carpentry

I'm really impressed! you did a great job, well done

 

[moodybubbles]

Thank you. I didn't build the coop, just the run, to be clear

 

[moodybubbles]

Is there some sort of visual deterrent that will keep them in as well? Such as lines run every foot or so across the width of the run? When they look up they would see the strings and feel that it is blocked so won't try to fly?

 

[subhanalah]

I am no carpenter and my husband was busy with projects of his own so I did this all myself. So of course some of it isn't square and those center posts weren't put in with cement, only tamped in the dirt a bit so they seem crooked and ill aligned with the other posts. Don't make fun of my carpentry

don't discount yourself, I think it looks great! How's it holding up in the weather?

I put my roof on today and it made it hot inside the coop booooo!