Hardware Cloth On Floor Of Coop?

[lauriruth]

building chicken tractor. if i put hardware cloth on the bottom, won't that keep them from being able to scratch? can't their feet be injured?
this weekend is the two-day coop-a-thon building!

 

[patandchickens]

Yes, that's why you shouldn't put hardware cloth on the tractor floor

The even bigger reason is that you will find it difficult/dangerous or even impossible to MOVE the tractor if it has a full mesh floor. The chickens are meant to walk along inside as you move it. If you have a mesh floor, you will have to *pick the chickens up* along with the weight of the tractor to move it, and then not squish/amputate their toes when you set it down again.

A few people use mesh under the raised 'house' portion of a tractor, but I'm not convinced how pointful that is... it is still arguably hard on their feet, and some of the poo will require scraping/hosing on your part to get it to go down through the mesh, so, in my opinion, really, why?

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[nychickenhead]

the only setback on not having the wire floor is your leaving a space no matter how small whcih gives temptation to coons and foxes to dig under.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Not if you have a wire apron around the edge

You can have a short (like 6-8" wide) fixed one, which honestly will keep out the great majority of diggers; or a wider one that is hinged to flip up for convenience when moving the tractor.

Pat