help?!?!?!

[Duck mommy 2019]

oh no, our bottom of the coop is all dirt. the door is patched good so raccoons hopefully can’t open it, will putting wood on the bottom help?

 

[DiYMama540]

Do you have a picture of your coop? May give us a better idea of your problem areas.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

Do you have a picture of your coop? May give us a better idea of your problem areas.

it’s 9pm here and too dark to go out... don’t worry the ducks aren’t in it! but basically it’s a rectangle shaped coop with wood on each side, and a wood roof, the door has hardware cloth on it and a kinda hard to open latch. the bottom is all dirt and the structure of it is very strong. would just putting wood as the flooring prevent predators from getting in?

 

[cmom]

You could put some wire in it and attach it to the bottom of the inside of the coop and put some dirt over the wire and even put a wire shirt around the outside bottom of the coop and run to keep predators from digging.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

You could put some wire in it and attach it to the bottom of the inside of the coop and put some dirt over the wire and even put a wire shirt around the outside bottom of the coop and run to keep predators from digging.

i feel bad saying this, but i don’t have a lot of time to build anything more except for throwing a few peices of wood down on the floor. would this keep the predators out though? i thought they couldn’t dig through wood?! i wish i had more time but for now we only spend like 20 minutes a day with the ducks, and that includes feeding and stuff

 

[DiYMama540]

I guess you could try it, but I'm thinking if it's not anchored or attached in some way, the predators could just push through it. Taking a little extra time now will save the heartache of any losses to your flock.

The hardware cloth as flooring is a good idea. You can just lay it on the ground, stapled to the walls, then put your bedding of choice over it. That shouldn't take much more time than laying down wood.

 

[David61]

I put chain link wire down in the ground 8-10 Inches deep before i turned out hw cloth as a skirt for 16-18 ". I put all the lose rock and broken brick in had around as fill before i put the dirt back on top. Nothing is going to dig in over one night. Any signs of digging will get addressed before a tunnel can make it. I walk around the coop everyday looking for signs and tracks.

 

[Cryss]

The boards themselves aren't going to stop predators from digging their way in, it will merely force them to dig further before they get in. Are you asking because you HAVE a problem, or because you don't WANT TO HAVE a problem?
There's a whole lot of critters that have chicken and/or their eggs on their menu, to name just a few: snakes, birds of prey, raccoons, squirrels, dogs, fox, opossum, skunk, fisher cat, weasel, mink, cats both big and small, coyote, wolf... and that's the tip of the iceberg... there are ALSO two-legged predators of YOUR flock.
What are you trying to keep out?
Attached please find a how-to video on youtube that shows how to attach a predator apron AROUND your coop (not in it). This is one common and popular line of defense for your coop, and may be more secure than wood flooring.

i feel bad saying this, but i don’t have a lot of time to build anything more except for throwing a few peices of wood down on the floor. would this keep the predators out though? i thought they couldn’t dig through wood?! i wish i had more time but for now we only spend like 20 minutes a day with the ducks, and that includes feeding and stuff

Critters will get close to the closest edge to start digging, in this case the outer edge of wood. They will dig under the wood, then continue under the fence. By putting down hardware cloth connected to the bottom outside edge extending 2 feet out, critters will move in close to the fence and try to dig. The wire won't let the and they aren't smart enough to move away from the wall to the edge of the wire. Wood can be chewed. Heck, my dogs shred chunks of 2x4 if we're not careful when cutting lumber.
Note, 1/4inch hardware is made with very thin wire, easily broken and ripped and rusts quickly. 1/2 inch is thicker gauge wire and is galvanised. Can a mouse get through? Possibly. If it's in daytime your chickens will probably swallow them whole. If its at night you need to look at the feeders. Don't leave them in the run or coop overnight. That's a banquet for the mice and expensive for you to be feeding a horde of freeloaders. Take feeders indoors at night.
Definitely post some pictures of your coop and run. We'll help you much better knowing the actual situation.

Oops...not chickens! Ducks! Same solutions though.

 

[Cryss]

Btw, don't put wire down on the floor inside. A toe could get caught or a beak. Plus there's no way to dust bathe.

 

[Aunt Angus]

I put hardware cloth under the wood floor (which is elevated a little from the dirt). I also have a hardware cloth apron around my coop. I don't know that that helps, but I was in the same boat. Not a lot of time nor money. I used what I had at the time.