How high?

[hopp2it]

How high do I need to build a fence to keep the chickens in a separated area of the yard? I have all hens and we have clipped the one wing of all primary feathers (one hen we have actually clipped both wings) but they can easily still fly over the 3 foot fence we currently have. I'm going to roast them all if they don't stay out of my garden!!!!

 

[Roaddog]

I have some birds that will fly up on top of our shop at 10' so maybe 20' high???

 

[hopp2it]

Oohh don't tell me that!! We clipped the GC both wings and the rest we clipped only the one wing. I guess I'm going to put some bird netting over it.

 

[wekiva bird]

Some breeds can fly high up on top of your house. The heavy breeds don't fly that high.

 

[hopp2it]

What if I put a grid of string over the coop like for keeping out predator birds? Would that work to keep them in? I wouldn't mind so much but they keep making a salad bar out of my iris garden (the only garden in the whole yard near them) and its driving me nuts.

 

[KnoxvilleChick]

I would double it and go with 6. Maybe you could replace every other post or so with a 6' post and then just use some garden twine or wire to create a barrier? I don't know what your fence is made of so that may not work, but a neighbor of a friend did that and it worked very well for containing his flock.

 

[hopp2it]

Would you believe that it seems all of a sudden the GC stopped hopping the fence? I just realized it the last day or two that it's been probably a week maybe 2 since I've had to chase her back into the pen. Perhaps she's content now.

I wonder if her "exploratory" behavior was because the rooster she had been with most of her life (along with a RIR hen who is still with her) was gone. Maybe she was looking for him?

 

[KnoxvilleChick]

May also be that she's too big and heavy to make it up and over. Whatever it is, hooray!