I hope I'm not jinxing myself

[Chullicken]

I don't believe it's luck, as a man of science and realism. I believe your neighbors in their apparently horrible planning are paying the wildlife tax in your area and the use of what I presume is cattle stock fencing (?) keeping those baddies at a distance. Predators are going back there over and over because it's easy, why would they bother with something they'd have to actually conceive a plan for? I'll never fully understand the human condition in regard to predator proofings, in my most humble opinion it's probably the easiest part of raising fowl of any type. There may come a day when they do get it together and you may end up paying that tax after all.

 

[Chelseyb123]

Same here. IV tried to enclose there pen to their house they still find a way to get out but can come back in. I have everything fenced in so they can free range all day. But over the ssummer someone hit a skunk near my house an the next day I came home an my neighbors were all like "there was a fox at the tree line because of the dead skunk" well either they were blind or something but I never had a any issues so far. Even as many times after them saying that my chickens still like hopping the fence an going near the woods I still never lost one. My neighbors on the other hand had to chickens once like five yrs ago an i watched on get picked up by a fox they had everything enclosed but they could never mange keeping the door shut to the coop.but they also had it right next to the tree line which I would never place chickens since that like the dinner bell for most wild animals. My coop is like ten ft from the back of my house. So its also way closer to the roads with a loy of traffic. I Haven't seen any prints in the snow all winter or had trouble. I do have two dogs that bark when they see/hear stuff. An one is a very mouthy bullmastif that loves to bark. So maybe I am lucky as well I hope or something. But when I place my chicks outside when it gets warmor here they will be well protected.

 

[bald Rooster]

my entire coop and runs have a double fence, the outside layer is 2x4 horse fence.It is in the ground a little. my coops have hardware cloth, But my runs are around the outside and I used a good chicken wire to build them, the second layer of fence is mostly 1inc. chicken wire. I do not believe a coyote,dog or fox would risk its life to get in my runs, but a Raccoon might, because they can come in from the trees.