If you love your chickens, fence them in

[twentynine]

It's what I have said all along.

You want to free range by all means do so. Unfortunately my experience has not been positive. I have ended up giving free chicken dinners to every predator with a yen for the taste of chicken. I do not want to argue with others of differing opinion, each to his own. I do agree a poorly built run is paramount to offering your birds up to anything that walks-flys-slithers by. Why do many have horror story of mass killings, the simple reason they are unprepared, they don't understand the requirements of security.

I keep'em in a secure run, protected by high fence and electric wire. I have gone to great efforts to make sure they have green grass and vegitation. Do I believe they are 100% secure, no, but it is the best option, that fits my particular situation. The best I can say is "so far-so good."

Predators are not evil, everyone needs to remember predators are animals and animals lack the power of reason. They follow the nature God gave them. If that means they make a meal out of your chicken, Amen. A predator such as a coon has all night to figure how to get into the most secure run/coop, it's how they make their living. As owners we have family, work and other obligations that distract us, we can not be on chicken patrol 24-7-365. I have witnessed here on BYC some with the attitude that if it enters my yard after my chickens it's a dead dog-cat-coon-possum-skunk-mink-bobcat-fox-coyote-ect, whatever. My point is you are well within your right to protect your property, however no human can be alert uninterupted. And the second your attention is diverted is when they strike. In the case of a roaming dog, you can shoot the dog, but by the time the shot is fired, you may have already lost some birds. That leaves us relying on either mechanical means or luck to protect our chickens. As many will testify luck is a fickle mistress, sometimes good, sometimes bad.

 

[damohomesteaders]

FlockO'Sheppards :

We have a system that works well for our family. We have two small chicken coops with attached, fully enclosed runs. The coops are set apart from each other by about 50 feet and the space between them is fenced in with 5 foot high chicken wire. Our garden fence forms the backside of the main chicken run. The doors to the coop runs are opened every morning and the chickens run out into the main run---the more adventurous chickens hop out of the enclosure and free-range our pasture or hop the 6 foot tall garden fence and enjoy the fruits of our labor. I figure the ones that make it out are most likely the ones that will be quick enough and wily enough to evade a predator.

On the subject of getting "rid" of the neighbors free-range dogs:
I have chickens and I have a confirmed chicken killing dog. She's gotten out numerous times (three kids=accidental unlatched gates or doors) and she's been shot at by a farmer when she got into the coop. She survived, my other dog didn't---

I understand the rage that accompanies a loss, regardless of it's the loss of livestock or a pet (and I do consider my chickens pets). When we had the neighborhood dogs testing the strength of our coops, my husband had the brilliant idea of using a paint gun. It'll sting like heck, send the dog running and the neighbor will know what their dog was up to when it comes home with bright orange splotches on its coat. That way, we're not creating a situation where some little kid is crying their eyes out.

By the way---the paint balls have been effective with deer (trying to hop into our garden) and coyotes as well.

Glad to see I'm not the only one with the paint gun idea... I told my Hubby that we need one for our arsenal. Don't need to always use 'bullets'...​

 

[codybird]

I guess it comes down to:

"How much freedom is your chicken willing to give up to live under the illusion of safety"

 

[twentynine]

FlockO'Sheppards :

On the subject of getting "rid" of the neighbors free-range dogs:
I have chickens and I have a confirmed chicken killing dog. She's gotten out numerous times (three kids=accidental unlatched gates or doors) and she's been shot at by a farmer when she got into the coop. She survived, my other dog didn't---

I understand the rage that accompanies a loss, regardless of it's the loss of livestock or a pet (and I do consider my chickens pets). When we had the neighborhood dogs testing the strength of our coops, my husband had the brilliant idea of using a paint gun. It'll sting like heck, send the dog running and the neighbor will know what their dog was up to when it comes home with bright orange splotches on its coat. That way, we're not creating a situation where some little kid is crying their eyes out.

By the way---the paint balls have been effective with deer (trying to hop into our garden) and coyotes as well.

What happens when, not if, the dog comes visiting and no one is there to shoot the paint ball gun? That's the point I am trying to make. Paint ball gun works great, real gun works great, but you can't stand sentry duty 24-7-365.​

 

[FlockO'Sheppards]

What happens when, not if, the dog comes visiting and no one is there to shoot the paint ball gun? That's the point I am trying to make. Paint ball gun works great, real gun works great, but you can't stand sentry duty 24-7-365.

Too True!! When I know we're going to be gone for a substantial amount of time, I put them in their coop/run's and lock 'em up. Most of the time I give them the "free-range option" where some are content to stay in the main run and have access to running into their coop if they are threatened.

With three kids, three dogs and two horses on the property---I just won't do bullets---the repercussions should something go wrong are just too great. I can't imagine if one of our dogs got out and was getting into the coop and we shot and killed it...it'd be like killing one of our kids.

The limitations of any gun, whether it's bullets, pellets, or BB's that are being fired is in the speed of response. We don't leave our paintball gun with the cartridge attached, in case one of our kids gets their hands on it and fires point blank (I like my kids with both their eyes). We wouldn't leave a gun loaded regardless of what it was loaded with or where it was kept. What that means is that when the chickens start making a fuss, DH has to run to the gun and attach the cartridge, creep outside and get a sighting=not an immediate response.

We had a coyote around the backside of a coop where I couldn't see him. At 5am I was half dreaming and was certain it was a weasel that was biting their feet---little did I know DH was just sighting in the coyote when I slid open the window and started shouting. Our coop now looks very pop art.​

 

[ivan3]

FlockO'Sheppards wrote: We had a coyote around the backside of a coop where I couldn't see him. At 5am I was half dreaming and was certain it was a weasel that was biting their feet---little did I know DH was just sighting in the coyote when I slid open the window and started shouting. Our coop now looks very pop art.

Excellent! Lichtenstein understands

 

[valerieb]

Amen Beekissed.....couldn't have explained it better!

 

[waldeneffect]

We've had good luck with 5 foot high chicken wire fence to keep our flock in one area.

We sometimes put a piece of scrap wood at the bottom for something to attach the fence to in an effort to keep our dog from going under it.

Here's a blog post on some notes on chicken fence installation.

http://www.avianaquamiser.com/posts/Fences_for_chickens/

 

[punk-a-doodle]

Walden effect, I recognized your rooster in the above image from a photo you posted on a different site. This leads me to conclude both that he is exceptionally gorgeous...and that I spend too much time reading about chickens.

As with anything, we all have different ideas as to what is "best", and different situations with different challenges and goals. Some animals excel outdoors, and some people excel at managing them outdoors, others do best keeping it indoors or within a pen. Both caregivers of free-ranging and penned animals may or may not have love for their charges, despite the title of this thread.

 

[4 the Birds]

We free range but a strong perimeter fence is a must to give the birds a boundary and a basic obstacle for predators.