Is my run strong enough to keep out... anything?

[AccioSarah]

This is currently the only picture I have of my run, but I can take some more if I need to.
It's PVC Pipe and chicken wire, and I already have plans to make it MUCH bigger, but right now those plans consist of more PVC Pipe and Chicken wire.
I want to know if something like this would keep out predators. Our girls will be locked into the coop every night, and I'm also adding an extension to their coop as well. The PVC pipe is weighed down with a bunch of sand in each tube as well.

What do you think? Should I use what I've got, or start over fresh?

 

[LuggNutt]

You will need to add hardware cloth around the bottom and dig it in, coons will go right through that chicken wire.

 

[Backyard_Chicken_rancher]

The Pvc and chicken wire make for good cages if you watch them every second of everyday (chicken is great at keeping chickens in but it is bad at keeping anything out) I would start over this would be ok for a temp place but I would do welded wire and T-post.
Even during the day there is things that can get to your girls such as dogs and belive me chicken wire is paper thin to a dog.

Good luck to you.

 

[CityChook]

What holds it down? The weight of the sand only? Unfort, I don't think this is very predator proof. What is stopping something from simply knocking it over? True, most of the baddies come out at night, and it looks like you're in the city with a fenced yard, but you still need to worry about loose neighbor dogs. It only takes a second to scale a chain link fence. My daughter's teacher just had her entire flock wiped out this spring that same way. With chicken wire. It doesn't happen often, but it does happen.

There are plenty of folks here who get by just fine with chicken wire. It's best if you are diligent about locking the chooks up at night. But be aware that you are taking a risk so that you aren't so devastated if/when something bad does happen.

ETA: I like this idea for a mobile run in case you want to move them around the yard, though. But keep an eye on them...

 

[bufforp89]

I have been using chicken wire stapled to trees for over a year now and have had no losses at all. I always put everyone up at night though. My only concern with your run is that an excited dog could knock it over, My pen is huge so when the neighbor dogs come the chickens just leave the area. Yours being small though may pose a prob. If the chickens have no place to go away from dogs of whatever and they are just standing there squaking and all that other silly stuff chickens do the said dog is just going to get more and more excited and eventually find a way in. If I were you and if you dont want to start all over I would get a fence charger and a spool of wire. A few turns around the outside of your run would keep out anything and you could prolly do it for 60-70$. Cheap price for peace of mind IMO.

 

[patandchickens]

The thing about "I have used chickenwire for X am't of time and nothing bad has happened" is that the same thing can be said of ANY flimsy material if predators happen not to challenge it. But unless one is comfortable with "hoping no predators will try to get in", having Lady Luck be your predatorproofing strategy, I think it is really worth building your run of something that would actually KEEP OUT a predator who's TRYING to get in. And chickenwire generally won't. Period. End of story.

I see chainlink in those pics. If the yard is 100% surrounded by fully-intact chainlink at least 4' high, that will keep out the vast majority of "casual" loose dogs (although if they see the chickens and decide they want dinner, it may not). Meaning daytime raccoons would be the only major non-flying daytime predator, and they are fairly uncommon. You might be ok with that, I dunno.

If the yard is not 100% pretty much dogproof, though, I would replace that chickenwire for SURE, because it is just an accident (=meal) waiting to happen.

And the pvc makes me very nervous too. It isn't that strong, compared to a big hungry dog or coon.

Sorry, but personally I would rebuild the whole thing from scratch, properly, with wood posts and heavy gauge wire mesh (no bigger than 2x4", and with something smaller mesh ont he bottom 2-3'), and good digproofing.

JMHO, good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[AccioSarah]

Quote:
My yard is completely safe from neighborhood dogs, it's surrounded by the chain link fence you see in the back. It's the coons that worry me. I am in a city, but close to a nature preserve that I suspect, has raccoons. I have yet to see one myself- but I'm sure they'll hear my chickens and come sniffing.
So it sounds like I'll be keeping this to move them around the yard/gardens during the day time, but I will try to construct something a little more sound to attach to the coop.
They will go into their coop every night- with an automatic door as well.
I hope this will work out! I only have a few weeks before my chicks are old enough to move out there.
Thanks for all the advice!!
-Sarah

 

[Gypsi]

While the back chain link looks to be 6 ft with no pole, the chain link to the left looks like 4 ft. My neighbor's hound used to jump back and forth over the 4 ft chain link that bordered our yards just to irritate the dog catcher. No effort, 30 second hops.... she could do it for 20 minutes straight.

I also have chicken wire, but my dogs deter other dogs, I have 4 ft chain link with 6 ft privacy fence outside it. I need to board up a 6 inch gap in one corner of my privacy fence. And yes, a feral cat got in, found one of the upper openings I hadn't closed in my chicken wire, probably right next to the ladder I'd left out, got in my brooder/coop, and ate one of my pullets one night when my dogs were in the house.

I will be installing 2x4 welded wire as soon as I can get someone to help me with it, or get time and energy to do it by myself.

Sorry to be the fly in the ointment, but hmmm better safe than sorry?

Gypsi

 

[patvetzal]

Chicken wire is great for protecting the chicken feed from grey and black squirrels, but our red squirrels and chipmunks just sneak on thru....

 

[AccioSarah]

Thanks for all the great advice! I'm trying to find something else that will work for us.