Locking chickens in coop vs leaving access to run?

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

I lock mine in the coop at night, no exceptions.
I've seen too many "predator proof" runs decimated in the night.
You'd be amazed what a pack of dogs in hunt mode can do, and probably a little bit horrified.

Eggzactly. I've thought about putting a camera up to see what goes on after dark around the coop, but then I probably wouldn't be able to sleep if I saw the predators lurking around in the dark. LOL! You do the best you can to protect them and hope that is enough.

 

[TLCMidMichigan]

I let mine out around 9:00am and sut them up around 5:30pm(their all back in).

There too many predators around to chance it.

 

[MissChick@dee]

It’s a personal choice.
Chickens are prey animals that will never change. Minimize predators advantages with a secured run and hawk hideouts (I have multiple) in the yard. Close them in at night (coop & run). Keep them in the run when obvious predators are in the area. Trap and eliminate predators. It’s a constant battle that unfortunately we may only find a weaknesses in our defenses when we loose a bird. I let mine choose ... they have a open door from the run to the yard when I choose to open it. Often they choose to stay in the run where they feel safe.

 

[Mountain_artist]

We have a Fort Knox coop/run due to the presence of every manner of predator, and we still close the pop door to the coop at night. My husband got tired of opening it first thing in the morning and closing it at night, so he bought a solar automatic door opener and closer (sorry, I don't know the correct name of the thing lol!) The chickens did a good job of putting themselves in at night before the door closed all summer and fall, but...
when the days got shorter, we'd fine one or two who never made it in on time before the door automatically closed for the night. We tried lots of different things to get them to all go to bed (making sure they were all in the run about an hour before dark, putting a light on in the coop, adjusting the setting on the door to stay open later, not bringing them any treats to eat too close to dark,...) but nothing worked consistently. We had to go out of town a couple of weeks ago, and with low temps in the single digits and lots of wind, we decided to leave the door open so nobody would get left out at night. We also put up clear plastic around the run.
We put some cameras up around our property to see about predator traffic, and surprisingly we didn't see ANYTHING. However that didn't stop a coyote or fox from nearly killing one of our hens 3 weeks ago today while she was free ranging in our yard with us outside. Now, nobody is free ranging and they are very mad. My husband is in the process of adding a fenced in area off the covered run, and I'm wondering if we should move the automatic pop door to the opening between the run and fenced in area instead...

 

[The Lazy L]

If you have a secure coop attached to a secure covered run (is that an oxy moron??), is it still necessary or advisable to lock chickens in the coop from dusk to dawn? Is there any benefit to leaving the door open to the run and letting chickens decide for themselves? Or is that just asking for trouble (ie predators) no matter how much you think your run is fort knox?

Once they are fully feathered they are free 24 x 7 to come and go as they please (from coop to secured run). Around sunrise they exit the coop and at dusk they go back in the coop to roost.

• The Lazy L
• Jun 5, 2012

• The Lazy L
• Jun 5, 2012

 

[Macchickenman]

My coop and my run are surrounded by 1/4 by 1/4 hardware cloth attached w screws and washers....Aint nothing getting in .... Top, sides and bottom are hardware cloth so there isnt anything other than a bear that can get them... With all the work and love that got them to the 10 month age that they are, I dont want them to leave.... I know you know what I mean.... I love my girls...

 

[Macchickenman]

Once they are fully feathered they are free 24 x 7 to come and go as they please (from coop to secured run). Around sunrise they exit the coop and at dusk they go back in the coop to roost.

• The Lazy L
• Jun 5, 2012

• The Lazy L
• Jun 5, 2012

I like your attitude.. I wish it was the late 1800's...

 

[RustikRoo]

I had the exact same issue. So I built a automatic door open/closer with a light sensor that opens at dawn and shuts at dusk. Just followed a tutorial of YouTube. Bit pricey but safe and secure at night

 

[IamRainey]

I don't think I'll ever get my head around needing to deal with bears

We had bears and raccoons to deal with when we lived in Vancouver. I never actually saw them but I could always tell when the bears had been there as the raccoons would patiently work their way through all the ties and latches on our trash and then spread what they didn't want all over the place. The bears merely picked the large cans up and threw them around the driveway until they burst open.

Happily, we didn't have chickens at the time.