Looking for Fencing Suggestions

[i<3mych1ckens]

So, I'm currently renting a house on an acre of land. The landlord is the coolest guy ever and told us we could use his shed as a chicken coop (I have five chickens). It works great, and it's a large enough shed to give them some room. I used to give them some time each day to roam the lot and pick for bugs (under my supervision) but now they're getting bigger and more gutsy and they are less inclined to stay close. We have no fence and the road is a busy, 45mph scary one. My neighbor behind me and to my right has a fence, and I'd like to fence off maybe a 50x50 foot area that they could roam in without having to worry about them going to the road. So using my neighbors' fences on two sides, I would need about 100 feet of some sort of fencing. It doesn't need to be pretty, but it needs to be CHEAP and also, it needs to be able to be undone when I move (landlord's conditions). Any suggestions?

 

[TinyChickenLady]

Wooden stakes in the ground with chicken wire stapled to it.
Sturdy enough to keep the chickens in but easy enough to relocate it when the time arises.

Sometimes chicken wire can get expensive but if it's just to keep the chickens it, you can substitute it with any other wiring.

 

[Gypsi]

Heavy guage 2x4 fencing, 5 ft tall, and T posts. Easy to put in, fairly easy to get back out again. Not incredibly cheap, but I am contemplating a movable fence around here, if I can talk some owners of vacant lots into grazing space, and this is what I was going to use. Before I found out goats could climb. Still going to use it on the lot, to keep the chickens out of my bees when I get more.

 

[BlazeJester]

I assume since you already have chickens you might know this, but ANY area they are cordoned off in will turn to dust. There will not be a shred of grass anywhere.

If that's ok with your landlord go for it (I'd do the wood stakes/chicken wire myself as I'm in a VERY similar situation), but I just wanted to warn you. It'd really suck to not get your deposit back because you didn't know your chickens were going to destroy the yard.

Good luck!

I'm subscribing here in case I see any great recommendations, since I am in the same situation and need a setup that I can easily move around the yard each time they roam (to prevent said destruction of entire lawn).

ETA: As a friend of mine in the same neighborhood found out, not all neighbors are chicken-friendly. Make sure that neighbor whose fence you want to use is OK with the chickens being on their property line. I'm not sure where you live (rural/urban) but in several urban/suburban areas the chickens must be closer to your house than to your neighbor's. Just another thing to consider.

 

[iBoodle]

I just used some green coated wire fence and put it up on green stakes. Works just fine!

(And when I say "I" I really mean my dad!

)

 

[i<3mych1ckens]

Quote:
Yeah, the area that I want to fence off doesn't really have much grass. It's mostly leaves because it's shady. I thought since I can't grow much there anyway it would be the best place. I had never heard the thing about your chickens needing to be closer to your house than your neighbors tho! That's something I'll definitely need to look in to. Thanks!

 

[i<3mych1ckens]

Quote:
That sounds good to me. Do you remember how much that cost you--err, your dad?

 

[kristen2678]

Not dirt cheap but functional. You might even find one second hand on craigslist.

http://www.premier1supplies.com/fencing.php?species_id=6

 

[turtlebird]

Quote:
Love love love my poultry netting. But not cheap....$135-ish for 100 ft PLUS the charger. Watch craig's list.

 

[Alethea]

It would be good to consider what, if any, predators are around. If you have predators, chicken wire alone might not do it, you might need to reinforce with another kind of wire fencing. That raises the price, but offers more protection. Also, if there are diggers around, you might consider a skirt, which makes it less portable. Hopefully you will be in your place a long time and not have to pull up stakes too soon. Good luck.