Making chicken wire run work?

[Justicedog]

I've had my run enclosed with chicken wire since 2012, leaving the door to the coop open and not had any predators breach it. We have foxes, hawks and I'm sure raccoons. I am rebuilding the run soon as some of the wood has rotted and the chicken wire rusted.

 

[cmom]

I've had my run enclosed with chicken wire since 2012, leaving the door to the coop open and not had any predators breach it. We have foxes, hawks and I'm sure raccoons. I am rebuilding the run soon as some of the wood has rotted and the chicken wire rusted.

I have had the same issue so when I replaced the chicken wire I also put up some welded wire.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Chicken Wire's sole value is keeping chickens in.

ALL of your predator deterrent will come from your electric fence strung around the outside. ALL. If that's adequate for your local predators, and you have no concerns with snakes (or the birds you are putting in the run are too big for your local snakes), you are good to go.

If you have digging predators of small stature, or big snakes who can fit thru chicken wire (and a snake can swallow something many times its empty diameter), then at minimum you need to hardware cloth above the height of your first hot wire, and extend a skirt around the cage. Or accept losses (like the snake that got in, but can't get back out).

And if he's custom making them? Offer to provide him the hardware cloth as alternative to is use of chicken wire, have it "custom" built with a materials substitution.

 

[cmom]

My wires electrocuted a couple of snakes. As they were passing through the wire they came in contact with the electric wires.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

My wires electrocuted a couple of snakes. As they were passing through the wire they came in contact with the electric wires.

My ground was too uneven to place my wires that low, sadly. 6" avg for my lowest hot wire, been filling in the ground where it dips. and letting the taught wire remain lower where I can. Watched an almost 3' eastern rattler mosey its way under the wire and down hill, looking for a sunny place to warm up. Honestly, I hope it got itself run over by a logging truck.