- May 4, 2011
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We live in northern CA and are planning on getting 3 to 4 backyard hens (limited by city zoning). Our winters are typically cool and wet, summers are warm and dry. Average winter temps are 50's with lows in the 30's. We do occasionally get a cold snap with temps into the mid 20's. Summer temps are typically 80's with lows in the 50's. During a heat wave we can see a few days with temps as high as 100. I have seen coops for sale in our area that are completely enclosed with just small roof vents and a wire floor. Others are constructed with one entire wall of hardware cloth. We plan to locate the coop in a shady part of the yard inside a chain link dog run that has a chain link and shade cloth roof. I would prefer to have a wood and linoleum floor with some sort of poop tray instead of wire since I think it will be easier to clean. The 6 ft by 10ft dog run has 4 inches of sand. The lower 4 feet of the chain link is covered with 1/2" hardware cloth with a 2 foot apron that extends out and is covered with flagstone. The entire dog run is bolted to a large shed so it is not going anywhere. It is also very heavy gauge chain link, not the flimsy stuff from a big box store. Anyway, my question is do you think it is okay with our weather to build the coop with one wall of hardware cloth, or would this not be enough shelter for the winter?