Need help protecting coop against bears

[Bobohunter1776]

Need some advice on how to protect my coop against bears. It's a steel framed coop and I'm looking for ways to discourage bears besides an electric fence.

 

[Rldad1]

Good luck, you are going to need it! Electricity is your friend, especially when it comes to bears.

 

[mowin]

X2... Unless you're coop is a bomb shelter, the only thing that is going to stop a determined bear is a hot wire.

 

[Mmanist]

You ever heard the story of the 3 little pigs. Build that coop out of brick! And add hot wire around it! Good luck! A bear could just easily push my coop over. Thank God not a huge bear problem here!

 

[One Lucky Momma]

Have you looked into solar chargers? If it’s not practical to run a line out to the coop you can do amazing things with solar.

We’ve had to do this at times to protect bee hives. I don’t believe you’re going to deter bears any other way.

 

[cmom]

I would get a pretty powerful fence charger and put up electric wires around your coop and pen. You can bait the wire with peanut butter or bacon. A bears hide is pretty thick so try to get it to touch the wire with the more sensitive parts like the nose, lips, and tongue. You can also make an unwelcome mat out of a sheet of plywood with some nice large spikes pounded though it but also stake the plywood to the ground so the bear can't move it. Here is an example but this would be too small and a bear could reach right over it. Make sure the spikes aren't too long but stick through enough so the bear won't bend them over. I saw a show awhile back where a fellow made some for his cabin. The bear did bend some of the spikes.

This mat is electrified.

 

[Folly's place]

Very hot electric fencing is your best choice. Those nail matts look evil to me, and can't really go all the way around your coop and run anyway.
Mary

 

[cmom]

The mats are only for the most vulnerable places. Not meant to go around the coop. My first choice would be good electric fencing or wires. I use the poly rope wires and so far nothing has gotten past them. My wires go around my coops and pens. We have bears but I have never seen one around here. There is a bear season with a quota.