Need Horror stories -- when coops fail and predators win

[OScarlet]

Did you build what you thought was a Fort Knox that some predator got into? My teenage son thinks I am being over dramatic and there is no way a raccoon can do what I'm saying they can do -- one example he scoffed at -- raccoon on roof reaching down and pulling door open, another opening latches etc. He thinks good enough is good enough.

 

[redstar14]

Raccoons can open latches and ive heard stories of chickens heads being pulled off through fencing

 

[write2caroline]

Fort Clucks










I have never had any predators get into either of these two coops when I latched the doors at night. I live on 5 acres four of which is wooded and I have seen plenty of raccoon prints around the coops. My a frame coops which I thought were fort knox had twice been infiltrated. Even though the side panels were really heavy the raccoons could reach up and did damage. The blue coop is a simple pallet coop on stilts because I don't like to stoop over it when cleaning and we get heavy enough summer rains to get some flooding so I wanted them up off the ground.

Caroline

 

[chfite]

I don't have any horror stories, but I have read plenty. I feel sure that you could find many videos on YouTube to demonstrate the facility that raccoons have in opening doors, latches, and such.

If you can open it by pushing, pulling, squeezing, a raccoon can do it as well. I use combinations that require an opposable thumb action plus one other action to open. Animals can be persistent as well.

Animals are much stronger than you would think compared to a similarly sized human. I think that the evidence is out there. You have only to look.

Chris

 

[elrener]

I don't have any raccoon stories. I did have some dogs tear the fencing from the side of the coop where it was nailed on and kill 16 out of 23 chickens. How'd they know to get in there?