Im from Texas too, I would like to address the top on the fence issue...you know we have lots of varments here! (Coyote, fox, skunk, coon, fox, possum, cat, owl, hawk, dog ect.) have a friend who begged me to give him a chicken so I gave him an extra roo I had just raised. Well he put it with 8 new teenage chicks he bought in a fence and the slaughter began...before he wised up 5 of his chickens were a buffet including the beautiful Buff Orpington roo I gave him. BTW the reason he did not take my advise is because he listened to his wife who whinned about letting them free range. I like free range but you have to know that you just have to accept that you will loose some. I believe in a very large fenced are sort of a free range/chicken run. The best of both worlds.