Only as Strong as the Weakest Point

[elmo]

Quote:
The electric wire would, but a racoon doesn't need any footholds to climb up a fence. I surprised a racoon in our garage one night and watched it climb straight up our eight foot tall wooden fence (smooth boards) in a twinkling.


Another thing to remember: if you make your coops secure but pay less attention to the run because you're always going to lock your chickens in at night...you better remember to lock your chickens in every night.

 

[elmo]

Quote:
Try to give your chickens as much cover as possible in your backyard: things they can duck under, shrubs, etc. Of course, this isn't going to make your chickens completely safe (only penning them will do that) but it will improve their chances.

You could always build a chicken tractor for your own peace of mind. That's what I did, because in addition to hawks, we have cats running around our neighborhood, and my bantam chickens are small enough so that a cat could be a threat.

 

[Gwen]

I've been told raccons are out in the daytime too. In fact, the one coon I've ever seen here was in broad daylight.

We live on an island and there aren't too terribly many racoons. I've heard of more people losing their chickens to coyotes and hawks/eagles. Coyotes aren't an issue for me as they can't climb over our fence but overhead things certainly are.

I'm wondering if the chickens free range in a wooded area, are they more protected from the hawks and eagles? I've not ever seen them in our woods. They were overhead for a while after we got our cat, but learned early on he wasn't going to be easy pickings for them, so left for greener pastures.

 

[valreegrl]

Thanks Elmo.

We do have cover, and they have access to the coop also. They spend most of the morning hours laying under a tree and bush and the afternoon in the garden under my tomatoes.

They also roost on the kid's playset, under the large wooden deck of the slide/fort. It's not ideal since they poop on the wooden table attached under there, but I figure it's a small price to pay to keep them safe and happy.

They usually come out in the early evening to forage for bugs as the sun goes down.

Do you think the pool is reflecting enough sun to keep them at bay or should I go ahead and try the CD/DVD thing and maybe a large fake owl?