opnions on Covering for Run

[chrisg23]

I live in the SF Bay Area, CA. We just finished our coop and run. We do not deal with daytime predators. We do have an occasional cat wander through the yard, are they a threat to adult chickens? I've yet to see any hawks in our area, but I guess theres always that chance. We do have racoons and possums at night but our coop is very secure and they are locked up at night. My husband made a large run (15'x18') that attaches to the coop. We are trying to figure out what to put on top. Problem is we have a plum tree right in the middle of the run (we have a lot of fruit trees and was impossible to work around them). I hate to cut it down, but its obviously obstructing a more permamant covering like chicken wire. Could we use something like bird netting or plastic netting?

 

[dheltzel]

I wouldn't remove the tree, it will be loved by the chickens and provide a good amount of hawk protection. If you can cover just the open areas with netting, you should be OK.

 

[Bryant Redhawk]

I would just string wires instead of trying to "cover" the run. If you string wires over the run so that they cross and form squares of 1 foot or less, no hawk can stoop in and grab a chicken. We live with hawks and eagles (even have some nesting in our forest, near our coop) and none have tried more than once to stoop into the coop. If they were to try, they would injure at least one wing. Fortunately they spot the wires and pull out of their dive well before they get to them. Our run has several trees in it, and I just pad the wires where they run over a branch close enough that they might touch, this way the wires will not harm the trees.

You could even use the tree as an axle, making a ring around the trunk, padding that so it doesn't harm the bark and then attaching "spoke" wires to that. From there all you need to do is string additional wires that cross the spokes, just keep them spaced so there aren't any holes larger than 1 ft. square.

 

[chrisg23]

this is the run...they have a lot of shade from surrounding trees as well.

 

[chrisg23]

would the wires deter things like cats as well? knowing they dont have an easy escape?

 

[Bryant Redhawk]

That is a really nice setup. You can use the wire technique well with the way the trees are. All that shade will help with keeping any soaring hawks (S.F. doesn't have a lot of hawks but you could eventually get lucky and see an osprey). from spotting the chooks.

I lived there a long time ago and only twice in 10 years did I spot an osprey, never saw any hawks.

 

[chrisg23]

awesome thanks!