perimeter of property fencing

[lintlicker]

Hey yall,

the chicken run is pretty much like fort knox...so no worries about that. When we free range we are always outside.

Question is, we have around 2 acres of land we cant to fence in to keep the chickens wandering off into the neighbors property...they have never indicated they didnt like it, but a few days ago they were over there and went to get them and the wife mentioned "spraying them with a hose" to chase them off...Didnt sit well with me, but its also their property, so I get it...sort of.

Thinking about using some plastic snow fencing around 3' high to go around the edge of part of out property and will be around 2 acres...hopefully will keep them in and stop them from going over there which will mostly go through the woods/tree line...thoughts? Something a little higher? Dont want to break the bank with this but figured it would be something easy just pushing a stake into the ground and throwing a zip tie on and voila.

 

[RojoMarz]

3' might or might not be high enough. I have 1 chicken that can and will hop that (and higher) with no problems and on a daily basis. The other chickens never hop their run fence.

 

[lintlicker]

3' might or might not be high enough. I have 1 chicken that could and will hop that (and higher) with no problems and on a daily basis. The other chickens never hop their run fence.

yeah thinking at least 4' would be better, their run fencing is 6' high and havent had any issues, just dont wanna spend the $$$ to run 6' high fencing around 2ish acres

 

[RojoMarz]

I will add, that perhaps the snow fence is "floppy" enough that it wouldn't provide a stable landing platform, for them to descend from (ie. ground, and on top of snow fence, hop down to the ground.) My "hopper" lands on the top of the fence, then continues over.

 

[lintlicker]

I used something similar to keep the ducks in which worked, I agree with the floppy part too...gonna have to figure something else out.

 

[SandyRiverChick]

This is my only use for chicken wire. It's so worthless except when it comes to this kind of border. I use garden stakes and chicken wire to let the ladies know that they should not go further. It's completely useless as predator protection but works great for this purpose.

 

[No Coop No Problem]

I have a 3' garden fence in a lot of places and no chicken heavier than 5 pounds will hop it. Only easily flying breeds hop fences

 

[SourRoses]

went to get them and the wife mentioned "spraying them with a hose" to chase them off...Didnt sit well with me, but its also their property, so I get it...sort of.

If it helps, I can offer some reassurance about hose spraying. It sounds mean but the reality is not so bad. My mother has a fondness for spraying animals with the hose, especially when it comes to protecting the garden. I often wondered if I should convince her to stop, but monitored the situation and this is what I noticed:
1. Even on jet, by the time it reaches them the spray is dispersed.
2. Chickens run away quickly enough that it waters their backside, not the heads.
3. They are really quick when they want to be, they get out of target range before much spray has fallen on them. Despite her best efforts, I've never seen a wet chicken from the hose.
5. They learn quickly what the sprayer looks like so that itself is a deterrent to whatever behavior is getting them in trouble.

It's likely your chickens are getting up to some mischief over there. Messing about in the garden or pooping in traffic areas. When they say they're fine with the chickens they probably mean the well-behaved, slightly distant version of those chickens, lol.
In any case, could you run the fencing only down the shared property line? It might not stop them from going over there, but act as a deterrent / reduction in visits, as the flock in a large area likes to move as a whole, and it's unlikely for every chicken to make it around a barrier...

 

[lintlicker]

If it helps, I can offer some reassurance about hose spraying. It sounds mean but the reality is not so bad. My mother has a fondness for spraying animals with the hose, especially when it comes to protecting the garden. I often wondered if I should convince her to stop, but monitored the situation and this is what I noticed:
1. Even on jet, by the time it reaches them the spray is dispersed.
2. Chickens run away quickly enough that it waters their backside, not the heads.
3. They are really quick when they want to be, they get out of target range before much spray has fallen on them. Despite her best efforts, I've never seen a wet chicken from the hose.
5. They learn quickly what the sprayer looks like so that itself is a deterrent to whatever behavior is getting them in trouble.

It's likely your chickens are getting up to some mischief over there. Messing about in the garden or pooping in traffic areas. When they say they're fine with the chickens they probably mean the well-behaved, slightly distant version of those chickens, lol.
In any case, could you run the fencing only down the shared property line? It might not stop them from going over there, but act as a deterrent / reduction in visits, as the flock in a large area likes to move as a whole, and it's unlikely for every chicken to make it around a barrier...

lol its not the hose spraying that bothers me...its more of a human personal relationship with the neighbors as ive asked them before about the chickens venturing over there and even said to their father "you sure they dont mind?" before he died. Its always been a "yeah they dont care" but the interaction the other day was anything but "decent" but more so awkward as we have always been civil but something about it said "no this isnt ok" when they mentioned the spraying of the hose.

 

[SourRoses]

Its always been a "yeah they dont care" but the interaction the other day was anything but "decent" but more so awkward as we have always been civil but something about it said "no this isnt ok" when they mentioned the spraying of the hose.

Ahh, I see...
But yeah, that does sound like they noticed some behavior that caused them to all of a sudden care. Maybe poop. Non-chicken humans tend to be very adverse to chicken poop. Or they got to a valued plant. Or stood under a window crowing while they were trying to take a nap...