Quote:
I never said I hadn't lost a bird. I have been keeping poultry for over 25 years. In that time I have had many different pens and each time I had a problem I learned from it an improved my pen. What you said about my humility already happened when I first started keeping chickens and I learned from every incident. So, you could say I already learned my lessons about proper pens and applied them. There is no predator in this area that is getting into my pen. Period. I have buried wire 12' down and 12" angled out, and concrete curbs. I have screen and wire. At night they are in a converted tough shed that is sealed. The roofs of the run are bolted down corrugated metal. Every crevice has been sealed with steel wool, wire and caulk or insulation foam. I don't even have fly problems let alone rodent or otherwise. I won't say my pen is predator proof by any means, but its pretty safe, and that is proof enough for me that you can minimize your losses to predators without extermination.
Iowa Roo Mom, I know you were not entirely serious. But, what you said happens to line up a bit with how I run things at my place so I commented. I explained a bit more above.
Quote:
I admire you for your skills at building, but I am objecting to your self-righteous attitude and contradictions. You said no predator in your area that is getting into your pen and in the same paragraph say that you won't say your pen is predator proof by any means.
I can see how you could be confused. I said I never loose any because, in the pen i have now, I have never lost any birds. However, I have kept chickens a long time, and like everyone else, early on I encountered challenges and lost a few birds to predators. Then I started focusing on predator-proof designs. The pen I have now, where I live, it is very very very unlikely that a predator can get into it. The birds are in a building inside another building - Its so unlikely that it's just not going to happen. That's what I meant when I said no predator was getting in. Sorry if that confused you. Also, there is no way to prove the pen is predator-proof, nor would it be if a bear (none around here) or a racoon with a a few days to spend and some power tools tried to get in. They might. If they worked at it, and I didn't notice. But that would be my failure for not noticing, not a failure of the pen design. But, since it could be done in certain scenarios, I felt that I cannot call the pen predator proof. That's why i said it wasn't predator proof. Hope that clears it up.
Also, I said I don't have a lot of building skills, but thanks for the compliment.
