Raccoon proofing

[Babyfarm]

I am trying to reinforce my coop before my chicks are big enough to go in it. I am terrified about raccoons getting my babies. What has worked in the past for you all? Should I bury wire around coop? Can I make a wire floor ( attach wire to base of coop) and then just cover it with sand? My neighbors are HORRIBLE about keeping their trash cans contained...hence the raccoons. I have some time to work on this...chicks are only 3 weeks old.

 

[chfite]

Hardware cloth up the sides at least two feet to keep the raccoons from reaching through the wire. Bury or lay on the ground wire mesh on the order of 2 x 4 mesh fencing to prevent digging under the perimeter of the run. I extended mine out 24 inches from the fence around the run. I laid it on the ground. It has pretty much worked itself into the soil over the past two years.

I think that burying or laying the wire around the run is better than a wire floor for the run. It will be easier to attach the fencing to the bottom of the fence around the run and extend it out than to try to attach a floor. The plan is to prevent digging under the fence.

An animal will dig at the bottom of the obstacle. Upon encountering the wire mesh, the digging ends. My daughter's dog has tried digging furiously at the base of the run only to be stymied by the wire mesh. He has not tried to back up 24 inches and try there.

The coop should be secure. No openings larger than hardware cloth anywhere. When the pop door is closed, the coop should be Fort Knox.

Chris

 

[CoopDeFoudre]

I personally went with making the floor of our run hardware cloth. I'm going to cover that with a 2-3" layer of packed topsoil, then straw on top of that. The area our coop/run sits is very hard clay soil so I decided to kinda build our on a mound and make the floor well draining.

Though I do think the method of surrounding the coop with wire is probably the best method, I just didn't feel it was as feasible in my case. And a wire floor isn't the worst thing in the world, I would just try to cover it fairly well, so the chickens are able to scratch without hitting wire all the time.

 

[Babyfarm]

Thanks! The small squares is better than the traditional octagon wire cloth right?

 

[hungry4eggs]

Thanks! The small squares is better than the traditional octagon wire cloth right?

Yes the small squares on the hardware cloth will keep them from reaching through.

 

[jackhorn01]

The octogonal poultry netting is more for keeping chickens contained in a particular area than for keeping predators out. It is flimsy. I used welded wire for the bottom of my wall and the poultry netting for the top. Gonna use a trenching tool and dig approx a foot around my set up and pour quickcrete in it. then leave about two inches on top for grass to grow back up to it.

 

[Frooster]

My chicks are 6 weeks old, and it is REALLY warm out, and they are ready to go in the coop now. However, the coop has the WORST raccoon lock I have ever seen. It is a half circle of wood! Is there anything I could do to help stop the raccoons in my area before I can get to the store?