Racoons...Climb over wire fence?

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

i would be afraid with an auto door opener and closer, that there could be many things to go wrong. Such as, what if it didn't work one night? Or what if a chicken is sitting in the doorway and the door closes on them? Or what if the door closed after a predator got into the coop and the chickens couldn't get out? (Maybe i'm just a worry wart)

i know it's a chore to open coop doors in the morning (especially when you want to stay snugged in bed) then close them up at night. But for me, that's the only way i can be sure everyone is safe in bed, and then coming out healthy-looking in the morning.

 

[Brian]

This is helpful. I appreciate the comments. I always plan for large coops, and so, I think the one poster is right...it won't be a big deal for the hens to have to wait a little while in the morning, and it has to be the most fail-safe approach. What I would like to know more about, however, is an electric fence. I will have 110 electricity to the coop. How costly is it to wire a fence, and can it be added to a regular wire fence without a problem?

Brian

 

[harveyhorses]

I LOVE my electric fence. I think you can get a good one for around 100, some people use posts, I use the inusulators that stick out about 6 inches, and wire, there is a wide fence material you can get, but it can be tempermental. Don't get the charger that says something like garden safe. A friend got one and wanted me to check it out, it puts out so little zap it barely made me jump. I had carried my spare, and you can't MAKE me touch it now. They are rated in Jewels (o.k. joules) and I like lots of them.

I also have a top on my run. I made a PVC A frame with hardware cloth, tarps an chicken wire.
Even with all that I had a visit from Mr. LePew last night.

 

[Brian]

With an electric fence, is the whole fence charged, or does the animal have to touch just the charged wire(s)?

 

[woodmort]

Quote:
I agree to the above.

BTW not a chicken thing but I had a 7-foot fence around my garden that kept deer out but not coons out of the sweet corn. The only solution that worked was an electric fence wire around the top to keep them from climbing over.

 

[harveyhorses]

They have to touch the charged wires. I have just off the ground, a couple of feet up from that and a high strand. I tried to think like a critter when I was putting it up.
I have one hen that has to wait till it is dark before she will go in the coop. She would hate that automatic door.

 

[Mattemma]

I would never leave it open.Animals are persistant and will often find a way into a run and even into the coop itself. I don't let mine out till close to 10 due to neighbors(with Jackie Chan crowing).They survive. The electric fencing sounds great!

 

[Brian]

I would think a 6' tall fence, with a single line of electrified wire at the top (6" above the top of the wire fence) could work quite well in deterring raccoons! They'd obviously have to touch it to get over, and thus, would not want to go over it. Correct?

Is there anyone reading this who has first hand experience or knowledge of such a setup, and who still has experienced a coon getting over their fence?

 

[Floridachicken1958]

Another way to solve the problem is to put a radio playing by the coop and the wildlife thinks it's people talking so they stay away.

 

[Ridgerunner]

The only method I really trust is a barrier with no holes they can get through. They may find a weakness in this, since it is created, built, and operated by a human, but I consider this the safest.

A properly installed electric fence will work great as long as it is installed correctly and properly maintained. If you have a power outage or weeds grow up and short it out, it does not work real great.

Any other method may or may not be a temporary or long term deterrent, but I do not consider a deterrent to be true protection. I tried a lot of things to keep deer out of my garden: dog hair, Irish Spring soap, monofilament fishing line barriers, and many others. Some provided temporary deterrence, but the only thing that stopped them cold was a 10' high fence.