Racoons!!!!

[MooreFamilyFarm]

Ok, so what is the best way to keep these critters out of my coop? The coop we are building is enclosed and will have some ventilation points with wire covering them. Has anyone encountered them before around your coop? I hear they are fairly smart and persistent critters.
Thanks

 

[Pyxis]

Make sure you are using hardware cloth to cover the ventilation points and the bottom two feet of your run. Raccoons will reach right through something larger and grab your birds and pull them out piece by piece.

 

[Howard E]

I have coons and other varmints around here in abundance.




Yet I've not killed any of them, nor have I lost any birds to them. Am currently battling a bunch of mice I found living in the deep litter, but that is another story. BTW, if I don't win that battle, it can lead to an unhappy ending, but that is another story.

Anyway, so what have I done to keep birds safe? A tight, sturdy coop that varmints cannot break into which protects the birds at night. And an electric fence surrounding the yard to keep predators at arm's length to protect the birds during they day when they are out and about. (photo of coon above taken BEFORE the fence went up).



These two features.......tight coop to protect at night and electric fence to establish a safe zone that protects by day, has been my solution. Again, my experience has been no dead predators and no lost birds. Just saying.

 

[Howard E]

BTW, the tight coop I mention is Woods style coop with wide open front. So why don't they break into it? That wire covering the wide open front and side windows is 1/2" x 1" 14 gauge cage wire. They can't break into it.




Apron is 1" x 2" 14 gauge welded wire fence. They can't dig through that. Everything else is solid wood or plywood and there are no entry holes anywhere.