ro ro much better second time around

ro ro

In the Brooder
Oct 23, 2021
14
29
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well this is my second attempt as my 2020 flock was murdered by something and just left laying in the run --- i had fenced in and 3 layers of ird netting over the top and something went thru the netting and murdered all my birds [about 20] so this year i built a gambrel frame and ran 2x4 fence wire areound the top of the run and fastent o top of coup [about 7feet high in center ---- ordered 30 replacements this spring [they seent 46] i lost 5 to chick stress i guess in the first week then at six weeks i let them in the new run and some still fit threw the wire 3x4 fence --- i got the rest put back in coup ---- i seen a hawk got at least 2 of the escapees then a couple days later there was 6 of the escapes came back and i got them back in the coup this gave me what turned ou to be 33hens and 2 roosters so i lost 4 more of the escapees for a total of 11 lost 5 died from stress i guess and 6 of the escapees ------ well i found some orange construction temp fence with 1/4 inch grid pattern and ran this around the bottom of the fence [i buried the wire a foot but only buried the orang about 6 inches then let the 7 week chicks back out into the run ---- i did pick up an incubator and am debating on hatching a few birds for next ye3ar to vary the ages so i dont lose all the egg layers the same year ---- have rhode island red {roosters are of this group] and black sex links ---- they seem to be large the roosters are close to my mid thigh and hens are knee high ---- if i hatch them i guess i will raise the roosters for meat birds ---- i dont know this is first time i made it to the egg laying stage ---- for coup run set-up description it is on page 7 of the self sufficient thread i have it so they can eat and drink for 3 months if feeder and waterer are full
 
i quess i misunderstood the question-----i thought it was about setting up coup to not have to do daily feed n watering ----- what i did i got 2 55 gal soda concentrate plastic barrels and set them on their side and ran plasic pipe to coup and installed 8 chicken water cups --- also got a 55gal plastic screw top barrel and put 3in 90degree elbows in it to set about 1/2 to 1 inch from bottom----this will hold about 8 bags of feed i have yet too fill completely but i use layering to fill it i put in laying pellets 3-4 bags 1 bag of scratch 1 bag of corn and 1/2 bag of black oil sunflower seeds ----- this last months and is sealed by elbow being so close to bottom & the feed to stop animals from crawling into the barrel --and the water feeds the cups for 3-4 months [must be hight than cups for total capacity to be available even tho pipe is buried to coup the barrels are high enough to empty and only lower pipe will not flow to cups once barrels are empty ------- i do still soak about a half scoop of laying pellets and feed it to chickens the next day to make feed last longer as the soaked feed has swollen and takes les to fill the birds but there are days i do not do this and they just feed out of the feeder and what ever they scratch in the run [i do give them about a third of a scoop on occasion of scratch with some sunflower seed in it] usually when i coolect eggs to get them to other end of run because i have a couple that insist on laying under the coup [its about 3ft 6in of the groun 8x8ft]and run is about 25ftx 8ft plus the size of inside of coup ----- i have 33 hens and 2 roosters ----- they are very sexually active ---- recieveved chicks april 1st of 2021 ------ loosing a couple eggs a day by peckers so next project is roll-a-way nesting boxes fun fun fun
 
Hello and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.
Be careful trying to have so much feed and water that you don't have to at least check it daily. Stagnant water turns foul quickly and feed can mold. Eating molding feed can kill the chickens.
The general rule for keeping most predators out is to use 1/2" hardware cloth on all openings in the coop and the lower 2-4 feet of the run so racoons and such cannot reach in and grab chickens. Also locking them up in a very well ventilated dry coop every night is rather critical to prevent night time predation.
 
I tried to get a good idea of your pen from your post, just wanted to throw out an idea! I stopped having eacapies and critters stopped reaching in my run after I added roofing metal like in the attached picture around the bottom of the run, if you can find some used 3ft wide metal, it usually runs $1 per linear foot around here. Also old tin roofing is a great materal to use as a roof in your run even if it has a few screw holes 👍And instead of tin roofing Ive also added lumber 2×4s and attached 2x4 welded wire with staples over the top and nothing large ever got my birds again. If you decide to do something like this and you add a roost against the walls of the run, I like to add a piece of tin where the roost meets the wired walls so nothing can attempt to pull them through while they roost, ive had that happen too when using 2x4 welded wire for the walls. 1/2in hardware cloth is the ideal run wall to keep predators out! But if it is too expensive, you can and I have made 2x4 wire work if you protect bottom, roof, and where the roost meets the wall properly. But sometimes its better to splurge a little if possible to insure your investment. Just some ideas ive learned over the years 👍 also this pic is not of my coop, just using it as an example
 

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