I live in Warren County, NJ. We have fifty wooded acres. The chickens will be not too far from the house. We have bears. We haven't had any problems with the bears. We don't keep garbage outside. The compost will be relocated further away from the chickens. I have read a few horror stories here on BYC regarding bears versus chickens in NJ.
The chickens will be kept in the run during the day, for the most part. Their free-ranging time will be limited, due to a Jack Russell Terrier and my working during the day. They will be in the coop for the night.
The coop will be contained within chain link fencing. Currently, the fencing will be about 12'x18'. We were planning on roofing the run with the chain link, and purchased the necessary amount. However, the coop is taller than the height of the fencing. So, roofing the run with the chain link will require a lot of work, to configure it around the roof of the coop. If I don't roof the run with the chain link, I can have a bigger run, then I can roof the run with a lesser material than chain link.
Here's the bottom line (after all of that wordiness!) ... does anyone think that a bear will scale the chain link to get inside the run and then tear apart the coop? Is it enough to use lesser material to protect the chickens against the hawks during the day? Yes, there are bobcats, coyotes, raccoons, possums, etc ... but I don't think there's that much of a concern about those predators during the day. Even though I'm at work, my mother and the psychotic Jack Russell Terrier are here during the day
The chickens will be kept in the run during the day, for the most part. Their free-ranging time will be limited, due to a Jack Russell Terrier and my working during the day. They will be in the coop for the night.
The coop will be contained within chain link fencing. Currently, the fencing will be about 12'x18'. We were planning on roofing the run with the chain link, and purchased the necessary amount. However, the coop is taller than the height of the fencing. So, roofing the run with the chain link will require a lot of work, to configure it around the roof of the coop. If I don't roof the run with the chain link, I can have a bigger run, then I can roof the run with a lesser material than chain link.
Here's the bottom line (after all of that wordiness!) ... does anyone think that a bear will scale the chain link to get inside the run and then tear apart the coop? Is it enough to use lesser material to protect the chickens against the hawks during the day? Yes, there are bobcats, coyotes, raccoons, possums, etc ... but I don't think there's that much of a concern about those predators during the day. Even though I'm at work, my mother and the psychotic Jack Russell Terrier are here during the day